There is only one living and true God. God, as Father reigns in providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the history of the world. Jesus is the Only Son of God (John 3:16). He was born of a virgin (Luke 2), sent by God the Father, to die for the sins of the world, and was raised on the third day. The Holy Spirit is the spirit of God who lives in every believer to transform him or her into the likeness of Christ (Ephesians1:13-14). We affirm the Trinity of the Christian faith.
The Holy Bible is God’s only written word. It is inspired by Him, and is complete, correct, and without errors (2 Timothy 3:16) in the original manuscripts. The Bible is the revelation of God’s purposes in history and salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ, and is the disciple’s normative guide for daily living. Jesus Christ, as revealed in Scripture and by the Holy Spirit, is the living norm by which all revelation is measured.
All people are separated from God by their sinful nature until they trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-10). Salvation is from God and by God’s grace, not by any works that people can do (Ephesians 2:8-9). It is a gift that must be received by humble repentance, faith in Christ and his finished work on the cross.
The church is the visible presence of Christ in the world today, and it is the Body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22-23). The church is composed of freely gathered baptized followers of Christ who share “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Ephesians 4:5). The church is not a place, but people. The purpose of the church is to glorify Christ by reaching the lost, worshipping Him, proclaiming Christ as Lord and Savior in word and actions, and equipping and building up His body, the church.
Each follower of Christ is called to be a witness in the world (Acts 1:8) and to make other disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). Each disciple has a place of ministry within the Body of Christ. God has gifted each believer with at least one spiritual gift for the purpose of building up the body and carrying out God’s mission in his or her life (Romans 12:38; I Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4:11-13). Each believer is a priest who represents God to others and ministers to others before God and can know and apply Scripture to his or her daily life (1 Peter 2:9).
Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water as an act of obedience symbolizing the believer’s faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior, the believer’s death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to their faith in the final resurrection of the dead. It is a prerequisite to church membership. (Romans 6:4) We accept the baptism confession of those who have been baptized following their trust in Christ as Lord and Savior in a church of like faith. We do not baptize infants, and we are careful to instruct young children when they desire baptism.
The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby Christians,through the partaking of the bread and the fruit of the vine, celebrate the life, death, and resurrection of Christ and anticipate His second coming. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)
It is the responsibility of every follower of Christ and every church of the Lord Jesus Christ to carry out the Great Commission to make disciples of all people. Every Christian should proactively build relationships with the lost in order to grasp a Spirit-led opportunity to share a witness in word or deed. We believe Christians best serve this call as salt and light in the world. Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8; 17:17)
God, who created the world without sin (Genesis 1:1), will ultimately bring a time of judgment, but will be followed by a restored relationship with His people throughout eternity, where this is no more pain, crying, or death. (Revelation 21-22). History is moving purposefully to its completion in the purposes of God. We believe Jesus Christ, who was physically raised from the dead, will return to judge the world and fulfill his kingdom.