What We Believe

God

We believe there is one God who exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 13:14, Matthew 28:19). We believe that the God of the Bible is the creator of the universe and everything within it (Genesis 1:1).

Jesus

We believe that Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God (Mark 1:1, Luke 1:35, Hebrews 4:14) and savior of the world (1 John 4:14). Jesus was born to the virgin Mary (Luke 1:27), lived a sinless life on Earth (2 Corinthians 5:21), and performed many miracles during this lifetime to prove his identity (Acts 2:22). Jesus died on the cross for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2), but was raised back to life on the third day (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) and eventually ascended back to Heaven (Acts 1:9), where he is now enthroned as King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Revelation 19:16).

The Holy Spirit

We believe that the Spirit of God dwells within the hearts of every disciple who has been baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38, 2 Corinthians 1:22, Galatians 4:6). The Spirit equips us with spiritual gifts that we can use to glorify God, love others, and make disciples (1 Corinthians 12:4-11, 1 Peter 4:10-11). We believe that the Holy Spirit guides us, comforts us, convicts us, and empowers us in our everyday lives (John 14:16-17, John 16:8-13; 2 Timothy 1:14).

The Bible

We believe that the Bible is the inspired, authoritative Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Through the Bible, we can know the truth about God, ourselves, and God’s plan for the world. It equips us to teach, correct, rebuke, and train others in the ways of Christ.

Sin

We believe that everyone has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), meaning we have all rebelled against God’s authority by following our own way. Since the ultimate consequence of sin is death (Romans 6:23, James 1:15), we all need Jesus to save us from the guilt and consequences of our sin.

Salvation

We believe that God wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). Because of that, God is offering everyone the gift of salvation through a relationship with Jesus Christ. This is the one and only way to be saved from our sins (John 14:6). Salvation is an undeserved gift of grace, given by God to those who put their faith in Jesus (Ephesians 2:8). Each believer receives the grace of God, the forgiveness of sins, and the gift of the Holy Spirit when they confess their faith in Jesus (Romans 10:10), are baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38), and pledge to live as a disciple of Jesus (Luke 9:23).

The Church

We believe the Church consists of every disciple of Jesus who has been baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38-41). Each congregation represents a local gathering of disciples who are committed to loving God, loving their neighbors, and making disciples (Matthew 22:34-40; Matthew 28:18-20). The church is a community of faith where disciples love, encourage, equip, teach, and comfort one another on the journey of following Jesus (John 13:34-25, Acts 2:42-47).

Communion

We take Communion (also known as the Lord’s Supper) every Sunday. Jesus teaches us that the bread of Communion represents his body, and the cup represents his blood that was shed on the cross (Luke 22:19-20). These emblems remind us of the New Covenant that God has made with his people (1 Corinthians 11:25) — a covenant of grace that centers on Jesus. Communion is a time to remember the sacrifice of Jesus and celebrate his resurrection.

Baptism

We believe that baptism by immersion is a life-changing experience. It is a conscious decision to follow Jesus as your Lord and Savior (Acts 2:36) that involves dying to your old self and being raised to new life in Christ (Romans 6:3-4, Colossians 2:12). Through baptism, a person’s sins are forgiven in accordance with God’s grace and they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16). We believe that baptism is an essential part of following Jesus. While it does not earn us our salvation, the Bible describes it as the means by which we experience new life through Jesus (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 2:38, Acts 2:41, Acts 22:16, 1 Peter 3:21).