Statement of Faith
Introduction
Our mission is to be all things to all people through the love and truth of Jesus Christ. We strive to believe and teach truth (orthodoxy) through an ongoing study of Scripture and prayerful interpretation. We strive to love (orthopraxy) through Christ-like empathy and compassion.
We acknowledge the Bible is clear on certain doctrines and is unclear on others. When there is clarity, we want to be firm, yet gracious. When there is room for interpretation, we want to be humble and loving. The following statement of faith reveals a glimpse of who we are and what we believe.
Trinity
We believe in one God who eternally exists in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The works that are particularly ascribed to God the Father are the works of redemption, creation, and providence. The work that is particularly ascribed to the Son is the work of mediation, for He mediates the work of redemption. The Son is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him. The work that is particularly ascribed to the Holy Spirit is His task to bring things to completion both in creation and redemption. All three Persons are eternally existent at all times, in perfect relationship to one another, and equally omniscient, omnibenevolent, omnipotent, and omnipresent.
(Matt. 3:16-17; 28:19; John 14:6; 2 Cor. 13:14; Eph. 1:5, 7-8)
Salvation
We believe salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, there is nothing a person can do to save themselves from eternal death. The only way to salvation is through a saving faith in Jesus Christ for He paid our penalty for sin on the cross by satisfying the wrath of God. A person is justified (declared righteous) by God when they repent of sin, confess, and trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Upon justification, the believer is sanctified (made holy) by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit to become more like Christ until the day of glorification. We believe there is nothing a person can do to earn salvation, for salvation is a gift from God to those who believe in the Son. We believe in the atoning blood of Christ shed on the cross for the forgiveness of sins. We believe in the triumphant bodily resurrection of Christ and His victory over sin and death.
(Gen. 1:26-27; 2-3; Rom. 3; 10:13; Eph. 2:1-10; Gal. 1-3)
The Work of Christ, Humanity, Sin, and Salvation
We believe in the substitutionary atonement and bodily resurrection of Christ to be the work of Christ as the redeemer of humanity by fulfilling His threefold office as Prophet, Priest, and King. The prophetic office of Christ is mentioned in Deuteronomy 18:15, "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him." We believe that Christ fulfilled his prophetic duty by proclaiming messages from the Father (John 18:26-28), foretelling of things to come (Matthew 24:3-35), and speaking with singular authority (Matthew 7:29).
The priestly office of Christ is mentioned in Zechariah 6:13, "Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He who will bear the honor and sit and rule on His throne. Thus, He will be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two offices" (NASB). The distinction between a prophetic office and priestly office was that a prophet represented God among the people while a priest represented the people before God. We believe Christ fulfilled his priestly office by being a sacrifice for sin in our place (substitutionary atonement) and by interceding on behalf of His people.
The kingly office of Christ is His spiritual kingship over the Church. His spiritual kingship is mentioned in Luke 1:33, "And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end." We believe Christ will fulfill his kingly office when He returns to rule as King of His chosen people.
We believe the saving work of Christ is necessary because of the fallen state of humanity. We believe original sin came through Adam when he disobeyed God in Genesis 3, and that we, who are the spiritual seed of Adam, are sinful from birth. We believe in the total depravity of mankind for the world is totally self-centered (proud), imperfect in every way, and in need of the grace of God. Romans 3:23 says, There is no difference, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God", and are justified freely by His grace. All are in need of grace, for all fall short of the glory of God. Therefore, we affirm that due to the total depravity of man, Christ was sent in order to fully satisfy the wrath of God by being the sacrificial lamb on our behalf.
We believe Christ's death on our behalf served to render satisfaction to God. Only Christ could have satisfied the wrath of God for He was without sin. In other words, Christ was blameless and holy. We believe by believing in Christ's redemptive work on the cross, one has access to the Father and eternal life through the blood that was shed on the cross. Christ in John 14:6 said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me" (NASB). We believe Christ is the bridge that brings us into a relationship with the Father.
We believe those who are in Christ have been justified, freed from the penalty of sin. We believe those who have been justified are being sanctified, progressively being freed from the power of sin. We believe those who are in Christ will one day be glorified, free from the presence of sin. We believe until Christ returns, His people are to persevere by bearing the fruit of the Spirit and sharing the Good News of Christ to the ends of the earth.
We believe Christ died for sinners, so that sinners who believe in Him may have eternal life. They are no longer considered sinners, but God's children. Galatians 3:26 says, "For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus." We believe by believing the Good News of Christ, we can live in hope, eagerly awaiting the day of His return to spend eternity with Him.
Inspiration and Inerrancy of Scripture
We believe in the divine, plenary (complete) inspiration of Scripture in its entirety. We believe in the equal inspiration of both the Old Testament and New Testament in the original manuscripts. Second Timothy 3:16 states, "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness" (NASB). The Greek word for inspiration (θεόπνευστος) is literally translated "God-breathed." Therefore, we affirm the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of each unique author and believe every word of Scripture is God-breathed.
We believe Scripture is inerrant in the original manuscripts. Inerrancy of Scripture is intricately linked to the divine inspiration of Scripture. Scripture is the very word of God, with God as its source and the Spirit as the agent. God speaks truth, therefore Scripture, being the very word of God, is truth. For in Titus 1:2 it says, "In the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago" (NASB). It clearly states God is one who cannot lie, so what He speaks is, therefore, truth without error. The doctrine of inerrancy is important to the Church, the body of believers, because it affirms the absolute authority and power of the written Word of God. It is the authority on all of the matters it touches as God's instructions and commands for His people to obey. It is through the written Word that we can become more intimate in our relationship with the Living Word, Jesus Christ.
(2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:21)
Water Baptism
We believe in the water baptism of believers. We believe that water baptism symbolizes the believer's union in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We believe baptism is the believer's public declaration of their faith in Christ as their Lord and Savior. We believe baptism is an essential sacrament rooted in the teachings and actions of Jesus Christ. We believe all believers should be baptized as a genuine profession of an inward commitment to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and an outward commitment to a community of believers in a local church. (Rom. 6:4; Gal. 3:27; Col. 2:12)
Regarding infant baptism, we leave the decision to the parents. If the parents would like to baptize their infant in faith, we will celebrate the infant’s baptism. If the parents would like to dedicate their infant in faith, we will celebrate the infant’s dedication. In the case the infant is baptized and that infant becomes of age to choose for themselves, the church will honor his or her decision to be baptized or confirmed.
Men & Women in Ministry
We believe men and women can serve the church in and through any ministry, whether it be preaching, teaching, leading praise, leading prayer meetings, to name a few. We believe the terms complementarian and egalitarian have caused more harm than good. There are layers of sub-categories under each umbrella that further complicate the role of men and women in the church. Prejudice based on gender, often through incorrect and abusive hermeneutics, has also caused harm to the church. Therefore, we affirm that men and women can serve in any capacity for the glory of God and the good of His Body.