What We Believe

We believe that the 66 books that comprise the Old and New Testaments are the inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word of God. As the original authors of Scripture were carried along by the Holy Spirit, what they produced were not merely human words but the words of God, true and trustworthy on every matter to which they speak. Jesus Himself, the incarnate Word of God, attested to the authority and infallibility of the Old Testament and commissioned his apostles to write the New Testament by the power of the Holy Spirit. With the death of the last apostle, the canon of Scripture was closed so that no new Scripture has been produced since nor is any being produced today. Because it is uniquely God-breathed, Scripture serves as the sole, sufficient, infallible rule of faith and practice for the people of God (2 Tim. 3:16-17, 2 Pet. 1:21, Jn. 1:1; 10:35; 16:12-14, Matt. 5:18, Heb. 1:1-3, 1 Cor. 14:37-38).

We believe that there is one true and living God who exists eternally as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Father is truly God, the Son is truly God, and the Spirit is truly God, all sharing the one divine essence and yet distinguished in their relations to one another so that the Father is not the Son or the Spirit, the Son is not the Father or the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Son or the Father. All things have been created by Him, through Him, and for Him, out of nothing, so that the great purpose of all creation, including the creation of human beings, is the glory of the triune God. He has life within Himself and is dependent on nothing and no one for His existence, knowledge, wisdom, righteousness, holiness, power, happiness, glory, or love. Although transcendent and distinct from His creation, God is immanently involved in it, sovereignly upholding the universe by the Word of His power, providentially sustaining and governing all things in accordance with His perfect, immutable, and unstoppable will. (Gen. 1:1-3, Deut. 6:4, Is. 43:10; 45:5-6; 46:8-11, Ps. 50:12; 115:3; 135:6, Jn. 1:1,18; 3:16; 20:28, Matt. 3:16-17; 10:29; 28:19, Tit. 2:13, Rom. 9:5; 11:33-36, Dan. 4:35, Ac. 5:4, Col. 1:15-20, Heb. 1:3).

We believe that our Lord Jesus Christ is both truly God and truly man, one person with two distinct and yet inseparable natures. He was not made and there was never a time when He was not, since by Him, through Him, and for Him all things were created. And yet, the second person of the triune Godhead, called “the Word” and “the only begotten Son from the Father”, put on flesh and made His dwelling among us. He was miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit; born of the virgin Mary; lived perfectly and sinlessly under the law of God fulfilling its demands; was crucified on the cross under Pontius Pilate; suffered once for all time as a substitutionary sacrifice for sinners; was buried in Joseph’s tomb; was raised from the dead on the third day and seen by many eyewitnesses; ascended to heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Father until all of his enemies are put under his feet; and intercedes for His people as their merciful and faithful high priest. At His first coming, he came as a humble servant to give His life as a ransom for many. At his second coming, He will judge the living and the dead in righteousness. (Jn. 1:1-3, 14, 18; 8:58; 20:28, 1 Tim. 2:5; 6:13, Php. 2:5-11; Is. 9:6, Lk. 1:35; 23:50-53; Heb. 2:17; 4:14-15, 7:25; 9:26; 10:12-13, 1 Pet. 1:19; 3:18, Matt. 5:17, Mk. 10:45; 15:15, 1 Cor. 15:3-8, Col. 1:16, Ac. 17:31).

We believe that the Holy Spirit, the third person of the triune God, is co-eternal and co-equal with the Father and Son, eternally proceeding from them both. He was sent into the world by the Father and the Son to convict it of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Spirit regenerates, seals, indwells, sanctifies, gifts, helps, intercedes for, illuminates, and empowers the believer for service unto Jesus Christ and his body the Church. 
(Matt. 28:19, Ac. 1:8; 5:3-4, Heb. 10:15-17, Gen. 1:3, Jn. 3:3-8; 14:26; 15:26; 16:8-11, Eph. 1:13-14, Rom. 8:9; 8:26-27, 1 Cor. 6:19, Gal. 3:3; 5:22-23, 1 Cor. 2:13-16; 12:11, Eze. 36:26-27).

We believe that human beings are created in God’s image and therefore possess inherent dignity, value, and fundamental, God-given rights. The first human beings that God created, Adam and Eve, were real historical people and were created inherently good and without sin. God made them male and female and gave them a mandate to subdue and have dominion over the earth, being fruitful and multiplying, ruling over creation as God’s representatives unto God’s glory. As such, He established marriage as part of the creation order, which is defined as the joining of one man and one woman in one flesh covenant union for life. Only within the covenant of marriage is sexual union sanctioned by God. Therefore, any attempt to subvert God’s good design related to the creation of man, woman, marriage, and sex, whether it be through adultery, sex outside of marriage, transgenderism, homosexual activity, polyamory/polygyny/polygamy, the undermining or overthrow of the nuclear family, unbiblical divorce, racism, classism, sexism, or any other related ideology or activity, is harmful to human beings, sinful, and dishonoring to the Creator. Furthermore, we believe that since all human beings are created in God’s image and have a fundamental right to life, and since Scripture attests that life begins at conception, abortion is the murder of a human being and a great moral evil, and therefore it must be opposed unto its abolition.
(Gen. 1:26-28; 1:31; 2:7; 2:18-25; 9:6, Gal. 3:28; 5:19-21, Rom. 1:24-28, 1 Cor. 6:9-10, Matt. 19:4-6, Eph. 6:1-4, Ex. 20:13, Ps. 139:13).

