STATEMENT OF FAITH

What We Believe

God the Father:
We believe that God the Father, the first member of the Holy Trinity, created the heavens and the Earth in 7 days. He created everything visible and invisible, which is all for his purpose and glory. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, infinitely loving, and boundlessly rich in mercy and grace. In his goodness, he saves all who come to him through Jesus Christ. (Genesis 1:1-31, Ephesians 3:9, Psalm 103:19, Romans 11:36, Ephesians 1:11, John 1:12, Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:5, Hebrews 12:5-9).

God the Son:
Jesus Christ, the second member of the Holy Trinity, is the incarnation of God the Father. He therefore possesses the attributes of the Father, being loving, kind, merciful, and graceful, and is considered equal to God the Father. Though he lived a human life, he did not sin. Through his voluntary sacrifice on the cross and his resurrection three days later, Jesus Christ took the punishment that man deserved. If we place our faith in Christ alone, we have hope that we may be given eternal life in heaven and adopted in the sonship of God. Christ’s shedding of blood has freed us from sin and we are declared righteous in the Father’s eyes. (John 10:30, 14:9, Philippians 2:5-8, John 1:3, Colossians 1:15-17, Hebrews 1:2)

God the Spirit:
The Holy Spirit, the third member of the Holy Trinity, is a holy person with the same attributes as God the Father and God the Son. When one believes in Jesus Christ for the first time, the Spirit seals them with the promise of salvation into eternal life. Until the day of redemption, the Spirit sanctifies each believer, continually working in each that they may do good works and live for the glory of God the Father. (Matthew 28:19, Acts 5:3-4, Acts 28:25-26, 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 2 Corinthians 13:14, Jeremiah 31:31-34, Hebrews 10:15-17, John 14:16-17, John 15:26)

Man and Sin:
We believe that man was directly and immediately created by God in His image and likeness. Man was created free of sin with a rational nature, intelligence, volition, self determination, and moral responsibility to God (Genesis 2:7, 15-25; James 3:9). We believe that God’s intention in the creation of man was that man should glorify God, enjoy God’s fellowship, live his life in the will of God, and by this accomplish God’s purpose for man in the world (Isaiah 43:7; Colossians 1:16; Revelation 4:11). We believe that in Adam’s sin of disobedience to the revealed will and Word of God, man lost his innocence; incurred the penalty of spiritual and physical death; became subject to the wrath of God; and became inherently corrupt and utterly incapable of choosing or doing that which is acceptable to God apart from divine grace. All men are thus sinners by nature, by choice, and by divine declaration (Psalm 14:1-3; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:9-18, 23; 5:10-12). With no recuperative powers to enable him to recover himself, man is hopelessly lost. Man’s salvation is thereby wholly of God’s grace through the redemptive work of our Lord Jesus Christ (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:1-19; John 3:36; Romans 3:23; 6:23; 1 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:1-3; 1 Timothy 2:13-14; 1 John 1:8).

The Bible:
The Bible is God’s written revelation to man, and thus the sixty-six books of the Bible given to us by the Holy Spirit constitute the plenary (inspired equally in all parts) Word of God (1 Corinthians 2:7-14; 2 Peter 1:20-21). The Word of God is an objective, propositional revelation (1 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Corinthians 2:13), verbally inspired in every word (2 Timothy 3:16), absolutely inerrant in the original documents, infallible, and God-breathed. We believe in the literal, grammatical historical interpretation of Scripture and that whereas there may be several applications of any given passage of Scripture, there is but one true interpretation. We believe that the Bible constitutes the only infallible rule of faith and practice (Matthew 5:18; 24:35; John 10:35; 16:12-13; 17:17; 1 Corinthians 2:13; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20-21).

Salvation:
We believe that the salvation of man, who is sinful and lost, is instantaneous and accomplished solely by the power of the Holy Spirit through the instrumentality of the Word of God when the repentant sinner—enabled by the Holy Spirit—responds in faith. This salvation is wholly of God by grace on the basis of the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, the merit of His shed blood, and not on the basis of human merit or works. All the redeemed are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 1:12; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10; 1 Peter 1:18-19).