Our Beliefs

Our doctrinal beliefs should not be tools to puff us up, or permission slips to argue with others about the Bible. Our doctrinal beliefs represent our understanding of Scripture, and Scripture is the vehicle that enables us to know God better (John 14:21, 23), make our faith bigger (Romans 10:17), and transform our entire being (John 17:17; Romans 12:2).

The Bible

We believe that the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God which reveals the complete will of God for all mankind through every age. Inspiration may be defined as the inward work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts and minds of chosen men who then wrote the Scriptures as God directed. The Bible in all of its parts constitutes the written Word of God to man. This Word is free from all error in its original writings. It is wholly trustworthy in matters of history and doctrine and is the final, supreme authority in faith and life (John 10:35; Matthew 5:18; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).

God

We believe in the one God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God is the absolute and sole creator of the universe (John 6:27; Hebrews 1:8; Deuteronomy 6:4; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Matthew 28:19; Isaiah 48:16).

The Father

We believe that the Father is the first person of the Godhead and is the Original Source of all things. He is the source of grace, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Father of all men as the Source of their being. He is particularly the loving Father of all those redeemed by the blood of His Son (Genesis 1:1; Ephesians 3:14; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 4:6; Luke 12:30-32). We believe that the Father is the Author of the plan of salvation, that He sent the Son into the world, that He is the disciplinarian of His children (Psalm 2:7-9; Ephesians 1:3-6; John 5:37; Hebrews 12:9).

Jesus Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ in the flesh was both God and man; that He was miraculously born of a virgin and lived a sin-free life, being fully God and fully man. He is Creator and Sustainer of the universe (John 1:14; Hebrews 2:14; Matthew 1:18-25; John 8:40; Hebrews 1:8; Colossians 2:9; John 1:3; Hebrews 1:3). We believe that Christ died on the cross for the sins of mankind, was raised bodily from the dead, and ascended into heaven there to intercede for believers and from whence He shall come again to receive believers unto Himself (2 Corinthians 5:14; Mark 10:45; I Peter 3:18; Romans 5:8; Romans 1:4; Acts 1:9-11; Matthew 24:30; Revelation 20:4-6; Isaiah 9:6,7). We believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins as a substitutionary sacrifice and that all who believe in Him are justified through His shed blood, being declared righteous (1 Corinthians 15:3; Romans 5:8-9; Hebrews 7:25).

The Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person, possessing all the distinctively divine attributes. He is God (Acts 5:3-4;1 Corinthians 2:10-11:1 Corinthians 12:11; Psalm 139:7-12). We believe that the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. He regenerates, seals, and sets apart the believer to a holy life. At regeneration, He baptizes the believer into the Body of Christ and comes to indwell him/her permanently (Titus 3:5; John 3:5-7; John 14:16-17; John 16:7-15; Ephesians 1:13; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 5:18).

Mankind

We believe that man is created in the image of God; however, after the fall of Adam and Eve, all people are by nature separated from God and responsible for their own sin, but that salvation, redemption, and forgiveness are offered as a free gift to all by the Lord Jesus Christ based on His grace alone. When a person repents of sin and receives the Lord Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord, trusting Him to save, that person is immediately born again and sealed by the Holy Spirit. All his/her sins are forgiven, and that person becomes a child of God, destined to spend eternity with the Lord (Genesis 1:26- 27; Genesis 2:17; Genesis 3:6; Romans 5:12-21; Ephesians 2:1-3; Ephesians 4:18; Mark 7:20-23; John 2:24-25).

Salvation

Salvation is initiated, attained, and procured by God through the death of Christ on the cross for our sins and His resurrection from the dead. This salvation is offered to anyone who believes in and receives Jesus Christ (John 1:12-13), by grace and apart from any good works (Eph. 2:8-9). Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord Jesus shall be saved (Romans 10:8-11).  

The Church

We believe that people and not buildings are the Church, for the local church is a coming together of believers (Ephesians 4:4-6; Matthew 16:18; Hebrews 10:23-25). We believe that Christians are to commit themselves to the local church with an attitude of love for one another as they carry out the activities of Bible teaching, fellowship, prayer, the Lord’s table, and water baptism, seeking to build up one another in love as a witness to unregenerate people (Acts 2:42; John 13:34-35; 1 John 1:3; Matthew 28:18-20; 1 Corinthians 11:24-26; Ephesians 4:11-16).