what we believe

The Bible

The sole basis of our beliefs is the Bible, God’s infallible written Word, the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. We believe that it was uniquely and fully inspired by the Holy Spirit and that it was written without fault (infallible) or error (inerrant) in the original manuscripts. It is the supreme and final authority in all matters of faith and life. The central purpose of the Bible is to call all people into relationship with the Living God.

God

There is one true, holy God, eternally existing in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – each of whom possesses equally all the attributes of deity and the characteristics of personality.

Creation

In the beginning, God created the universe out of nothing; calling into existence, by the power of His voice, all things, and revealing the glory of His wisdom, goodness, and creativity. By His sovereign power He continues to sustain His creation; by His providence He continues to work in and throughout history to fulfill His plans for redemption and reconciliation.

Sin

Originally created for relationship with God, humans exercised their free will and rebelled, choosing to disobey their Creator. Their sin broke the bond between man and God, alienated them from Him, corrupted the perfect nature God had given them and rendered them spiritually dead. That rebellion, at the beginning of human history, brought all people under God’s condemnation. All people have inherited this rebellious nature, suffered the same consequences, and are in need of the grace of God by the regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, in order to restore relationship with Him.

Salvation

We believe that all men everywhere are lost and face the judgment of God, that Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation, and that repentance of sin and faith in Jesus Christ results in regeneration by the Holy Spirit and restoration of relationship with God.

Salvation is completely and fully a work of God's free grace and is not the work, in whole or in part, of human effort, goodness, or religious activity. God attributes His righteousness to those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, declaring them without guilt (justified) in His sight.

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is God, the living Word, who took on human flesh through His miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit and His virgin birth. He is both fully God and fully man, united in one person forever. He lived a sinless life and voluntarily paid the price for human sin that God’s holiness demands, by dying on the cross. He gave His life in our place, becoming a substitute for us, satisfying divine justice and accomplishing salvation for all who trust in Him alone. He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He lived and died. He ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God the Father, where He, the only mediator between God and humanity, continually intercedes for those who have surrendered their lives to Him.

Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit reveals and glorifies Christ and applies the saving work of Christ to individuals. He convicts and draws sinners to Christ, imparts new life to them, and continually indwells them from the moment of spiritual birth. His fullness, power and control are activated in the believer's life by faith. It is the privilege of all who are born again of the Spirit to be assured of their salvation by the Spirit from the very moment in which they trust Christ as their Savior. This assurance is not based upon any kind of human effort, but is produced by the work of the Holy Spirit, who confirms in the believer the truth of God as revealed in His written word.

The Christian Life

Those who follow Christ are called to live out their faith by the power of the indwelling Spirit, to walk in holiness and obedience, not to pursue selfish passions and desires, but submitting to the work of the Holy Spirit and becoming more and more like Jesus Christ, to the glory of God. Nothing in this life is more important than the spiritual growth of a believer, and it is the responsibility of each believer to move forward in that process of becoming a fully devoted follower of Christ.

The Church

Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, His Body, which includes all people, living and dead, who have been joined to Him through saving faith. God instructs His people to assemble together regularly for worship, prayer, and learning from God’s Word; for celebrating baptisms and communion; for fellowship with one another, and to serve and encourage each other. Under the care of faithful leadership, members of the local church are to work together in love and unity, intent on one purpose of honoring Christ.

Human Destiny

At physical death those who follow Christ enter immediately into eternal, conscious fellowship with the Lord and await the resurrection of the body to everlasting glory and blessing. At physical death the unbeliever enters immediately into eternal, conscious separation from the Lord and awaits the resurrection of the body to everlasting judgment and condemnation. We look with anticipation toward the day when Jesus Christ will come again to the earth – personally, visibly and bodily – to consummate history and the eternal plan of God.