What We Believe


We hold the Christian faith which is common to all believers (Titus 1:4aTo Titus, genuine child according to the common faith:; Jude 3b...contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints.). Our faith is composed of the following beliefs concerning the Bible, God, Christ, the work of Christ, salvation, and the church:

The Bible

Our belief is based on the Holy Bible, which is the word of God written under His inspiration word by word (2 Tim. 3:16All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in righteousness) and which contains the complete divine revelation.

God

God is uniquely one (Deut. 6:4Hear, O Israel, Jehovah is our God; Jehovah is one.; 1 Cor. 8:4b…there is no God but one.; Isa. 45:5aI am Jehovah and there is no one else; Besides Me there is no God), yet a Trinity—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, who coexist simultaneously, from eternity to eternity, and are each fully God (Matt. 28:19Go therefore and disciple all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; 2 Cor. 13:14The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.).

Christ

Eternally Christ is the only begotten Son in the Godhead (John 1:1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God., 18 No one has ever seen God; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.). In time He became a genuine human being through incarnation (John 1:14And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us (and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only Begotten from the Father), full of grace and reality.). He is like us in all respects, yet He is without sin (Heb. 4:15For we do not have a High Priest who cannot be touched with the feeling of our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all respects like us, yet without sin.; 1 John 3:5And you know that He was manifested that He might take away sins; and sin is not in Him.; 2 Cor. 5:21Him who did not know sin He made sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.; 1 Pet. 2:22Who committed no sin, nor was guile found in His mouth). Christ is the complete God and perfect man, possessing both the divine nature and the human nature.

The Work of Christ

In dying on the cross for our sins, Christ accomplished an eternal redemption for us (Rom. 3:24Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; Eph. 1:7In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of offenses, according to the riches of His grace; Heb. 9:12And not through the blood of goats and calves but through His own blood, entered once for all into the Holy of Holies, obtaining an eternal redemption.) and brought us back to God (1 Pet. 3:18For Christ also has suffered once for sins, the Righteous on behalf of the unrighteous, that He might bring you to God, on the one hand being put to death in the flesh, but on the other, made alive in the Spirit). After His resurrection He ascended bodily to the Father, who exalted Him to His right hand as Lord of all (Acts 5:31 This One God has exalted to His right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.; 10:36The word which He sent to the sons of Israel in announcing the gospel of peace through Jesus Christ (this One is Lord of all)). Today He is in glory as the ascended Lord and as the Son of Man (Acts 7:56And he said, Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.), still human and always God. We eagerly await His return when He will come back as the Bridegroom for His bride, the church (John 3:29He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices with joy because of the bridegroom's voice. This joy of mine therefore is made full.; Rev. 19:7Let us rejoice and exult, and let us give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.), and as the King of kings to rule over all the nations (Rev. 11:15And the seventh angel trumpeted; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.; 19:16 And He has on His garment and on His thigh a name written, King Of KINGS And Lord Of LORDS.). With all believers we share the blessed hope of being glorified by God (Rom. 5:2Through whom also we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand and boast because of the hope of the glory of God.; Col. 1:27To whom God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory) and of dwelling with Him eternally, having Him as our full enjoyment while He has us as His eternal expression (Rev. 21:1—22:5).

Salvation

Every human being is constituted a sinner by birth and by action (Rom. 5:19For just as through the disobedience of one man the many were constituted sinners, so also through the obedience of the One the many will be constituted righteous., 12Therefore just as through one man sin entered into the world, and through sin, death; and thus death passed on to all men because all have sinned). To be saved from the righteous judgment of God, a person must repent to God and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38And Peter said to them, Repent and each one of you be baptized upon the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.; Acts 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved, you and your household.; 26:20But declared both to those in Damascus first and in Jerusalem and throughout call the country of Judea and to the Gentiles that they should repent and turn to God, doing works worthy of repentance.; John 3:15-16That every one who believes into Him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that every one who believes into Him would not perish, but would have eternal life.) to be forgiven of his or her sins and to be redeemed, justified, and regenerated (Acts 10:43To this One all the prophets testify that through His name everyone who believes into Him will receive forgiveness of sins.; Rom. 3:24Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; Acts 13:39And from all the things from which you were not able to be justified by the law of Moses, in this One everyone who believes is justified.; John 3:6That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.). Through regeneration we become the children of God (John 1:12But as many as received Him, to them He gave the authority to become children of God, to those who believe into His name) and members of Christ (1 Cor. 12:27Now you are the Body of Christ, and members individually.). It is our great privilege as co-laborers with God to preach this gospel to all peoples.

The Church

Finally, we believe that for the accomplishment of His purpose and to make known His multifarious wisdom, God produced the church (Eph. 3:10In order that now to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenlies the multifarious wisdom of God might be made known through the church), which is the Body of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23And He subjected all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, which is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all.; Col. 1:24I now rejoice in my sufferings on your behalf and fill up on my part that which is lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for His Body, which is the church), composed of all persons irrespective of time and space who are believers in Christ. It is God’s intent that this mystical, universal Body be practically manifested on the earth in time and space as local churches, each of which encompasses all of the believers in a given city (Acts 2:44And all those who believed were together and had all things common; 8:1And Saul approved of his killing. And there occurred in that day a great persecution against the church which was in Jerusalem; and all were scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.).