What We Believe
SCRIPTURE
We believe that the original sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament were inspired by God and written down by faithful men.
Therefore, we believe the entire Bible is the Word of God and the only authoritative source of information about God, Jesus, salvation, Christian behavior and Church policy. We believe the Bible should be taught systematically (verse by verse, book by book) in the local church.
GOD
We believe that God exists in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All three persons of the Godhead are equal and eternal.
JESUS
We believe God reached out to us by becoming a man. The eternal, omnipotent God entered the human race when Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem. Becoming man in no way diminished His deity and being God did not make Him any less human, except that it made it impossible for Him to sin.
MANKIND
We believe Adam, the first man, and his wife, Eve were created in God’s image but destroyed their original relationship with God because of their choice to disobey Him. This resulted in sin being introduced into the entire human race since we are all descended from Adam. Therefore, we are fallen creatures and it is necessary for us to be restored to God’s favor.
SALVATION
The only way a person can be restored to favor with God is through the salvation God provided by sending Jesus into the world to die as our substitute. His resurrection was proof that His death was a satisfactory payment for our sin debt. The only way a person can receive this salvation is by faith i.e. believing that Jesus, the God-Man fully paid the penalty of sin, and that he rose from the dead. Faith is more than the acknowledgement of historical fact, It is trusting Jesus Christ alone for salvation. Faith does not include human works, behavioral modification or a promise to do so.
SECURITY
We believe that salvation is an unmerited gift from God. Since it does not depend on our performance or lack of, there is nothing we can do to lose our salvation once we have put our faith in Christ.
BAPTISM
We believe that Baptism in water is a matter of obedience to Christ’s command to believers. It is not a requirement for salvation but rather a post-salvation act that symbolizes the believer’s identification with Christ.
THE CHURCH
The church which is the Body of Christ, consists of all believers in Jesus regardless of where they live or what church they attend. The scripture authorizes the establishment of local assemblies (churches) by believers for the purpose of spreading the Gospel of Christ, teaching the Bible, fellowship, observing the Lord’s supper and supporting one another.
SPIRITUAL GIFTS
We believe God gives every believer a unique ability (gift) to serve others. Of the approximately twenty spiritual gifts mentioned in the New Testament we believe that there were several sign gifts such as tongues and healing that were temporary and limited to the apostolic age.
Scripture and history teach that these gifts disappeared with the completion of the New Testament.
THE FUTURE
We believe Jesus will return to remove (rapture) all believers from the earth before the seven years of tribulation begin. There are no signs or timetable revealed for this event. At the end of the seven year tribulation, we believe Jesus will return with His church to destroy the government of Antichrist and establish His own rule on earth. The Kingdom of Christ on earth will last for a thousand years but will continue on in Heaven forever. At the end of the thousand years, God will judge all who refused to accept his offer of salvation through the death of his Son, and condemn them to eternal banishment from His presence in the Lake of Fire.