Our Statement of Faith

We believe the Statement of Faith to be an accurate summary of what Scripture teaches. All members shall refrain from advocating doctrines that are not included in the Statement of Faith in such a way as to cause dissension.

THE BIBLE: God speaks to us in the creation, but it's only through the Bible that we can know the truth. The Bible is God's word, written down by persons who were moved to write what they wrote by God's Spirit. Scripture at one and the same time speaks with the authority of God and reflects the backgrounds, styles and vocabularies of the human authors. The Bible contains all that we need to know to have a living relationship with Him. It is without error in all that it teaches.

GOD: God is Spirit, personal and Infinite. God is one, and exists in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. All three are equal in authority, power and the attributes of deity. For His own glory, God created the universe and remains active in all that happens, moving all of creation to His desired ends.

HUMANITY: God created all humanity, male and female, in His own image, to be forever like Himself. Human beings were made to enjoy an intimate relationship with God forever. As a result of the disobedience of Adam and Eve, all persons became sinful, and continue to be cut off from the kind of relationship that God intended. They stand under God's judgment of death, and cannot take away their own sin, or restore themselves to a right relationship with God.

SALVATION: God invites all sinners to accept the rescue that is offered through Jesus Christ. He Implants new life in people so that they are able to turn in repentance from their sin, and turn to Him in faith for their forgiveness. So then, salvation is wholly a work of God's free grace, and not dependent in the whole or in part on human efforts. When God begins this saving work in the heart of a person, His word assures us that He will continue that work and will at no time relinquish His commitment to save us.

JESUS CHRIST: The eternal Son of God took on our human nature, but through the miracle of the virgin birth was kept from original sin. By his perfect obedience In this life, He was able to offer the perfect sacrifice for sin. By His death on the cross, He delivers from the punishments and power of sin those who trust in Him, thus restoring us to a right relationship with God. He rose from the dead, thus confirming that we too will rise from the dead. He ascended into heaven and now serves our mediator between God and ourselves.

THE CHRISTIAN LIFE: The necessary sign of true repentance and salvation is a life of faithfulness and obedience on the part of the believer. Through the working of the Holy Spirit, the believer more and more conforms to the image of Christ. The same Spirit gives the believer assurance of salvation, power, endurance and wisdom to live that life of faithfulness. Special gifts are given by God's Spirit so that believers can encourage and build one another up in the process of taking on a more Christ-like character. Those same gifts empower the believer to extend Christ's reign over every area of life.

HUMAN DESTINY: Death seals the eternal destiny of each person. For all people, there will be a resurrection of the body into the spiritual world, and judgment that will determine the fate of each individual. Unbelievers will be separated from God into condemnation. God's judgment will reveal His justice in consigning them to perpetuate in eternal retribution their own rejection of God. Believers will be received into eternal communion with God and will be rewarded for works done in this life.

THE CHURCH: All those who profess true faith in Jesus Christ are members of His body, the Church, with Him as His head. Membership In the church of Jesus Christ stretches across the boundaries of race, gender and time. The church also comes to expression visibly and Locally when God's people gather together. The visible church functions as community, cause and corporation; as a community in the believers life together, as cause in it task of making disciples, and as corporation in the form of church government. Under the watchful care of elders and other gifted individuals, the church gathers regularly to worship, pray, be instructed In the Word of God, observe the sacraments of baptism and communion, serve one another, and reach out to the lost.

FAITH AND PRACTICE: Scripture is the final authority in all matters of father and practice. This church recognizes that it cannot bind the conscience of individual members in areas where Scripture is silent. Rather, each believer is to be led in those areas by the Lord, to whom he or she alone is ultimately responsible.