Our Beliefs

What We Believe

Jesus Christ is the one and only Son of God, who died for our sins and arose from the dead.

(1 Corinthians 15: 1-8 & John 3:16)

The Bible is the inspired Word of God – a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path.

(2 Timothy 3:16 & Psalm 119:105)

Every person has worth as a creation of God, but that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

(Romans 3:23)

Forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life are available to those who trust Christ as Savior and Lord.

(John 3:16)

Accepting Christ includes repenting from sin, confessing Christ as Lord, and being baptized (immersed) into Him.

(Romans 10:9 & Acts 2:38)

The Church is the body of Christ on earth, empowered by the Holy Spirit and exists to evangelize the lost and edify the saved.

(Ephesians 4:1-16)

Jesus Christ will one day return to earth and reign forever as King of kings and Lord of lords.

(Revelations 19:11-16 & 1 Thessalonians 4)

God – God exists as a Trinity, three persons in one being. These three persons are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All three are co-eternal and co-equal. They are one being, but they are also distinct persons with distinct functions.

  • The Father – God the Father is the Creator of the universe. He gives life to everything. He is perfect and cannot abide sin, so He must punish unforgiven sin with His wrath.
  • The Son – God the Son is Jesus Christ. He is the one and only Son of God, and He died to forgive our sins and arose from the dead. The Father created the world through Him. He became a man, died on the cross, was buried, and rose again on the third day. He is equal to the Father. He is full God and fully man.
  • The Spirit – God the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin and indwells Christians at baptism (see “Baptism”). He seals Christians in salvation, and speaks through them when the gospel is preached.

The Bible – The Bible is the inspired Word of God, inerrant and infallible, and is meant to be used to edify and strengthen the Church in general and individual Christians in particular.

Humanity – All people were created “Imago Dei,” meaning “in the Image of God,” therefore God values them more than they can ever understand. However, all people have sinned, and are therefore separated from God. Humans are not born sinful, but become sinful when they sin.

Promises – Forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life are available to anyone who trusts Christ as Savior and Lord.

Salvation – The steps of salvation are: believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, repent of your sin, confess Christ as Lord before others, be baptized by immersion into Him, and live a Spirit-filled life. Salvation comes by grace, through faith, at baptism, and for good works.

Baptism – We administer water baptism by immersion to those who have confessed their faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of the Living God and who have repented of their sin. We understand baptism to be the time when forgiveness of sin is applied to the Christian, as well as the time when the Holy Spirit begins His indwelling presence (Acts 2:38). We do not believe that God grants salvation on the basis of our works (Ephesians 2:8-9), but we also do not see Christian baptism as OUR work. We believe that it is the working of God (Colossians 2:9-15).

The Church – The Church is not the building, but it is the gathering of Christians in the name of Christ for fellowship, communion, group praise, and teaching. The Church is both local and global, referring to the immediate body of believers and to all Christians everywhere in all time, respectively. The church is the body of Christ. The mission of the church is to evangelize the lost and edify the saved. The Church is a community that is already a part of Christ, but it is not yet home. A church must be internally strong, with a strong support system, and externally sensitive, bringing others to God in prayer before bringing God to others and loving all others simply because of its Christianity.

Eternity – Those who accept Christ as their Lord and Savior have their sin covered by the blood of Jesus, and will spend eternity in heaven. Those who reject Christ as their Lord and Savior have no way to pay their debt of sin and will spend eternity in hell. God cannot tolerate sin in His presence, and His justice demands a payment for sin. For Christians, that payment is Christ’s blood. For non-Christians, that payment is eternal death.