OUR BELIEFS

GOD

• We believe in one God who exists in three distinct persons as the Trinity.

  • FATHER - God is the only sovereign, wise, and good Creator of all things, who reigns as King over all creation for His own glory. God created the universe and all things out of nothing, manifesting His power, wisdom and goodness. God continues to work throughout history by sustaining His creation and fulfilling His redemptive plan. (Genesis 1:1, Matthew 28:19, Romans 11:33-36).

  • SON - We believe that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, God in human flesh. We believe that the virgin-born Son of God died for our sins, was buried, rose from the dead and is coming again. We believe He is both fully God and fully man. (Philippians 2:5-7; John 14:9; John 8:58; John 1:1,14, 3:16; Colossians 2:9)

  • HOLY SPIRIT - We believe that those who receive Christ also receive the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit: He marks them as the possession of God, manifests the fruit of righteousness in their character and endows them with spiritual gifts for ministry. The Holy Spirit also acts as an advocate on our behalf, giving us wisdom, discernment, and direction. (2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Galatians 5:22-23; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6)

SCRIPTURE

• We believe the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God and that men were moved by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture. Therefore, the Bible is without error. Not only is it without error, it is sufficient as the only written authority for Christians. (Proverbs 30:5; Romans 16:25-26; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21)

MANKIND

• We believe that man is created in the image of God to have a relationship with Him, but becomes alienated from that relationship through sinful disobedience. As a result, man is totally incapable of coming back into a right relationship with God by his own effort. While there is nothing man can do to restore right relationship with God, we believe God has place within man free will to choose to accept the saving work of Jesus. (Genesis 1:26-31, 3:1-7; Romans 5:12-21; John 3:16)

SALVATION

• We believe that the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross provides the sole basis for the forgiveness of sins. Therefore, salvation only occurs when a person repents of their sins and chooses to place their faith in the death and resurrection of Christ as the sufficient payment for their sins. (Act 3:19, 16:31; Romans 5:9, 10:9-10; Galatians 2:16; Ephesians 1:7, 2:8-9, 13; Titus 3:5-7; 1 Peter 1:18-21; 1 John 1:7; Revelation 1:5)

BAPTISM

• We believe that baptism serves as a symbol of the burial of the old self and the resurrection of your new self in Christ. Baptism is a public expression of an internal transformation that has occurred. Following our understanding of Scripture, we practice baptism by immersion; the Greek word used exclusively throughout the New Testament for baptism is “baptizo,” which means to plunge, dip, or immerse. Jesus modeled this form of baptism and commanded it, Anyone who has professed faith in Jesus Christ should be baptized at his or her conversion or soon after. (Romans 6:1-5, Galatians 2:20, Colossians 2:12)

ETERNITY

• We believe that Jesus will return one day and on that day all will be judged. There will be just punishment and reward. For those who are in Christ Jesus there is no condemnation, and they will spend eternity in the presence of God in real places, the new Heaven and the New Earth. Those who reject Jesus will be separated from Him by their sin in a real place of eternal conscious punishment called Hell. (Matthew 24:44, John 14:3, Acts 1:11, 1 Thessalonians 4:16, Hebrews 9:28, Revelation 22:20)

MARRIAGE

• We believe in the sanctity of marriage between one man and one woman. We believe that the homosexual lifestyle is outside of God’s plan for His people and is considered sinful. This is also true of most situations of divorce. The Bible clearly defines grounds for separation (Abuse - emotional, physical, sexual, etc - Adultery), and any reason outside of those grounds is sinful. Marriage is much more than an earthly relationship. It is a sacred illustration of the covenant relationship between God and His Church.  (Genesis 2:24; Jeremiah 29:6; Isaiah 62:5; Leviticus 20:13, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,)

LIFE

• We believe in the sanctity of life and that life begins at conception. We believe that God, in His sovereignty, created human beings in His image, and as a church, it is our responsibility to stand for the right to life for all people. (Genesis 1:26-28, Psalm 139:13-16)

IDENTITY

• Because we believe that God creates mankind in His image, and that God creates each human life, it is God, and God alone, who defines gender, identity, and sexuality. Mankind is not allowed nor even capable of redefining what God has defined.  (Genesis 1:26-28)

RACE

• We believe that God creates all people, equally and uniquely in His image. Race should not ever be used to divide or discriminate. Racism is sin and goes against the imago dei, the image of God. While differences in race are beautiful and honoring of God’s creative design, we believe that God’s people, as brothers and sisters in Christ, supersede the color of skin. Because of Christ, all people who accept Him as Lord are reconciled though the blood of Christ, regardless of skin color. We use the Bible alone to define harmony amongst believers, race, and racial disparity.  (1 Peter 2:9, Ephesians 2:11-22)

UNITY / LIBERTY

• We believe the Church should seek unity with all believers in matters essential to the universal Christian faith, and contend for liberty in all matters wherein the Lord has not spoken through His Word. (Ephesians 4:2-6)

CHURCH LEADERSHIP

• We believe that a board of elders should oversee the wellbeing and health of the church including that of the staff. The way we describe our leadership structure is “Staff led. Elder Protected." (1 Timothy 3:1-7).