Our Beliefs

God

We believe in and worship the triune God of the Bible, who is eternally one God, yet mysteriously exists in community as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God is the Creator of all, and alone deserves our love and worship. (2 Cor. 13:14, Matt. 28:19, Matt. 3:16-17, Matt. 22:37-38, Genesis 1)

Jesus

We believe Jesus is the Son of the living God, and our Lord and Savior. We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His death on the cross to atone for sin, His burial and bodily resurrection providing victory over sin and death, His ascension into heaven to rule over all, and His future return in power and glory to finalize his victory over Satan, and to establish His rule over the new heaven and the new earth that God will bring about. (John 1:1-14, Colossians 1:15-20, Hebrews 1:1-4, Luke 1:34-35, Hebrews 4:15, Romans 5:8-9)

Holy Spirit

We believe that those who become Jesus' followers receive God's personal, empowering presence - the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit lives within the believer to guide them, to transform them into Christlikeness, and to empower and gift them for effective service. (Romans 8:9-11, John 16:7-15, Galatians 5:16-26, 1 Cor. 12:1-11)

Fall

We believe all people are created in God's image to be in a faithful relationship with God, but that all people are sinful and in need of a Savior. As a result, our rebellion has separated us from God and has affected our relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation. We believe that the loving, all-powerful, one true God is on a mission to redeem, heal and make right our lives and this world. (Genesis 3, Romans 3:9-20, Romans 3:23, Ephesians 2:1-3, Isaiah 59:2)

Work of Jesus Christ

We believe God brought the gift of salvation to redeem the world through the person of Jesus in His life, death, and resurrection. Jesus has paid the penalty for the sin of humanity, He has defeated the powers of sin and death, and He has set into motion the establishment of God's loving and transforming reign. (John 3:16-18, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Romans 10:9-10)

Salvation

We believe that in order to receive forgiveness and have peace with God, and thus become a child of God in His family, a person must see that they are a sinner, who needs to be saved, trust in Jesus the Son of God to be their Savior, and commit themselves to Him as their Authority or Lord. Salvation is by God's grace - it is a free gift given by God that we cannot earn by our works. It is fully accomplished through Jesus Christ, and fully received at the time of belief. We believe in eternal security, that once God saves someone their salvation is secure and nothing can steal it away or make it forfeit. We believe that those who God saves, will persevere in the faith. We believe that salvation will show itself to be true in the life of a believer through the fruit that they bear. That God is willing and working in His children to pursue His glory in all things. (Romans 10:9-10, Acts 16:30-31, Ephesians 2:8-9, John 10:27-29, John 6:37, Hebrews 12:14, Philippians 2:12-13)

Last Things

We believe that Jesus will return one day to finalize His victory over Satan and all evil, to transform the old heaven and earth into the new, and to raise His children from the dead to populate and rule over the redeemed world He has made. We believe when Jesus returns He will bring about a bodily resurrection of His faithful to life in the new heaven/new earth, and the resurrection of the unfaithful to eternal separation from God in Hell. (Matthew 16:27, 24:27, 25: 31-46, 1 John 3:2, Revelation 20-21)

Baptism

We believe that those who place their faith in Jesus and commit their life to Him should undergo “believer's baptism.” This is a public ceremony where believers in Jesus profess their faith in Him by being immersed under water to symbolize the forgiveness of their sins, the new life they have in Him, and the new community to which they belong. (Matthew 3:13-17, 28:19-20, Romans 6:3-4)

Communion

We believe in the celebration of the Lord's Supper (also called Communion, Holy Communion, and the Eucharist) by members of God's family. Through eating the bread and drinking from the cup, we remember and celebrate Jesus' death, sacrifice, and gift of salvation for the world. In our church, all folllowers of Jesus are invited to share in the Lord's Supper. (Matthew 26:26-29, 1 Corinthians 11:17-34)

Scripture

We believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God, authoritative and completely reliable for faith and life. (2 Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 4:12)

Mission

We believe that as God's people, and out of loving gratitude for what He has done for us, we are called to demonstrate God's Kingdom, and point people toward God's future transformation of creation by bringing the Good News of Jesus to others through our loving deeds and our words. God desires all people to know Him and to be in His family, and we are called to model in our lives and proclaim with our mouths that truth. We are called to witness at home, in our neighborhoods, and around the world to the saving grace and transforming power of Jesus Christ, calling on all people and institutions to act justly, to love with mercy, and to walk humbly with God. (Matthew 28:18-20, 22:37-38, 1 Corinthians 10:31-33, 9:19-23)