We believe that the Bible – the Old and New Testaments – is the whole and sufficient inspired Word of God. It is God’s revelation of himself to humanity and the supreme authority for faith and life.

Key Scriptures: Psalm 119:105, Psalm 119:160; Isaiah 40:8; Matthew 24:35; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21

We believe that the Bible – the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament – is the whole and sufficient Word of God. It was written by human authors under the divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Bible is God’s revelation of himself to humanity, and is the supreme, unalterable authority in all matters of faith and life for all people of all generations. We hold these Holy Scriptures to be inerrant – both perfect with respect to purpose and without error in the original manuscripts (the texts of which have been faithfully preserved since each was written).

We believe in one true and living God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three are equal in power and divinity.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:1; Deuteronomy 6:4; Psalm 90:2; Isaiah 43:10-11; Matthew 1:20-23; Matthew 28:18-20; John 1:1-3; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Titus 3:4-7

We believe that there is one true and living God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal being. He is the Creator and Sovereign Ruler of all that exists. God is infinitely holy and perfect. God eternally exists as three distinct persons: The Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These persons are equal in power and divinity, and are equally worthy of our highest love, worship, and obedience. They work in concert with one another, yet with distinct roles and personal attributes.

We believe that God the Father is an infinite, personal being. He reigns with holiness and care over all the earth.

Key Scriptures: Exodus 3:14; Matthew 5:48; John 1:14; John 15:16; Ephesians 3:8-9.

God the Father is an infinite, personal being, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, justice, and love. He reigns with providential care and is involved in human events according to the purpose of his grace. He hears and answers prayers. God desires a relationship with all people and he saves all those who come to him through Jesus Christ from sin and spiritual death. He is a perfect father in his disposition toward all people.

We believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, who became fully human while remaining fully God. He never sinned, and he died on the cross as a perfect sacrifice to redeem all those who believe in him. He was raised from the dead, ascended into heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of the Father. He will return to judge the world and fulfill his redemptive mission.

Key Scriptures: Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:22-23; John 1:1-5; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 3:23-24; Romans 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:3-7; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:15-17; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 9:24-28; 1 Peter 2:24

We believe Jesus Christ is the eternal and only Son of God, fully human and fully God. The Father created all things through his Son, Jesus Christ, by whom all things continue in existence. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. As the promised Messiah of the Old Testament, Jesus perfectly revealed and carried out the will of God on earth, taking upon Himself the demands and necessities of human nature and identifying Himself completely with people. Yet he never sinned. Jesus died as the perfect substitutionary sacrifice for the atonement of all those who believe in him. We believe Jesus was physically raised from the dead and appeared to His disciples and many other witnesses. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of the Father, where He is the One Mediator, interceding for his people. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to fulfill his redemptive mission.

We believe that the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin and judgement in light of God’s righteousness. He enables people to understand truth and he does the work of spiritual rebirth.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:2; John 14:16-17; John 16:7-11; Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 12:4-7; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Ephesians 1:13-1

The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son to convict the world of sin and judgement in light of God’s righteousness. Each person who acknowledges Jesus Christ and trusts him alone for salvation is filled with the Holy Spirit from the moment of salvation. The Holy Spirit enables people to understand truth. He exalts Jesus Christ and draws people to him. The Holy Spirit does the work of spiritual re-birth and sanctification. For believers, he guides daily, cultivates Christ-like character, gives comfort, and bestows spiritual gifts.

We believe in the gospel (“good news”) – the story of God’s past, present, and future interaction with his creation. We find it helpful to view this good news in four sequential parts: Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration. Read about each below.

We believe that God created all things, and that his creation was good. He created people in his image and likeness.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:1; Genesis 1:27; Genesis 1:31; Psalm 8:3-6; Psalm 121:2

We believe that God created all things, and that his creation was good. He created people in his image and likeness – to love, to worship, and to be in relationship with him; to care for one another; and to be stewards of his good creation. Therefore all people matter deeply to God.

We believe that Adam and Eve – the first humans – rebelled against God. As a result of their sin, all of creation fell and human nature was corrupted. We have all sinned, damaging our relationship with God beyond our own ability to repair.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 3:8-13; Isaiah 53:6; Acts 14:15-17; Romans 1:20; Romans 3:23; Romans 5:12; Romans 6:23

In spite of God’s love, care, and providence, Adam and Eve sinned, rebelling against God. Through that sin, all of creation fell. Human nature was corrupted, and that sinful nature has been passed on to every generation. Human beings became alienated from God, and each person has turned away from God in rebellion. We are all guilty of sin, and thus under condemnation of spiritual death, both by nature and by choice. Our relationships with God, with one another, and with God’s creation have been damaged beyond our ability to repair. Nevertheless, God continues to sustain his creation, thereby providing testimony of himself to all. He has also put into motion his plan to redeem his people and his creation. Through the Law and the prophets, God has proclaimed what life in his Kingdom is like, and has promised restoration through the Messiah (Jesus Christ) who was to come.

We believe that while we were stuck in our sin, Jesus came into our world and lived among us, inviting us into a new way of life with him. He died for our sins to reconcile us to himself. Redemption and salvation are accomplished solely by the completed work of Jesus on the cross, not on the basis of human merit or works.

