Our Beliefs

THE CREEDS

We hold to the great historic doctrines of the church. We recognize the his­toric authenticity and doctrinal accuracy of the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed as important documents outlining the valid faith of true Christians.

THE BIBLE

The Bible, inspired by God, is His written Word and is without error.

We believe the Bible is the only divine rule and infallible guide of Christian faith and practice by which we are to live and by which we are to be judged.

GOD

We believe there is one God. He eternally exists and expresses Himself in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

We believe God is Creator of all things.

We believe Jesus is the only begotten of the Father, conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus is both fully divine and fully human.

Jesus lived a sinless life, was crucified for our sins, was dead, buried, descended into hell, and was raised on the third day. He ascended into Heaven, where he sits at the right hand of God the Father.

Jesus, the King of Kings, currently reigns in heaven and someday will come again.

The Holy Spirit was directly responsible for raising Christ from the dead and is directly responsible for giving believers life in Christ. It is through the Holy Spirit that Christ enters into us. It is also through the work of the Holy Spirit that we are conformed into the image of Christ (the process of sanctification).

MAN, SIN, SALVATION, AND SANCTIFICATION

We believe God created man in His image, without sin.

We believe that sin entered into the world when Adam disobeyed the command of God at the suggestion of Satan. This fall caused spiritual death (i.e. separation from God) to enter into the world. As a result, all are born into a sinful state (i.e. all are sinners by nature and by choice) and are separated from God.

We believe man is unable to restore the fellowship he once had with his Creator. We believe man can be saved only by grace, through faith. God makes salvation available to man through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross and the work of the Holy Spirit in the regeneration of men, in their sanctification, and in their preservation to the heavenly Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We believe the Scriptures warn believers against falling away, and we must guard our hearts and heed the warnings of Holy Scripture to not receive the grace of God in vain. The ongoing work of sanctifi­cation must be accomplished in the believer’s life by the Holy Spirit, produc­ing fruit by transforming him/her into the nature and image of Christ.

THE BAPTISM AND GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

We believe that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is an impartation of the power of God into the life of the believer, making it possible to be conformed into the image of Christ and to bear the fruit of the Spirit. We believe the baptism in the Spirit may be either simultaneous with or subsequent to regeneration.

We believe baptism in the Spirit is usually accompanied by the gifts of the Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and prophecy.

We believe the gifts of the Spirit are presently available to all who believe but are not essential to salvation or regeneration. We believe that the gifts of the Spirit are given, not as a mark of maturity or spirituality, but to empower believers to be witnesses for Christ and ministers to their fellow man.

THE LORD’S COMMANDS

We believe the way we demonstrate our love for the Lord is to obey His commands. We believe these commands are to love the Lord, to love one another, to follow the Lord into baptism, and to participate in the Lord’s Supper.

We believe water baptism is for believers, or those who repent of their sins, renounce the world, and affirm their faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ.

THE CHURCH

We believe the Church is the Bride of Christ, a helper suitable for her husband, whose purpose is to make disciples of all nations, through preaching the Gospel and baptizing them.

We believe the Church is the Body of Christ, of which He is the Head. We believe there is only one Church, but several members, each with their own, unique function in the Kingdom.

We believe the Church is built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Jesus as the Chief Cornerstone. God has provided the structure of the Church: apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastors/teachers so that the Church may be brought into a unity of the faith and become fully mature. We believe this structure is valid and necessary for the success of the Church today.

THE FAMILY

We believe marriage is a representation of Christ’s relationship with His church.

We believe that marriage was ordained by God at creation as the sacred union of one man and one woman. All sexual relations must therefore be reserved for that union.

We also believe that children are a blessing from the Lord, and that all human life is sacred and worthy of protection from the moment of conception.