We believe in the God of the Bible. He is the one true and living God. He is everlasting and possesses infinite power, wisdom, righteousness, and goodness. He is the maker and preserver of all things, both visible and invisible. He has eternally existed and will forever exist as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each of these persons is truly God, and there is one God. Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; Matthew 3:16.
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the God breathed, inspired Word of God, and the final authority for faith and life. The Bible is inerrant in its original writings and its truth is infallible. Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises. Psalm 119:160; Isaiah 55:11; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21.
We believe that Jesus Christ is Eternal God incarnate, fully God and fully man. Jesus was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified and buried, rose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest, Advocate, and Intercessor. John 1:1-2; Luke 1:35; Hebrews 5:9; Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2; John 17:24.
We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation. Because of Christ’s sufficient saving work, all who are saved by him are secure in Christ eternally. John 10:28; Romans 8:38-39; Romans 3:24,25; Ephesians 1:7; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 10:10; Hebrews 9:24.
We believe in the personal, bodily, second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ at a time known only to the Father. We live in constant expectancy, waiting for the “Blessed Hope” of our Lord’s return. Matthew 24:30, 36, 42; Matthew 25:13; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:13.
We believe that the Holy Spirit, as the third person of the Triune God, glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ in all that He does. He convicts the world of sin. At the moment of conversion, He transforms the inner person into a new creation. He baptizes all believers into union with Christ, and they are adopted as heirs in the family of God. The indwelling Spirit is the Helper and Comforter and seals believers until the day of redemption, guiding them into truth, equipping and empowering them for Christ-like living and service. The Spirit gives gifts to every believer and all true spiritual gifts glorify Christ, edify believers, and build up the Church. John 14:16-17, 26; 15:26-27; 16:7-15; Galatians 5:16-18; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:9-11; 12:4-7; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Ephesians 1:13-14.
We believe that Adam and Eve, the first humans, were originally created in the image of God. They sinned by willfully disobeying God. That historic fall brought all people under divine condemnation and eternal separation from God, for which the only remedy is God’s grace in Jesus. Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 3:10-2, 3:23; 5:12: 6:23; Mark 7:21-23; I John 2:2.
We believe that the local church is a community of believers under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. It is composed of all persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been born again by the Holy Spirit. It expresses itself through worship, instruction, evangelism, service, and witness. Ephesians 1:22-23; 5:25-27; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Colossians 1:17-19.
We believe that water baptism is a symbol of repentance, inner cleansing from sin, and a sign of believer’s fellowship with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a representation of new birth in Jesus Christ and a mark of Christian discipleship and given to believers upon profession of faith in Christ. Water baptism can be sprinkling, pouring, or immersion. Matthew 3:13-17; 28:16-20; John 3:3-8; Romans 6:4.
We believe that the Lord’s Supper is a representation of our redemption, a memorial meal of the sufferings and death of Christ, and a token of love and union which Christians have with Christ and with one another. Those who rightly, worthily, and in faith eat the broken bread and drink the blessed cup partake of the body and blood of Christ in a spiritual manner until he comes. 1 Corinthians 11:23-29; Luke 22:19, 20.
We believe in the resurrection to eternal life and eternal blessedness in heaven for the saved in Christ, and in the resurrection to everlasting punishment in hell for those who reject Christ. Isaiah 53:12; Luke 16:19-26; John 5:25-29; Revelation 14:10-11; Revelation 20:11-15.
We believe that God created humankind as male and female to complement one another. He instituted monogamous marriage between one male and one female as the foundation of the family and the basic structure of human society. Therefore, we perform marriages in accordance with the Bible. The marriage covenant is a picture of the Gospel and of the relationship between Christ and the Church. The marriage covenant is expressed in love, mutual support, personal commitment, shared sexual fidelity between a man and a woman for life, and bearing and raising children. Genesis 2:20-24; Ephesians 5:22-32.
We believe that sexual intimacy is to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. All intimate sexual activity outside the marriage relationship is immoral and inconsistent with the teaching of the Bible and the Church and is sin. Genesis 2: 20-24; Matthew 19:4-6; 1 Corinthians 7:1-3; Leviticus 18; Mark 7:20-23; Romans 1:24-28; I Corinthians 6:18-20; Hebrews 13:4; Jude verses 6-8.
We believe that God offers everlasting salvation to all who confess and forsake their sin and seek His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. God calls us to love, respect, communicate, and demonstrate His grace and love to all people, and to preach his Gospel to the ends of the earth. We are to speak the truth with respect to such matters and must do so in love. Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:9; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.