Key Scriptures: John 1:12; John 3:3; Romans 3:24-26; Romans 6:23; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 2 Corinthians 5:17, 21; Ephesians 1:13-14; Ephesians 2:8-9; Colossians 1:21-23; Titus 3:5; Hebrews 9:27-28; 1 Peter 2:24

Because of God’s love for us, while we were caught in our sin Jesus came into our world and lived among us. He proclaimed the coming of his Kingdom, invited us into a new way of life, and died for our sins to reconcile us to himself. Through Jesus’ substitutionary death, we can also be reconciled to one another and to creation, and we are freed to enter into the life he offers. We believe salvation is an act of God’s grace involving the redemption of the whole person. All people who hear the good news of the gospel, are convicted of sin, trust in Jesus Christ as the sole means of salvation, and choose to submit to the Lordship of Christ are freely and supernaturally given new life by the Holy Spirit who indwells them. Regeneration occurs instantly as the repentant sinner responds in faith to the divine provision of salvation. This provision is accomplished wholly of God by grace on the basis of the redemption of Jesus Christ, not on the basis of human merit or works. Salvation leads to spiritual rebirth (including repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ), sanctification (growth and maturity in Christ throughout one’s life), and glorification (the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed). We believe death seals the eternal destiny of each person.

We believe that Jesus came to the earth to inaugurate the restoration of all things. In his own time and way, God will bring the world to an end and restore all things. Jesus will return to fully establish his Kingdom.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 24:30-31; Mark 1:14-15; Acts 1:10-11; 1 Corinthians 15:42-44; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Hebrews 10:19-23; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Revelation 20:12-15; Revelation 21:1-4

In Jesus Christ we see the first-fruits of the restoration of creation. God, in his own time and in his own way will bring the world to its appropriate end and will restore all things by creating a new heaven and new earth. According to His promise, Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to the earth. He will establish his everlasting Kingdom. The dead will be raised, and Christ will judge all people in righteousness – unto life for the believer and unto death for the unbeliever. We believe that each soul of men and women will exist eternally, either separated from God by sin in Hell, or in communion with God by his grace through the forgiveness of sins. Everyone who believes wholly in Jesus can have full assurance of faith, knowing that our salvation and eternal inheritance are upheld by God’s faithfulness and power, not by human frailty.

We believe that Jesus is the head of the universal church, which is made up of all those who believe and have been redeemed by Jesus. God has entrusted the church to carry on his mission of bringing the good news of Jesus into all the world.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 16:18; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:41-42; Romans 12:9-18; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Ephesians 4:15-16; Hebrews 10:24-25; 1 Peter 2:9

We believe Jesus Christ is the head of the universal church, which is made up of all who have been redeemed by Jesus and regenerated by the Holy Spirit. We believe the local church should be the expression of the universal church: a people devoted to God and committed to one another. God has entrusted to the church his mission of bringing the good news of Jesus to a lost world, participating with other churches in the advancement of the gospel throughout the world. God calls all those who believe in him and have received his salvation to join in his Kingdom work – the ministry of reconciliation – by living out the gospel in word and deed, and by making disciples of all peoples. The local church is an autonomous assembly of believers and it should seek to know and carry out the will of Christ.

Living out the gospel in word and deed entails bringing hope and healing to the world. We believe that the sacredness and utmost value of every human is evident in that Christ died for humanity. Therefore every person possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and love. On this basis we reject any abuse of people, including racism, sexism, and religious persecution, and we work against any such abuse. We believe that Christ-followers should work to end the suffering of people from poverty, tyranny, and injustice.

We recognize baptism and the Lord’s Supper as means of testimony, given to the church by Jesus Christ.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 3:13-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26.

Read about each below.

We believe that water baptism is the immersion of a believer. It is an outward sign of the inward work of God.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38; Romans 6:3-5; Galatians 2:20; Galatians 3:27

We believe Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is an outward sign of the inward work of God, and a public profession of faith in a crucified, buried, and risen savior. As an act of identification with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, baptism symbolizes the death and burial of the old life of sin, and the believer being raised to new life in Christ.

We believe the Lord’s Supper is for believers to remember the death of Jesus on the cross and anticipate his Second Coming.

Key Scriptures: Matthew 26:26-29; Matthew 28:20; Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

We believe the Lord’s Supper (also called Communion or the Eucharist) is a symbolic act of obedience whereby Christians remember the death of the Redeemer and anticipate his Second Coming. The Lord’s Supper, as instituted by Jesus, commemorates the New Covenant he established by his death on the cross.

We believe that marriage is a sacred institution established by God since creation. God has ordained the marriage union as the appropriate context for sexual expression. God has established the marriage union between one man and one woman as the appropriate context for sexual expression.

Key Scriptures: Genesis 1:27; Genesis 2:23-24; Matthew 5:28; Matthew 19:3-12; Romans 8:5, 10-11; 1 Corinthians 6:18-20; 1 Timothy 1:10

We believe that God loves each and every person, and that every Christian is called to love, serve and care for all people without exception. We stand against hate and injustice. We believe that Christian marriage is a sacred institution ordained of God for the sanctification of individuals and the propagation of humankind. It is a spiritual and physical union into which one man and one woman may enter for the glory of God and, according to the scriptural ideal, is to be broken only by death. As part of the created order, marriage is not open to reinterpretation. We believe that God has ordained the marriage union as the appropriate context for sexual expression. We believe that God gives grace to those who have not always lived up to that ideal, and that through repentance and by trusting Jesus, those who have strayed from God’s plan for human sexuality can find peace in community with believers and with God. Further, we assert that the image of God far outweighs sexuality alone in establishing human identity and flourishing. Therefore God’s plan provides a way for all people to lead fulfilling lives.