We believe that despite being created very good and in relationship with God, Adam and Eve rebelled against their Creator, disobeying his command to refrain from eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil when tempted by Satan, the great deceiver. In Adam, all humanity sinned and therefore every human being is a sinner by nature and by choice and subject to the curse of sin and death. The first death is physical, but the second death is spiritual, eternal separation from the favorable presence of God, who is the source of life, for all of eternity in hell. Without the miraculous intervention of God, every human being would perish eternally.
But God, who is rich in mercy, even when we were dead in trespasses, sent His Son Jesus Christ to be the Savior of the world, giving eternal life to all who turn to Him in faith. Jesus is the last Adam, the head of a new creation, the spotless lamb of God who came to give His life as a ransom for many, and who has secured the salvation of His people by means of His perfect life, death, and resurrection. There is no other name given under heaven by which we can be saved since no one comes to the Father except through Jesus. According to Scripture alone, this salvation in Christ alone is by grace alone, through faith alone, unto the glory of God alone. All who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved while all who persist in sin and unbelief will be lost eternally.
(Gen. 3:1-24, Rom. 3:10-18; 3:23; 5:12-21; 6:23; 8:29-30; 10:9; 10:13, Rev. 20:14, Mk. 1:15; 9:43, Jn. 1:29; 3:16; 14:6, Eph. 1:3-14; 2:1-10, 1 Jn. 4:14, 1 Pet. 1:19, Mk. 10:45, Ac. 4:12).

We believe that there is one holy Church, comprised of all believers in Jesus Christ through all places and all times. The Church is not confined to members of one ethnic group or nationality nor is it to be confused with the kingdoms of this world. Rather, the Church is comprised of individuals from every tribe, language, people, and nation that have been ransomed for God by the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ and who are therefore rightfully called “saints”. Scripture describes the Church in many ways: as the body of Christ who is the head, the bride of Christ who is the bridegroom, the temple of God built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus Himself being the chief cornerstone, the flock of the Good Shepherd, a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, etc. The Church exists in local expressions throughout the world and every believer in Jesus Christ is called to belong to a local church body, whose leaders are called elders (synonymous with bishops or pastors) and deacons. The present mission of the Church is to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey all that the Lord Jesus commanded.
(1 Cor. 3:16-17, 12:12, Eph. 2:19-20; 4:1-16; 5:22-33 Rev. 2-3; 5:9-10, Jn. 10:1-18; 18:36, Col. 1:2, 1 Pet. 2:9, 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Heb. 10:24-25, Matt. 28:18-20).

We believe that the Lord Jesus gave two ordinances to His Church: baptism and the Lord’s supper. Baptism is that ordinance that depicts the reality of the believer’s union with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection unto new life. We believe that baptism is to be administered once by immersion in water solely to professing believers. Likewise, the Lord’s Supper, by which we repeatedly remember the broken body and shed blood of our Lord and share in fellowship with Him, is open solely to believers.
(Matt. 28:19, Rom. 6:1-4, Ac. 2:38; 2:41, Jn. 3:23, Lk. 22:14-20, 1 Cor. 10:16; 11:17-34).

God designed men and women equal in dignity, value, and worth as His image bearers, and also distinct and complementary to one another. As such, men and women are called to fulfill complementary roles in both marriage and the church. 
In marriage, having been designed by God as an institution meant to point to the relationship between Christ and His bride the church, the husband is called to reflect the sacrificial headship of Christ by loving, leading, and sacrificially serving his wife. The wife, being called to reflect the church, does so by submitting herself to the loving leadership of her husband, as the church submits to Christ. Together, the husband and wife are to raise up their children in the training and admonition of the Lord.
In the church, we believe that the role of elder (synonymous with bishop and pastor) is to be filled solely by qualified men in obedience to the Scriptures. We believe that the role of deacon (or deaconess) is open to both qualified men and women.
(Gen. 1:26-28; 2:15-24; 3:20, Eph. 5:21-6:4, Col. 3:18-21, 1 Pet. 3:1-7, 1 Tim. 2:8-15; 3:1-13, Tit. 1:5-9).

We believe that Jesus Christ will return to the earth bodily, visibly, and publicly to be glorified in His saints and to be marveled at among all who have believed. He will return in judgment, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God or obey the Gospel, while also granting relief to His people who are afflicted. Every person will give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. Believers are called to always be ready, living faithfully in light of Christ’s return, the timing of which no man knows the day or the hour.
(Rev. 1:7, Matt. 24:27-31; 24:36; 24:42-44, 2 Thes. 1:5-10, 1 Pet. 4:5).

We believe that the souls of believers go to be with the Lord upon their death, for to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, while unbelievers go to a state of conscious torment. When Jesus returns, there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. Those who are righteous by virtue of faith in Jesus Christ will live forever in resurrected, glorified bodies with God in the new heavens and the new earth where there is no suffering, death, tears, or pain. The wicked will depart from the Lord into the place of final condemnation and everlasting death (hell), where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth for all eternity.
(2 Cor. 5:8, Lk. 16:19-31, Jn. 5:26-29, 1 Cor. 15:42-44, Rev. 21-22, Matt. 13:49-50, Mk. 9:43-48, 2 Pet. 3:13).