Our Beliefs

The Bible

The Bible is God’s Word to all people. It was written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. Because it was inspired by God, the Bible is truth without any mixture of error and is completely relevant to our daily lives.

Deuteronomy 4:1-2 Psalm 119:11, 89, 105 Isaiah 40:8 Matthew 22:29 John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17 Romans 15:4 2 Timothy 3:15-17 Hebrews 1:1-2; 4:12 1 Peter 1:25 2 Peter 3:16

Trinity

God has existed in relationship with Himself for all eternity. He exists as one substance in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Although each member of the Trinity serves different functions, they each possess equal power and authority.

Deuteronomy 6:4 Isaiah 61:1 Matthew 28:19 Mark 1:9-11 Luke 1:35 John 5:21-23; 14:10, 16 Romans 8:9-11 1 Corinthians 8:6 2 Corinthians 13:14 Hebrews 1:8-10 James 2:19

The Father

God is great: He is all powerful, all knowing, ever present, unchanging, completely worthy of our trust, and above all, Holy. It is in Him that we live, move and exist. God is good. He is our Father. He is loving, compassionate, and faithful to His people and His promises.

Exodus 3:14 Numbers 23:19 Leviticus 11:44-45; 19:2 Psalm 11:4-6 Malachi 3:6 John 3:16; 4:24; 5:26; 14:1 Acts 17:28 Romans 3:3-4

The Son

Jesus Christ is completely human but, at the same time, completely God. He is the only plan for bringing people who are far from God back into a right relationship with God. He lived a perfect life, so that He could be a substitution for us in satisfying God’s demands for perfection. He defeated death in His resurrection so that we can have life.

Isaiah 7:14; 53 Matthew 1:18-23; 3:17; 8:29; 14:33; 16:16; 28:5-6 Luke 22:70; 24:46-47 John 1:1, 14; 10:30; 11:25-27; 17:1-5 Acts 1:9; 2:22-24; 7:55-56 Romans 1:3-4; 3:23-26; 8:1-3; 10:4 1 Corinthians 8:6 2 Corinthians 5:19-21 Gal 4:4-5 Philippians 2:5-11 Colossians 1:15; 2:9 1 Timothy 2:5-6; 3:16

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit’s presence assures us of our relationship with Christ. He guides believers into all truth and exalts Christ. He convicts people of their sin, God’s righteousness, and the coming judgment. He comforts us, gives us spiritual gifts, and makes us more like Christ.

Genesis 1:2 Psalm 51:11; 139:7 ff. Isaiah 61:1-3 Joel 2:28-32 Mark 1:10 Luke 1:35; 4:1; 11:13; 12:12 John 15:26; 16:7-14 Acts 1:8; 2:1-4; 13:2 Romans 8:9-11, 14-16, 26-27 1 Corinthians 3:16 Ephesians 1:13-14 2 Peter 1:2 Revelation 22:17

The Eternity

Man was created to exist forever. He will exist either 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 Heaven. Heaven and Hell are places of eternal existence.

John 3:16, 36 Romans 6:23 1 John 2:25; 5:11-13 Revelation 20:15

Man

Man is made in the image of God and is the supreme object of His creation. Man was created to have fellowship with God but became separated in that relationship through sinful disobedience. As a result, man cannot attain a right relationship with God through his own effort. Every human personality is uniquely created, possesses dignity, and is worthy of respect and Christian love.

Genesis 1:26-30; 2:7, 18-22; 3 Psalms 8:3-6; 32:1-5; 51:5 Isaiah 6:5 Jeremiah 17:5 Acts 17:26-31 Romans 1:19-32; 3:10-18, 23; 5:6; 6:6; 7:14-25 1 Corinthians 1:21-31; 15:19, 21-22 Ephesians 2 Colossians 1:21-22; 3:9-11

Salvation

The blood of Jesus Christ, shed on the cross, provides the only way of salvation through the forgiveness of sin. Salvation occurs when people place their faith in the death and resurrection of Christ as sufficient payment for their sin. Salvation is a gift from God, and it cannot be earned through our own efforts.

