These Essentials We Believe
ABOUT GOD
God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. God has eternally existed in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God.
Genesis 1:1,26,27; 3:22; Psalm 90:2; Matthew 28:19; I Peter 1:2; II Corinthians 13:14
ABOUT JESUS CHRIST
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days as a demonstration of God’s power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven's glory, intercedes for us there, and will return again to reign as King of kings, and Lord of lords.
Matthew 1:22,23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14,15; I Corinthians 15:3,4; Romans 1:3,4; Acts 1:9-11; Timothy 6:14,15; Titus 2:13
ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT
The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make people aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. The Holy Spirit provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved. As Christians we seek to live under His control daily.
II Corinthians 3.17, John 16.7, 13,
ABOUT THE BIBLE
The Bible is God's Word to us. Human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit, wrote it. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian belief and living. Because God inspired it, it is the truth without any mixture of error.
II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20,21; II Timothy 1:13;Psalm 119:105, 160, 12:6; Proverbs 30:5
ABOUT HUMAN BEINGS
People are made in the image of God, to be like Him in character. People are the supreme object of God's creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called "sin". This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in life.
Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53: 6a; Romans
ABOUT SALVATION
Salvation is God's free gift to us but we must accept it. We can never make up for our sin by self improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God's offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin's penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.
Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8,9; John 14:6, 1:2; Titus 3:5, Galatians 3:26; Romans 5:1
ABOUT ETERNITY
People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal life.
John 3:16; John 14:17; Romans 6:23; Romans 8:17-18; Revelation 20:15; 1 Corinthians 2:7-9
We hold the Bible to be authoritative in all matters of doctrine.
WHAT WE PRACTICE
Beliefs are not worth much unless they are translated into actions. Based on what the Bible teaches, we feel very strongly about the following practices:
God’s Wonderful Grace - We seek to have a grace orientation to all of our life together.
Ephesians 2:4-5 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved.
The Authority of the Word of God - We offer Bible-centered preaching and teaching
2 TimothyAll Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness
Leaders Who Follow Jesus’ Example - Godly servant leadership is our target.
Matthew The greatest among you will be your servant.
Ministering as God Has Gifted Us - A Well-Mobilized Lay Ministry
Romans 12:6-8 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
(See also 1 Peter 4:10)
People - People matter to God and to
John For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
We will seek to win the lost, comfort the hurting, and bring believers to maturity.
Prayer - God answers prayer and we are committed to being a praying people.
We “stand in the gap”, interceding for the lost, for leaders, for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Colossians 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.
Offering People New Life In Christ - We are called to “go and make disciples of all peoples”
Matthew 28:19. The first step in this is sharing the Gospel with those around us. We are committed to reaching this generation with the Good News of God’s Grace.
Inspiring Praise and Worship - God has called us to “worship in spirit and in truth” (John
We are committed to entering into His presence with praise and thanksgiving in our celebration services each Sunday.
Moving Believers on to Maturity
Discipleship is an integral part of all we are about, with Christian maturity the goal.
Ephesians until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
LIFE Groups
We believe that most of our values are best put into practice in small groups and we use a LIFE group based model for ministry.
Acts Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.
