What We Believe
Statement of Beliefs
The Bible
2 Timothy 3:16-17 | 2 Peter 1:20-21 | Proverbs 30:5 | Romans 16:25-26 | John 8:31-32 | Hebrews 4:12
The Bible is God’s word given to us. It is a true story of love and redemption. It is the final authority in determining all doctrinal truths. Written by human authors, and inspired by God, the Bible is infallible and inerrant. Because it is inspired by God, it is the ultimate source of truth and it is relevant to our everyday life.
The Trinity
Genesis 1:26 | Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19 | Deuteronomy 6:4 | Luke 1:35 | John 10:30 | 1 Corinthians 12:4-6
God is and has always been. He exists as three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Although the word Trinity is not in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation we serve a trinitarian God as He has revealed himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all equal in power and authority, serving one divine purpose.
The Father
Exodus 3:14-15 | Numbers 23:19 | Leviticus 11:44-45 | 1 Peter 1:3-5 | Deuteronomy 32:3-4 | Isaiah 64:8
God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and ever-present and He never changes. He is Holy and He deserves all of our trust because He is faithful to His promises. He is a loving, compassionate Father and wants a relationship with His children.
The Son
Matthew 1:18-23 | Romans 5:8 | John 3:16 | Hebrews 1:1-3 | Colossians 1:15-17, 2:9-10
God loved people so much that He sent Jesus, His son, to earth to give us a visible picture of God. Jesus Christ is completely human and completely God. Born of a virgin, He lived a perfect life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sin of all people by dying on the cross. But He didn’t stay dead! He resurrected—rose up— from death to demonstrate His power over sin and death. Because of this, we can have a relationship with God and we can live our lives with destiny and purpose.
The Holy Spirit
1 Corinthians 2:12-13, 3:16 | 2 Corinthians 3:17 | John 16:7-13 | Acts 1:8 | Ephesians 1:13 | Galatians 5:25
Soon after Jesus rose from the dead, as promised by God the Father, Jesus sent His Holy Spirit to empower the Church and give spiritual gifts. The Holy Spirit assures us of our relationship with God. He guides us into truth, comforts us, and convicts us of sin when we get off course.
Salvation
John 14:6 | Romans 10:9-10 | Ephesians 2:8-9 | Galatians 2:16, 3:8 | Titus 3:4-6 | Acts 2:21
Salvation is God’s gift to us. It comes when we accept Jesus and the sacrifice that He made as a payment for our sin. Salvation comes to us when we place our life in His hands. We can’t earn it; it is a gift of God’s grace.
The Christian Life
2 Corinthians 3:18, 6:14-18 | Romans 8:28-30, 12:1-2 | 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4 | 1 Corinthians 6:18-20
The Christian life is the ongoing process of submitting to and obeying God’s Word and His Spirit in order to complete the development of Christ’s character in us. It is through the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God that the Christian is enabled to live a godly life.
The Church
John 17:11, 20-23 | Ephesians 1:22-23, 2:19-22, 4:15-16 | Hebrews 10:24-25
The Church is a community of diverse people—from different races, cultures, and backgrounds—unified through faith in Jesus Christ. The Church is committed to the teachings of Jesus, and it exists to shine the message of God’s light and hope to the world so that everyone can know Him in a personal way. Jesus is the hope of the world, and the Church is His body bringing His hope to the world. The Church is not a building to walk into, but it’s a family to belong to.
Eternity
John 3:16, 14:2-3, 17:3 | 1 John 2:25, 5:11-13 | Romans 6:23 | Revelation 21:27
We were created to live forever, not just a few short years on earth. Our forever can be spent in Heaven with God when we choose to have a relationship with Him through His Son, Jesus, or we can choose to reject Him and be separated from Him forever. Heaven and Hell are real places, and it is up to each person in this life to decide their eternal destination.
Humanity
Genesis 1:27 | Psalm 8:3-6 | Isaiah 53:6, 59:1-2 | Romans 3:23-24 | Colossians 1:27
We were created in God’s image, and we are the masterpiece of all His creation. Every person in humanity has dignity and value and is worthy of love and respect. God created us for a relationship with Him, but we became alienated from Him through disobedience. Each of us is born with this tendency, which is referred to as a ‘sinful nature.’ No matter how good we try to be, we can’t regain our relationship with God on our own.
Repentance
Proverbs 28:13 | Mark 1:15 | Acts 3:19 | 1 John 1:9 | 2 Peter 3:9 | Acts 2:38
Repentance is the commitment to turn away from sin in every area of our lives and to follow Christ. Through repentance, we receive forgiveness of sins and salvation.
Spiritual Gifts
Hebrews 2:4 | Romans 1:11-12, 12:4-8 | Ephesians 4:11-13, 16 | 1 Corinthians 12:1-31, 14:1-40 | 1 Peter 4:10
The Holy Spirit is demonstrated through a variety of spiritual gifts to build and sanctify the Church and confirm the power of the Gospel. These gifts always operate in harmony with the Scriptures and should never be used in violation of Biblical guidelines. All gifts of the Holy Spirit are valid for today
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit
Joel 2:28-29 | Matthew 3:11 | Acts 1:5, 2:1-4, 38-39, 8:14-17, 10:44-47, 11:15-17 | 1 Corinthians 12:13
Given at Pentecost, it is the promise of the Father, sent by Jesus after His Ascension, to empower the Church to preach the Gospel throughout the whole earth.