Isaiah 1:18; 53:5-6; 55:7 Matthew 1:21; 27:22-66, 28:1-6 Luke 1:68-69; 2:28-32 John 1:12; 3:16, 36; 5:24 Acts 2:21; 4:12; 16:30-31 Romans 1:16-18; 3:23-25; 5:8-10; 6 1 Corinthians 1:18 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 Galatians 2:20; 3:13 Ephesians 2:8-10 Philippians 2:12-13 Hebrews 9:24-28 Revelation 3:20

The Church

The Church is a local community of baptized believers unified through faith in Christ. It is committed to the teachings of Christ and obeying all of His commands, and it seeks to bring the Gospel to the world. The Church works together in love and unity, intent on the ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ.

Matthew 16:18-19; 18:15-20 Acts 2:41-47; 5:11-14; 13:1-3; 14:23; 16:5; 20:28 1 Corinthians 7:17; 9:13-14; 12 Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:19-22; 3:10-12; 5:22-32 Colossians 1:18; 3:15 1 Timothy 4:14 1 Peter 5:1-4 Revelation 21:2-3

Statement on the Sanctity of Human Life

We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including babies in the womb, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death.

We seek to live and express our faith in a manner consistent with our calling to defend, protect, and value all human life.

All ministries, ministers, officers, employees, volunteers, and members on every level are prohibited from condoning or engaging in practices or procedures which result in abortion. All ministries, ministers, officers, employees, volunteers, and members are also expressly forbidden to participate in or aid in any way same-sex weddings, unions, or related religious services, or to allow any church owned facilities or resources to be used for the promotion of abortion in any form.

We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of the church as the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the church members and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by the church in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, should abide by and agree to this Statement on the Sanctity of Human Life and conduct themselves accordingly.

Statement on Marriage and Sexuality

We believe that term “marriage” has only one meaning and that is marriage sanctioned by God which joins one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as described in Scripture. All other variations are gross distortions of God’s plan. (Gen. 1:27, 2:18, 23-24).

We believe that marriage is a holy institution that reflects the relationship between Jesus Christ and His church (Ephesians 5:21-32). The wedding ceremony itself pictures the joining together of the church with Christ for eternity (Revelation 19:7).

We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to only occur between a man and a woman who are married to each other. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography or any attempt to change one’s gender, or disagreement with one’s biological gender, is sinful and offensive to God.

We believe specifically that homosexual behavior is sin because it is disobedient to the most basic scriptural and moral teachings which define the church: “If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable.” (Leviticus 20:13 NIV). When the church condones detestable behavior, it becomes detestable to God. (Romans 1:25–27, 1 Cor. 6:9-10, 1 Timothy 1:9-10). It is sin because it violates the created order for families. Condoning homosexual behavior brings destruction upon the church institution (Genesis 19:4–11, 24-25), and any governmental effort to force religious institutions to condone homosexual behavior is the government attempting to destroy the church. Furthermore, it is also clear that Jesus authoritatively affirmed the continuing validity of the Old Testament moral law, including prohibitions against homosexual behavior. (Matthew 5:27-28).

All ministries, ministers, officers, employees, volunteers, and members on every level are prohibited from condoning or engaging in homosexual practices. Churches, ministers, officers, employees, and members are also expressly forbidden to participate in or aid in any way same-sex weddings, unions, or related religious services, or to allow any church owned or controlled facilities, assets, resources, and intangible property to be used for homosexual weddings or activities or in a manner inconsistent with this statement. (2 Cor. 6:14).

We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of the church as the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the church members and the community, it is imperative that all persons employed by the church in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, should abide by and agree to this Statement on Marriage and Sexuality and conduct themselves accordingly.

We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Although all church positions are limited to those subscribing to church faith and practice, all persons, whatever their backgrounds, should be welcomed to any church, for Christ calls upon all persons to come to Him and to leave their sin.

We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with scripture nor the doctrines of the church.