Statement of Faith

God has revealed all that is necessary for life and salvation in the sixty-six books of the Bible, which is the Word of God. All Scripture is inerrant and infallible, transmitted through human authors by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Scripture alone* is the final authority in all matters of doctrine and practice. The authority of Scripture is derived from its Author and not from the opinions of men.

There is one true and living God who exists in three eternally distinct persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are one in being, united in purpose, and equally worthy of glory and adoration. God is invisible, eternal, omni-present, almighty, all-knowing, unchanging, dependent upon none, sovereign, righteous, holy, just, gracious, loving, merciful, patient, and good.

God created all that now exists in six days and from nothing, and it was all very good. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit acted together in the work of creation. Out of all living things, only man was created in God’s image. God granted him dominion over all lesser forms of life and over the earth itself.

God orders and directs his universe in every detail. Every event in nature and every human action and decision is according to his purpose. In God’s infinite wisdom and power, all things work together for the benefit of his people, and for his glory.

God made Adam perfect, holy, and upright, appointing him representative and head of the human race. He fell from his original righteousness into sin when he disobeyed God’s command. By his sinful act, Adam brought all people into a state of death and condemnation, passing to each one of them a corrupt sinful nature.

The Fall brought every man into a state of utter depravity, meaning every dimension of his being is distorted by sin. Apart from the grace of God, fallen man treats sin as his master, God as an enemy, and the message of the cross as foolishness. Until he is born again, he possesses neither the desire nor the ability to love God, to keep his laws, to understand the gospel, to repent of sin, or to trust in Christ.

God sent his Son into the world to save his people from their sins. Conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, Jesus was and is both God and man. He was tempted in all things yet without sin, living the perfect life of righteousness on behalf of his people.

Christ died on the cross as the perfect sacrifice for sin, forever finishing the substitutionary work of atonement for his people.

On the third day, Jesus rose bodily from the grave. The resurrection affirms the deity and authority of Christ and assures believers of their future bodily resurrection.

Jesus ascended into heaven to appear in the presence of God as our perpetual high priest, presenting himself as the only acceptable sacrifice for sin. He is the one and only mediator between God and men, and head of his church. He intercedes forever on behalf of his people and rules over all things for their sake.

Before the foundation of the world, God elected a great multitude of men and women to eternal life as an act of his free grace alone*. This election was in no way dependent upon his foresight of human faith, decision, works, or merit. In the unsearchable realm of God’s sovereign will, all men remain responsible beings, subject to God’s commands to repent and believe, and accountable to God for their rebellion, impenitence, and rejection of Christ.

To accomplish God’s redemptive purpose, the Holy Spirit works effectively through the gospel of Christ, regenerating elect sinners and drawing them irresistibly to repentance and saving faith.

The elect are declared righteous in the sight of God because of Christ’s perfect life, his substitutionary death, and the imputation of His righteousness. Justification can never be the reward or result of human works or merit, nor does it grow out of an infusion of Christ’s righteousness. It is granted through faith alone* in the person and work of Christ alone*.

According to God’s purpose in predestination, the justified are progressively conformed to the image of Christ. All true believers direct their will and affections toward this purpose, putting to death the desires and deeds of the flesh by the enabling power of the Holy Spirit as God’s Word is more fully understood and applied. While sinless perfection will never be attained in this life, it is a certainty in heaven.

All who are chosen, called, regenerated, and justified shall persevere in faith and never finally fall away. Perseverance is not a human accomplishment but a work of God through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit who creates, sustains, and nourishes a living, growing, transforming, and enduring faith in all true believers.
 

A local church is a body of baptized believers gathering regularly to share life with Christ and each other, to affirm and proclaim his gospel, and to submit to his headship in doctrine and practice according to his written word. Though Christ shepherds and rules over his church as head, qualified elders are appointed to shepherd and rule as his subordinates. Qualified deacons may be chosen to assist the elders in serving the body as needed. Each member of the church is uniquely gifted by the Holy Spirit to edify the body.

Baptism is the first act of Christian obedience. True baptism is immersion in water, symbolizing both the believer’s union with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection to new life, and his cleansing from sin. Baptism may only be administered to those who demonstrate repentance from sin and make a credible profession of faith in Christ.

Following their baptism, Christians regularly partake of the Lord’s Supper. By breaking and eating the bread and drinking the cup, believers commemorate the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross. Through the Lord’s Supper, they affirm and celebrate their oneness, their separation from the world, and their fellowship with Christ in the New Covenant.

It is the calling of every local church to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey all that Christ has commanded. It is a priority in evangelism to unite new believers with local churches.

The Lord Jesus Christ shall come again to raise the dead bodily, both righteous and unrighteous. The justified shall enjoy everlasting life in the presence of God in heaven, while the unjustified shall eternally endure God’s wrath in hell.

The Old Covenant, with the Law of Moses as its core, was revealed to the nation of Israel, promising blessings for obedience, and threatening curses for disobedience. The purpose of the Old Covenant was never to offer eternal life, but rather to govern the life and worship of the Old Testament nation of Israel, to reveal the extent of man’s depravity, and to foreshadow Christ and the New Covenant.

The New Covenant, established through the person and redemptive work of Christ, provides eternal blessings which are acquired by grace through faith. The Old Covenant was fulfilled in Christ, thus becoming obsolete. God’s final words of revelation, given through Christ and his New Testament apostles, have become the authority concerning Christian conduct, and the interpretive lens through which the Old Testament must be understood and applied.

Christians must live for God’s glory alone* through their awareness and enjoyment of his person, submission to his authority, and reliance upon his goodness. In truth, all things that have or will transpire, serve to glorify God as their highest purpose.

* Embedded in our statement of faith are the following five critical Christian doctrines: