Revelation, Scripture, and Authority of the Scriptures

We believe that God is revealed in creation, in the Holy Scriptures, and in Jesus Christ, the pinnacle of revelation. The Scriptures, all sixty-six Old and New Testament books, are divinely authoritative in all they affirm (Ps. 19:1-6; Heb. 1:1-2; John 17:17). We believe in the verbal, plenary inspiration of Scripture. This means the Holy Spirit dynamically superintended the verbal expressions of the human authors of Scripture so that the very thoughts God intended were accurately written in the wording of the original manuscripts (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21; 1 Cor. 2:13). We believe the Scripture is inerrant as to fact and infallibly trustworthy as to truth, and should be interpreted in context to ascertain each author’s intended meaning. Our present Bible continues to reveal the final authoritative instruction of God for the church and the world (John 10:35b; Ps. 19:7; Matt. 5:17-18). We believe that all of the Scriptures ultimately point to the character or work of our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 24:27; John 5:39).

The Divine Trinity

We believe in God, the one triune, infinite, personal Spirit who created and governs all things and who is the sole object of our worship. God has always existed in eternal relationship as three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit— each identical in nature, equal in power and glory, and having precisely the same divine character and attributes (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; Jn 4:24).

God the Son

We believe that Jesus is the eternal Son of God. He became man, without ceasing to be God, and was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary in order to redeem sinful humanity. He satisfied God’s holy and just demands by dying as our substitute on the cross. He assured our redemption by His resurrection from the dead in the same, though glorified, body in which He was crucified (John 1:1-2; Luke 1:35; Rom. 3:24-25; 1 Pet. 1:3-5). We believe Jesus ascended to heaven and is exalted at the right hand of the Father. As High Priest for His people, He serves as our Intercessor and Advocate (Heb. 9:24, 7:25; Rom. 8:34; 1 John 2:1-2).

God the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the transforming agent who effectively imparts Christ’s new life to all who believe. He baptizes them into the body of Christ, dwells within all believers, seals them for the day of redemption, and empowers them in holiness and love with ministry-enhancing gifts to serve God and His church (Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:12-14; Eph. 1:13-14, Gal. 5:22-25).

God the Father

We believe that God the Father is the holy and loving Creator of all things. Unlimited in time, space, knowledge, and power, the Father has planned all that comes to pass. Although distinct from His creation, He is immanently at work in it (Ps. 139: 1-16; 1 Cor. 8:6; John 5:17).

The Creation and Fall of Humanity

We believe that all human beings are created in the image of God. Through Adam’s disobedience, we by nature became alienated from God, acquired a destructive disposition to sin, and came under the judicial sentence of spiritual and physical death (Gen. 1:25-27; Rom. 3:22-23; 5:12-21; Eph. 2:1-3, 12).

Salvation

We believe that salvation is the gift of God offered to all humanity by grace and received through repentance of sins and personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that all true believers, having been justified by faith in Christ alone, shall be kept saved forever (Rom. 8:1, 38, 39; John 10:27-30; Phil. 1:6). This genuine faith results in fruitful works pleasing to God (Eph. 2:8-10; Tit. 2:11-14).

The Church

We believe the Church, having begun at Pentecost, is the body of Christ and the temple of the Holy Spirit, a spiritual community of all believers. Local gatherings of believers represent Christ’s presence on earth as they love one another and manifest Christ’s love to the world (Eph. 1:22-23, 5:25-27; 1 Cor. 12:12-14).

Human Destiny

We believe in the physical resurrection of the righteous and the unrighteous: the righteous to eternal fellowship with God, the unrighteous to eternal punishment, and conscious separation from God (Mark 9:43-48; Rev. 20:15, 22:3-5, 11). We believe in the premillennial return of the Lord Jesus Christ, in His literal future kingdom reign upon the earth, and in a glorious, new heaven and earth where redeemed humanity will dwell forever with God (1 Thess. 4:13-18; Zech. 14:4-11; Rev. 20:6).

We are Complementarian on the biblical roles of men and women in our homes and leadership structure. We are pro-life. We are open but cautious on all of the New Testament Spiritual Gifts; We believe in essentials unity, non-essentials liberty, and in all disagreements charity.