What We Believe
We believe the Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God’s revelation of Himself to man. It has God as its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, Who is Himself the focus of divine revelation.
We believe God is the good Creator who sovereignly reigns over, sustains, and provides for His creation. He is all knowing, all powerful, all loving, and all wise. He is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. His knowledge extends to all things past, present, and future. The triune God has revealed Himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with distinct attributes, but without division of nature, essence, or being.
We believe Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, and lived a perfect, sinless life. He died a substitutionary death upon the cross to redeem humanity from sin. He was buried, rose bodily from the dead on the third day, ascended into heaven, and now is exalted to the right hand of God. Being fully God and fully man, He is the one mediator Who can reconcile God and man. One day He will return in power and glory.
We believe the Holy Spirit is fully divine and that He inspired the writing of the Bible. He enables us to understand the truth, exalts Christ, convicts of sin, calls people to the Savior, and effects regeneration. He grows, comforts, seals, and gifts believers so they may serve the church and persevere to the end.
We believe man is the special creation of God, made in His own image as male and female. In the beginning, man was innocent of sin but by free choice sinned against God and brought sin and death into the world. Man inherits a nature and environment bent toward sin and, when capable of moral action, becomes a transgressor under condemnation. Only the grace of God in Jesus Christ can restore man’s relationship with God. Since humanity is made in the image of and loved by God, every person of every race possesses full dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.
We believe salvation involves the redemption of the whole man and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It includes regeneration, justification, sanctification, and glorification. Regeneration is the new birth work of God’s grace that makes believers new creations in Christ by the work of the Holy Spirit resulting in repentance and faith. Justification is God’s full acquittal of sinners based on the finished work of Jesus Christ. Sanctification is the setting apart of the believer for God’s purposes to progress in moral and spiritual maturity through the work of the Holy Spirit. Glorification is the culmination of salvation and the final, blessed state of the redeemed. There is no salvation apart from personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The church is the living spiritual body of Christ. Christ is the head of the church, which is made up of all born again believers. The purpose of the church is to glorify God. The local church is an assembly of believers that comes together for worship, for growth in the image of Christ by the teaching of the Word, for observance of the Ordinances, for service using spiritual gifts, for prayer, and for fellowship.
Man was created to exist forever. He will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or in union with god through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal life. Heaven and Hell are places of eternal existence.
