Statement of Faith
1. The Trinity
There is one God who is infinitely perfect and is eternally existent in three distinct and co-equal persons: Father, Son, and Spirit.
(Deut. 6:4, Mt. 5:48, Mt. 28:18-19)
2. Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully Man. He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin in accordance with the Scriptures. He was born into the world for the purpose of obtaining a righteousness for His people through living a morally perfect, sinless life under the law so that His righteousness could be imputed to them. He was then crucified as a substitutionary sacrifice for the sins of His people, thus satisfying the wrath of God against their sins. He was raised from the dead three days after being publically crucified, defeating the curse of death. He ascended into heaven, and He now sits at the right hand of God as our High Priest interceding on our behalf. The application of Christ’s righteousness, atoning death, and resurrection come only through repentance of and belief in His Gospel.
(Col. 2:9, Phil. 2:6-11, Luke 1:34-35, Is. 7:14, Heb. 2:9, 1 John 2:2, Eph. 1:20, Heb. 4:14, Acts 1:11, Rev. 21:1-4)
3. The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is a divine person sent by Christ to indwell the believer for the purposes of guidance, empowerment, and teaching them. He convicts the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment and regenerates the heart of the believer. The believer will thereby display evidence of this regeneration in the form of the fruits of the Spirit, changed desires, and good works.
(Acts 1:4, John 14:26, John 16:7-11, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 5:16-26)
4. The Scriptures
The Old and New Testaments are both inerrant as originally given and are the complete revelation of the will of God for the believer. They were written by men under the influence of the Holy Spirit. They are authoritative in the life of the believer and they must therefore submit themselves to them.
(Psalm 19:7-8, 2 Pt. 1:20-21, Psalm 19:10-11)
5. Sin
Humanity was created in the image of God and originally enjoyed perfect communion with Him, but fell through disobedience, thereby incurring the wrath of God against their sin in the form of both physical and spiritual death, and are now alienated from God. All people are born into this natural state and can offer no remedy in and of themselves. The only hope for the restoration of their relationship with God is through repentance of sin and believing in Christ. This is what it means to be born again and to be made a child of God.
(Gen. 1:26, Gen. 3:6-7, Gen. 3:19, Col. 1:21, Psalm 51:5, Is. 64:6, Eph. 1:7, John 3:3, John 1:12)
6. Salvation and Judgement
All people are guilty of sin and therefore liable to the wrath of God. Salvation is accomplished only through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ where a person repents of their sin, believes the gospel, and commits to following Jesus. This is a free gift that cannot be earned and is not given based on merit but is received only by grace through faith in Christ. Those who repent and follow Jesus will spend eternity in His presence in a state of joy and peace. This is eternal life. Those who reject Him will spend eternity separated from Jesus in hell, a place of eternal conscious torment from which there is no relief. This is eternal death.
(Rm. 3:23, 1 Tim. 2:5, Acts 2:38, Eph. 2:8-9, Rm. 10:9, Mark 9:47-48)
7. The Church
The global Church consists only of those who have repented of sin and turned to Jesus for their salvation. The local church exists in organized bodies of believers who gather regularly for worship, and administration of the sacraments of baptism and communion, and have been commissioned to share the gospel and make disciples. These local bodies are overseen by elders who fit the biblical qualifications of the office. Christ is the head of the Church and has granted authority to the Church on earth to affirm the profession of faith of His people through membership and to practice loving and restorative discipline for those members who are living in willful sin.
(1 Cor. 12:13, Acts 2:42-47, Mt. 28:18-20, 1 Timothy 3:1-7, Col. 1:18, Matthew 18:15-20)
8. The Second Coming
The Lord Jesus will one day return to earth in the same way in which He departed. This return will be physical and visible. Upon His return, there will be a bodily resurrection of the believer to eternal life and then unbeliever to eternal judgment. He will restore all things to a state of perfection and will rule eternally in a state of justice, equity, and peace and His redeemed people will forever dwell in His presence under His reign. This is the blessed hope of the believer (Acts 1:11, John 5:29, Rev. 21:1-8, 1 Thess. 4:17-18)