Our statement of faith!

We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the inspired Word of
God, inerrant in the original writings, complete as the revelation of God’s will for salvation,
and supreme and final authority in faith and life. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:19-21)

We believe in one God, creator and sustainer of all things, eternally existing in three
persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each of Whom possesses equally all the attributes
of deity and the characteristics of personality. (Gen. 1:26; Deut. 6:4; Matt. 3:16-17; 28:19)

We believe in God the Father, an infinite personal Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom,
power and love. We believe He involves Himself mercifully in people’s lives, hears and
answers prayer, and saves from death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. (John
16:23-27; Gal. 4:4-6; Eph. 1:3,17-23)

We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s eternal Son. He is fully God and fully man, conceived by
the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. We believe that He lived a sinless life on earth
and died a substitutionary death on the cross, that His sacrifice for the sins of all people
satisfied God’s justice, and that all who believe in Him are freed from the penalty of sin an
made acceptable before God on the grounds of His sin-payment. We believe in His bodily
resurrection from the dead, His ascension into heaven, His current ministry of prayer on
behalf of His people, and His visible return from heaven. (Matt. 1:18-23; Luke 24:1-8; John
1:1,14; Acts 1:11; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; Heb. 4:14-16; 1 John 2:1; Rev. 19,20)

We believe in the Holy Spirit. He is fully God, sent into the world by the Father and the Son
to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. His ministry glorifies Jesus Christ
and implements Christ’s work of redemption. He regenerates, baptizes, seals and indwells
all believers, securing them in Christ forever, and empowers them for godly living and
service. His presence is evidenced by the fruit of the Spirit and the building up of believers
into Christlikeness. At the point of salvation, He uniquely endows every believer with a
spiritual gift or gifts for building the church. (Matt. 28:19-20; Mk. 1:8; John 3:5; 16:8; Acts
1:8; 5:3-4; Rom. 8:11; 1 Cor. 6:11,19; 12:4-13; Eph. 1:3; 3:6; 4:11-16; 1 Pet. 4:10)

We believe God created humanity, male and female, in the image of God and free from
sin. Sin entered the world when Adam disobeyed God. The effect is that all people are
sinners by nature and choice, are spiritually dead, and are in need of a Savior. The family
is established by God and is the foundational institution of society. He has designed
marriage to be a life-long commitment between one man and one woman. (Gen. 1:26-27;
2:7-13,19; Rom. 3:23; 5:12-21; 6:23)

We believe the central purpose of God’s revelation in Scripture is to call all people into
relationship with Himself. We believe that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus
Christ. We believe that salvation is based upon the grace of God, was paid for by Christ on
the cross, is received by faith, and cannot be earned through good works or rituals. We
also believe that salvation produces a desire to become more like Christ in character and
purpose. (1 Tim. 2:4-5; John 1:12; 3:3-7; 5:24; Tit. 3:5; Eph. 2:8-10; Rom. 13:8-10)

We believe that the Church is a spiritual body, with Jesus Christ as its head. We believe
the Church is made up of all those who have trusted Christ as their Savior and Lord. We
believe that Scripture commands believers to gather together to devote themselves to
worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of believers’ baptism and communion
as the ordinances established by Jesus Christ, fellowship, service to the body through the
development and use of talents and gifts, and outreach to the world. We also believe in the
interdependence of local churches and mutual submission of believers to each other and
their spiritual leaders. (Matt. 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; 2:41-47; 1 Cor. 11:23-26; Eph. 5:21; Col.
1:18; Heb. 10:24-25; 13:17)

We believe that each local church is self-governing in function, and must be free from
interference by any ecclesiastical or political authority. We believe that every person is
directly responsible to God in matters of faith and life, and that each one should be free to
worship God according to biblical principles and the dictates of his or her conscience.
(Matt. 22:21; Rom. 13:1; 1 Tim. 2:1-6)

We believe that Scripture is the final authority in faith and practice. Each believer is to be
led in those areas by the Lord and the Bible, with the help of trusted, godly counsel. We
believe that every Christian’s purpose in life is to glorify God, grow in Christ, and help
others to grow towards Christ. We also believe that Scripture teaches faithful management
of our resources. (1 Cor. 4:2; 10:31; Col. 1:28; 1 Tim. 6:6-9; Heb. 10:24-25; 1 Pet. 1:14-15;
2 Pet. 3:18)

We believe there will be a resurrection of the body for all people, and a judgment that will
determine the fate of each individual. Unbelievers will experience eternal separation from
God and believers experience eternity with God and will be rewarded for works done in
this life. (John 5:29; 1 Cor. 3:11-15; 15:1-58; 2 Cor. 5:8,10; Eph. 2:8-9; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 2
John 8; Rev. 19-20)