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What We
Believe |
First,
let us emphasize that we have no other creeds or beliefs beyond those
found in the inspired Word of God. In trying to express who and
what we are in our beliefs and practices the following is shared
reservedly as the human efforts of men and women attempting to speak
for God are always fallible, where God's Word is not. By necessity
this short journey begins with
The
Bible The sole basis of our
belief is the Bible. The Scripture in its entirety is composed of 66
books of the Old and New Testament, which originated with God, and was
given through the work of many different God-inspired authors.
Scripture is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice.
God
We believe that there is one living, true,
holy God eternally existent in the Holy Trinity of Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit. We believe the love of God for men and women in his image
is the beginning of the story of redemption. We want to love one
another as He has loved us.
Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus was miraculously
conceived, born of a virgin, and sinless in life. Christ was fully man
and fully God, walked our earth, lived a life of obedience, suffered
at the hands of men, and died on the cross. We believe the death,
burial, and resurrection of Christ constitute the core of the Good
News all people need to hear. Jesus suffered the penalty our sins
should have brought to us. He paid our debt to sin at the cross and
was raised in glorious triumph. He is enthroned at God's right hand as
our intercessor.
Salvation
We believe that our salvation is by God's
free grace through faith in Jesus Christ. The central purpose of God's
revelation in Scripture is to call all people into fellowship with
Him. We deserve hell, not heaven. We cannot earn what God has done for
us through Christ. Even our deepest remorse over our sins cannot undo
the past or erase the harm already done. Forgiveness is a divine work.
We can be made new through our belief in Christ.
Baptism in Christ
We believe that authentic faith expresses
itself in repentance and immersion in Jesus' name. Repentance is our
sincere acknowledgement that God's judgment against sin is just, and
water baptism is our confession of the sufficiency of the death,
burial, and resurrection of Jesus to save us from sin.
Surrendering to the Lord involves our whole self and nothing less than
the command of the Lord that the man or woman who surrenders to the
Lordship of Christ will do so according to the words of Jesus who
called for all who would be saved to be baptized for the remission of
their sins. Biblical baptism is a burial in water.
Christian Living
We believe that believers are called to
adopt a life of discipleship that imitates Christ's own. He is our
perfect model in all things. As we yield to the Holy Spirit's power,
we pursue all that is holy and learn to abhor the sinful things that
once appealed to us. By that same power, we seek to honor God with
spiritual worship, unity with our fellow believers, and service to our
neighbors.
The Church
We believe the role of the local church is
to glorify God the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
We meet regularly to share Jesus through our lives and our words,
encourage individuals to grow in Jesus, inspire a sense of belonging
by sharing joys and burdens, participate in weekly gathered communion
(Lord's Supper), and reach out with loving support to people in need.
The Resurrection
We believe the Scriptures clearly teach
that there is a conscious personal existence after death. All
individuals dying without Christ will suffer eternally, while those in
Christ will enjoy eternal blessedness. Christ will return to judge the
world and receive the saved. |