Our Beliefs
God- the Father
There is only one living and true God (Jer. 10:10, 1 Thess. 1:9). In the perfect unity of the Godhead, there are three co-equal and eternal Persons, (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), who are the same in substance yet self-sustaining and self-existent (Jn 1:1,10:30). God cannot be fully comprehended (Rom. 11:33, Eph. 3:19-20), yet He has chosen to reveal certain aspects of His character to mankind through general revelation and special revelation. General revelation occurs when God shows Himself through nature (Ps 19, Rom 1:18-19). Special revelation is God revealing Himself through the Scriptures (2 Pet. 1:20). God has personally revealed Himself as the Sovereign creator and sustainer of the universe (Gen 1:1, Col 1:17). He is all-knowing (Job 21:22), all-powerful (Luke 1:37), and everywhere present (2 Chron. 6:18) yet personal, allowing His creation to have an intimate relationship with Him (Jn 14:20).
The Bible
The Bible, inerrant in its original manuscripts (Num. 23:19, Prov. 30:5, Jn 17:17), was written by God through human authors who were divinely influenced (2 Tim. 3:16). God uses the Bible to communicate truth about Himself, mankind, and His redemption plan for creation. It has complete authority in all areas of faith and practice (Ps. 119:160). Therefore, it is necessary for maintaining spiritual growth (Matt. 4:4, Deut. 8:3, 1 Pet. 2:2) and sufficient for living in a manner glorifying to Christ (Deut. 8:3, Rev. 22:18-19). The Bible should be interpreted in light of the historic hermeneutic of the Bible.
Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is the Son of God who is fully God and fully man, united in one person forever. He was born of a virgin (Matt.1:23), lived a sinless life (Heb. 4:15), and died to make atonement for our sins (1 Cor. 15:3). He rose on the third day (1 Cor. 15:4), and now sits at the right hand of the Father serving as the High Priest (Heb. 8:1) and interceding on our behalf (Mk 16:19). Jesus is the final and sufficient prophet who not only proclaims God’s word but is the very Word of God (Jn 1:1). Since He is equal with the Father, He has the power and authority to forgive the sins of man. He will return to rapture His Church and rule His kingdom (Rev. 22).
Holy Spirit
Before salvation the Holy Spirit works to convict (Jn 16:8) and sanctify (1 Peter 1:2) people. At salvation, the Holy Spirit begins to indwell believers (1 Cor. 6:19) and give new life (Jn 3:6). He baptizes believers into the church (1 Cor. 12:13), seals them (Eph. 4:30), serves as a guarantee of their salvation (Eph 1:14), and distributes spiritual gifts (1 Cor 12:11). Throughout the life of the believer, He continues to teach (Jn 16:12-15), guide (Rom 8:14), comfort (Jn 14:16), fill for special tasks (Acts 2:4), and pray for us (Rom 8:26) so that we may live in godliness.
Angels
Angels are created, spiritual beings with great intelligence and moral judgement (Matt. 28:5, Acts 12:6-11). Their main purpose is to bring glory to God by showing His greatness, reminding us of the reality of the unseen world (Ps 148:2, Heb. 12:22), serving as examples for us (Is 6:3), and carrying out God’s plan (Acts 12:23). A great sense of power and authority accompany angel’s presence and messages because they are sent of God (Ps. 103:20). There are different kinds of angels who all hold to a specific hierarchy (Jude 9); Cherubim (Gen. 3:24), Seraphim (Is. 6:2), Living Creatures (Rev. 4:8), and Guardian Angels (Ps. 91:11).
Satan/Demons
Demons are fallen angels who purpose to work evil in the world (2 Cor 4:4). Satan, formerly the angel Lucifer, serves as the head demon and has limited power in the world today (Job 1:12, 2 Pet. 2:4). He was cast out of heaven and now roams the earth scheming and tempting men (Is.14:12) After the millennium, Satan will be cast into the lake of fire and will be tormented day and night (Rev 20:10).
Man
Man was created in the image of God on the sixth day of Creation (Gen. 1:27). He was created to bring glory to his Creator (Isa. 43:7) and tasked with filling and reigning over the earth (Gen. 1:28-29). Created with free will, man choose to rebel against God which resulted in separation from the Holy God (Gen 3). After the original fall of man, humanity as a whole is fallen, sinful, lost and in need of a Savior (Rom 5:12). However, God provided a way of redemption for man through His Son, Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:8). Through Christ’s sacrifice, man is reconciled to God and made a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17).
Sin
Sin is failure to conform to the moral law of God in any action, thought, motive, or nature (1 John 3:4). Every human, except Christ, is born with inherited guilt as being a member of the fallen human race (Rom. 5:18-19) and also inherits a sinful nature (Eph. 2:3). There are also personal sins which are actively committed by an individual against another individual. Sin separates us from the Holy God, and without Christ, there is no forgiveness of sins (Heb. 9:22). The punishment for sin is eternal separation from God, death (Rom 3:23).
Salvation
Salvation is being rescued from the weight and punishment for our sins and being brought to new life in Christ (Jn. 3:16). Salvation is found in Christ alone since Christ’s perfect sacrifice is the only thing that can atone for the sins of man (1 Tim 2:5-6, Acts 4:12). By God’s grace, salvation is offered to all and is accepted only by faith (Eph 2:8-9). Since Christ’s work on the cross is eternal, our salvation is also eternal (Jn 10:28).
Church
The Universal church began with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and is built up of all believers past, present, and future. It is the Bride of Christ and functions to bring Him glory through the unity of the body (2 Cor. 11:2). Christ serves as the head and the body willingly submits to His authority (Eph 5:23-25). The local church is built of believers who have shared beliefs about Christianity and who meet together for prayer, teaching of the Apostles doctrine, worship, and fellowship (Acts 2:42-47). It should be governed by men who meet the qualifications set forth in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 2. The church body should aim to develop mature believers through discipleship and send them out to evangelize (Matt. 28:19-20).
The two main ordinances of the church are communion (1 Cor 11:23-26) and baptism (Col 2:12), which are physical acts symbolizing a spiritual act.
Future
The imminent return of Christ (Matt 24:29-30) will be preceded by the rapture (Rev. 3:10) and the tribulation (Matt 24:21). At this time Christ will set up His literal, earthly, political kingdom where believers will reign with Him for one thousand years while Satan is bound (Rev 20:2-4). Following this is a time of judgement (Rev 20:11-15) and the creation of a New Heaven and a New Earth which is not tainted by sin (Rev 21).
Marriage
The marriage between one man to one woman was created to represent the Church’s relationship with Christ and assist in the sanctification of the couple (Eph 5:25-27). God equally created man and woman in His image, but with different and distinct roles (Gen 1:27, Gal 3:28). Man was created first and serves as head of the woman. Woman was created from man and serves as his helper (Gen 2:18).