Our Statement Of Faith

We hold to the Apostles Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Chalcedonian Definition as well as the
following Statement of Faith:

We believe that the Bible, the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New
Testament, is the inspired and authoritative Word of God. It is a revelation from God to mankind
and is inerrant and infallible in its original autographs. It is the supreme, final, and absolute
authority in relation to faith and practice. (2 Timothy 3:15-16; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; Hebrews 4:12; 1 Peter 2:2)

We believe in the One True and Living God who is the eternal creator, sustainer, and redeemer of
all things. One eternal Being in substance revealed in three distinct persons: God the Father, God
the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. All three are equal in power, glory, and eternality.
(Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 43:10, 11; Matthew 28:19; Luke 3:22)

We believe that God created humanity good and perfect, in His image and likeness to have union
with Him and to steward and have dominion over the Earth. God created mankind as two distinct
sexes: male and female, and instituted marriage as the joining together of one biological man and
one biological woman into a covenantal union. We believe that all human life is sacred from the
moment of conception to its natural end; therefore, all people are precious in God’s sight and are
to be afforded dignity and respect. We believe that mankind, under the temptation of the devil,
voluntarily transgressed and fell from grace. As a result, sin, sickness, and death have entered
into creation and all the world experiences the effects and consequences of sin. All humans are
born into a fallen nature and are in need of redemption. (Genesis 1:26-31; 2:20-25; 3:1-7; Psalm
139:13-14; Romans 5:12-21)

We believe that God the Father, in His great love, did not abandon humanity to their fallen
condition but sent His One and Only Begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, into the world to save
the world. Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, true God and true man in one person (John 1:1;
1:14; Romans 9:5; Colossians 2:9). The Scriptures testify to His virgin birth from Mary
(Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:31; Luke 1:35), His sinless life (Hebrews 7:26; 1 Peter 2:22), His
miracles (Acts 2:22; Acts 10:38), His substitutionary death on the cross (1 Corinthians 15:3; 2
Corinthians 5:21), His physical bodily resurrection from the dead (Matthew 28:6; Luke 24:39; 1
Corinthians 15:4), and His exaltation to the right hand of God (Acts 1:9; Acts 1:11; Acts 2:33;
Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:3). He is Israel’s promised Messiah and the only true savior of
mankind.

We believe in the gospel, the good news of God’s salvation and kingdom. Simply put the gospel
is this: Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead so we could have eternal life. Salvation is
appropriated when sinful humans repent of their sins toward God the Father and believe in Jesus
Christ and His work alone on the Cross. We are justified (declared righteous) by grace, through
faith, in the blood of Christ alone. When we turn from sin to Christ, we are instantly forgiven, we
receive righteousness, and we are brought into a relationship with God the Father as His sons and
daughters as we pass from death to life. We are then set apart as we reflect the image of Jesus to
the world by walking out our salvation in true love and holiness. There is salvation in no other
than Jesus. (Luke 24:47; John 3:3; 3:16; 14:6; Acts 4:12; Romans 3:23-25; 5:6-8; 6:23; 10:9-15;
2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 2:11; Titus 3:5-7)

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, co-equal, co-eternal, and co-
existent with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit convicts, regenerates, justifies, sanctifies,
and adopts us into God’s Kingdom as sons and daughters of the Father. The Holy Spirit converts
the world and is the comforter of the Church. The Holy Spirit indwells all believers in Christ.
Along with regeneration (becoming “born again”), we believe in “the Promise of the Father”, the
baptism of the Holy Spirit. The baptism of the Spirit is a distinct and separate experience from
regeneration that usually occurs after salvation. The purpose of the baptism of the Spirit is to
receive miraculous power to be witnesses, and it is normatively evidenced by speaking in
tongues. The baptism is for all who believe in the Lord Jesus. We believe in the fruits of the
Spirit, love and its eight expressions, and we believe in the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit and seek
to “eagerly desire them” as Scripture mandates. All the gifts of the Spirit are for today exactly as
they were in the early Church. (Matthew 3:11; Luke 24:29; John 14:16-17; 20:22; Acts 1:4; 1:8;
2:4; 2:38-39; 8:15-18; 10:44-46; 11:15-17; 19:1-6; Romans 8:9-17; Galatians 4:6; 5:22-23; 1
Corinthians 12:1-31; 14:1)

We believe that the Church is the Bride and Body of Christ made up of all people, Jew and
Gentile, who put their faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:22; Hebrews 12:33). The
mission and purpose of the Church is as follows: the evangelization of the world (Mark
16:15-20), the worship of God (John 4:23,24), and the building up of the body of Christ
(Ephesians 4:11-16). We believe that Jesus gave five gifts to the Church (Apostles, Prophets,
Teachers, Pastors, and Evangelists) for the purpose of equipping the saints and bringing the body
into the unity of Christ. We believe that Jesus committed two ordinances to the Church: water
baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Both are available to all believers. Water baptism is a powerful
sacrament to be administered to believers only by full immersion in water as commanded in
Scripture. In it, the believer buries their old life and is identified with Christ’s death, burial, and
resurrection (Matthew 28:19; Acts 10:47-48; Romans 6:4; Acts 20:21; Hebrews 10:22). The
Lord’s Supper is to be consistently received until Jesus’ return and consists of the elements of the
bread- His body broken for us, and the cup- His blood shed for us. Both elements bear witness to
the New Covenant believers now enjoy in Christ. (Luke 22:14-20; 1 Corinthians 11:26)

We believe that the finished work of Jesus on the Cross paid for and provides freedom from sin,
sickness, and demonic lies and torment. Therefore, we believe that divine healing is the will of
God as provided for in the atonement and is as much available today as it was in the early
church. (Isaiah 53:4-5; Matthew 8:16-17; 1 Peter 2:24)

We believe that the Lord Jesus inaugurated the Kingdom of God in His first coming through His
resurrection from the dead and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, along with demonstrating the
Kingdom by healing the sick, casting out demons, and raising the dead. The Kingdom of God is
the reign and realm of Jesus’ rule, which we can enter into right now as we submit our lives to
King Jesus. However, the Kingdom is both “now and not yet.” We believe in the Blessed Hope –
the glorious, visible, physical, and victorious return of Jesus Christ to rule and reign with His
overcoming Bride – the Church. Jesus will return to physically resurrect the lost and the saved,
judge the living and the dead, consummate His physical earthly Kingdom, and bring in a New
Heavens and New Earth where righteousness dwells. We believe that God will honor His
promises to Israel and the Jewish people. We believe that the saved are resurrected to eternal life
in union with God in the New Heavens and New Earth, and the lost are resurrected to eternal
death along with the devil and his angels in the Lake of Fire. (Daniel 2:44; 7:13-14; Matthew
4:17, 23-24; 12:28; 16:27; 25:31-46; Mark 1:15; Luke 17:20-21; Acts 1:6; 1:9-11; Romans 8:23;
11:26-27; 1 Corinthians 15:20-58; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Titus 2:13; 2 Peter 3:10-13;
Revelation 19-22)