Statement of Faith

Introduction: Historical and orthodox Christianity developed the concepts of creeds (from the Latin credo, “I believe”) and confessions to define the core tenants of the Christian faith (as found in the Bible), to set forth a body of instruction for the church, and to protect the church from error.  We acknowledge that the various creeds (Apostolic, Nicean, Chalcedon, Athanasian, etc..) of the church are beneficial and biblically based; therefore, we desire to stand on the shoulders of the historical, orthodox, and evangelical church as we affirm our core beliefs.
‍(1) Doctrine of God:We believe in one God eternally existing in three persons (Father, Son and Spirit). a. God the Father: We believe in God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.  We believe that God sustains all things by the council of His will and He, along with the Son and the Holy Spirit, is perfect in all of His attributes.  b. God the Son: We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father.  Through him all things were made.  For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man.  He lived a sinless life being fully God and fully man.  For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried.  On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.  He will come again, bodily, in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.  c.  God the Holy Spirit: We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son.  With the Father and the Son He is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets.  
‍(2) Doctrine of the Word of God:We believe that the Bible, consisting of both the Old and New Testaments, is God’s written revelation to man given to us by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  The Bible is verbally inspired in every word (2 Timothy 3:16), it is inerrant in the original documents and infallible.  The Bible is the only infallible and authoritative rule in matters of faith and practice (John 10:35; 2 Peter 1:20-21; 1 Cor 2:7-14; Heb 4:12).
‍(3) Doctrine of Man:a. We believe that our first parents (Adam and Eve) were created morally upright and holy in the image of God (Gen 1:26-28).  Nevertheless, Adam fell from his high and holy estate through one act of disobedience.  As a result, sin entered the world, leaving mankind subject to the wrath of God, spiritually dead, inherently corrupt, and incapable of pleasing God apart from a work of divine grace.  All men are hopelessly lost apart from the salvation that is in the Lord Jesus Christ.  (Romans 5:12-19; Gen 1:26-28; Gen 3:6-24; Ephesians 2:1-5).b. We believe and recognize that marriage is a covenant ordained by God as a sacred union between one man and one woman.  Christian marriage is a picture of Christ’s relationship with His church.  We also believe that children are a blessing of the Lord.  Thus, all human life is sacred and worthy of protection from the moment of conception (Gen 1:26-28; 2:24; Psalm 127, 128; 139:13-16; Matt 19:4-6; Eph 5:22-33; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Heb 13:4).c. We believe in biblical sexuality and that the various roles of men and women are designed by God (Gen 2:18-25).  Moreover, Christians are instructed to flee all forms of sexual immortality (1 Cor 6:15-20).
‍(4) Doctrine of SalvationWe believe that as a direct result of the Fall of man (Gen 3; Rom 5:12-19), no one can come to Jesus unless they are born again.  Salvation is a gift of grace through faith in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.  On the cross our sins were placed (imputed) on Jesus and His righteousness was given (imputed) to us.  Furthermore, we believe that when the Holy Spirit regenerates a person, they are a new creation and that the Holy Spirit produces in them the desire and ability to serve God.  Therefore, the dominion of sin has been supernaturally broken and their hearts have been transformed from a love of sin to a love of God resulting in a holy lifestyle. (Eph 2:1-10; John 3:1-18; 2 Cor 5:17-21)
‍(5) Ordinances (sacraments)We believe in the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, together with the observance of the Lord’s Day are of perpetual obligation in the church.  Recognizing both immersion and affusion as valid, we leave the determination of the mode of adult baptism to the candidate.  Provision shall always be made for the baptism or dedication of infants of believers. (Matt 28:19; 1 Cor 11:24-26; Rev 1:10; Matt 5:17-18; Heb 10:24-25)
‍(6) The ChurchWe believe that the purpose of the church in the world is to glorify God through worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of the ordinances, fellowship, the exercise of our gifts and talents, and the proclamation of the gospel both in our community and throughout the world (Acts 2:1, 41-47; Rom 12:5; 1 Cor 12:12, 12; 1 Cor 10:32; Eph 1:22, 23; 4:3-6; Col 1:18; 3:14-15).  We also believe in the local autonomy of the church and that it is free from any external authority or control, with the right of self-government and freedom from the interference of any hierarchy of individuals or organizations (Titus 1:5).  We believe that it is scriptural for true churches to cooperate with each other for the presentation and propagation of the faith.  Each local church, however, through its elders and their interpretation and application of Scripture, should be the sole judge of the measure and method of its cooperation.  The elders should determine all other matters of membership, policy, discipline, benevolence, and government as well (Acts 15:19-31; 20:28; 1 Cor 5:4-7, 13; 1 Pet 5:1-4).
a. Offices:We believe that Christ is the head of the church and the Christ has appointed officers to serve the body of Christ.  The offices designated in scripture are that of elders (teaching elders also known as pastors) and deacons.  Both of these are held by men who meet the biblical qualifications and desire to serve in these respective offices (1 Tim 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Pet 5;1-5).
‍b. GiftsWe believe that the Holy Spirit has given spiritual gifts to the individuals that compose the corporate body of Christ, and that spiritual gifts are designed to build up the corporate body (1 Cor 12-14).
‍(7) SanctificationWe believe that the process of being made holy (sanctification) comes as a direct result of being united to the person of Christ.  As we are united to Christ, His holy character progressively shapes our lives with the result that the fruit of the Spirit is evident in true believers. (1 Cor 1:30; Phil 3:12-16; Gal 5:22, 23; Col 3:8-14; 2 Cor 3:18; John 17:17)
‍(8) End TimesWe believe in the personal, visible and bodily return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  We also affirm the resurrection of the dead and future judgment from which the righteous go to eternal life in the New Heavens and New Earth, and the wicked go to everlasting punishment in the lake of fire. (Dan 12:2; Matt 25:31-46; Rev 20:11-15; Rev 21)