What We Teach
The Scriptures
We teach that the Scripture is fully trustworthy as our final and only sufficient authority for all of life, that the Old and New Testaments are completely verbally inspired by God and without error in the original writings, and that all believers have the responsibility to both study and obey God’s Word.
(See 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:19-21).
The Godhead
We teach that there is but one God, the Creator, Preserver and Ruler of all things, Who is eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, perfect in holiness and in love, and Who reveals Himself to us in three equal Persons as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
(See Deuteronomy 6:4; Nehemiah 9:6; I Chronicles 29:11,12; Exodus 15:11; I John 4:8b; Matthew 28:19).
God the Father
We teach that God the Father, the first Person of the Trinity, orders and places all things according to His own purpose and grace. He is sovereign in His creation, providence, redemption, decrees, choosing and adopting.
His fatherhood involves both His designation with the Son, the Spirit and His relationship with mankind. He is neither the author nor approver of sin, nor does He diminish the accountability of moral, conscientious creatures.
(See 1 Peter 1:17; John 1:12; Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:5; Hebrews 12:5-9; Psalm 145:8-9; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Psalm 103:19; Romans 11:36; Ephesians 1:4-6, 11; Habakkuk 1:13; John 8:38-47).
Jesus Christ
We teach that Jesus Christ is God’s only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. He was not a mere prophet, but God incarnate: true God and true man, one Person with two natures. His miraculous acts and divine teachings confirm His identity. He is the only and sufficient Mediator, able to affect reconciliation between God and man. He perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself human nature with its demands and necessities, identifying Himself completely with mankind, yet without sin.
Jesus honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His substitutionary death on the cross made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He truly died and was raised from the dead with a glorified body, and He appeared to His disciples, the same person He was with them before His crucifixion. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission.
(See Matthew 1:20; Luke 1:35; John 1:1, 2, 14; John 10:30; 12:45; 20:30, 31; Acts 1:11; Romans 5:6-8; 6:9-10; 8.32; 9:5; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 1:4; 1 Timothy 2:5; 3:16; Hebrews 1:2-3; 7.25; 9.28; 1 Pet. 2:21-23)
The Holy Spirit
We teach that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, co-eternal with the Father and the Son, and that He participated in the act of creation. He authored Scripture by inspiring the Apostles. His ministry is to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He regenerates the unbelieving upon their conversion by faith. The Spirit baptizes, seals, indwells, sanctifies, and teaches those who believe in Jesus Christ.
(See Genesis 1:2; John 16:7-13; 3:3, 7; 14:26; I Corinthians 6:19, 20; 12:12, 13; Ephesians 1:13; I Peter 1:2; 2 Peter 1:20-21).
Man
We teach, that in the beginning, God created mankind in his own image, male and female, free of sin, to glorify himself and enjoy his fellowship. That, mankind sinned, incurring both spiritual and physical death, therefore each of us are sinners by nature and choice, deserving of the wrath of God and desperately needing salvation.
God intentionally created humanity both male and female in his image and equal in value. That, in God’s overall plan for human good and human flourishing, he designed marriage as a lifelong union between one man and one woman, and that men and women have distinct but complementary roles within marriage and the church.
Salvation
We teach that salvation is by grace through faith alone, and that man’s works cannot save him, and that all who receive the Lord Jesus Christ by faith are born again of the Holy Spirit, thereby becoming children of God. God, in grace, has eternally elected those whom He would save, and therefore that those who are saved have eternal security.
The Lord Jesus Christ accomplished the work of salvation by living a sinless life, dying for our sins, and rising from the grave. All who believe in Him as Lord and Savior are justified on the ground of His shed blood and finished work on the cross.
(See John 3:3; 1:12; 6:37-40; 10:27-30; I Corinthians 15:3, 4; Ephesians 2:8, 9; 4:30; I Peter 1:5; Revelation 1:5)
The Resurrection/Return of Christ
We teach that our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified, resurrected, and ascended into heaven where he presently serves as our advocate. Further, he will return as he promised, that his return is imminent, and that it has vital bearing on every believer’s personal life, service and mission.
(See 1 Cor. 15:1-4; Acts 1:8; 1 Thess. 4:13-18)
The Eternal State
We teach in the everlasting conscious joy of the saved in heaven, and the everlasting conscious punishment of the lost in hell.
(See I Corinthians 15:20-24; Revelation 20:12-15; II Corinthians 5:8).
The Church
We teach that the church is a living body of believers of which the Lord Jesus Christ is the head. We teach that we are a local expression of that body, and that we gather to strengthen one another through worship, prayer, teaching, fellowship and outreach.
Under the watchful care of a plurality of elders, each of us bear the responsibility of working together in love and unity, intent on the purpose of glorifying Christ.
(See Acts 2:42, 48; 1 Tim. 3:1-7; Eph. 4:16).
Marriage
We teach that God has established marriage as a lifelong exclusive relationship between one man and one woman, and that all sexual activity outside the marriage relationship, whether heterosexual, homosexual, or otherwise is sin.
We acknowledge that we all are sinners and in need of Christ’s grace, so we welcome all to participate in worship with us.
(See Genesis 2:24-25; Exodus 20:14, 17, 22:19: Leviticus 18:22-23, 20:13, 15-16; Matthew 19:4-6, 9; Romans 1:18-31; I Corinthians. 6:9-10, 15-20; I Timothy 1:8-11; Jude 7).
Ordinances
We teach that the Lord Jesus Christ committed two ordinances to the local church, baptism and communion (the Lord’s Supper), and that Christians should observe these by participating in baptism at salvation and in communion as administered by the local church.
Baptism is a sign of salvation, not a condition of it, associated with repentance from sin, belief in the gospel message, and membership in Christ’s Body, the Church. It is the appropriate response following a decision to believe the gospel, and can therefore be undertaken by children or adults alike who have individually placed their faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. Baptism is best depicted by the act of immersion in water in the name of the triune God as a sign of the believer’s fellowship with the death and resurrection of Christ, of remission of one’s sins, and giving up of one’s self to God in order to walk in newness of life.
Communion is to be administered as a commemoration of Jesus’ death “till he comes,” utilizing the common elements of bread and the cup to symbolize the body and blood of the Lord. It is best practiced as a congregational or corporate remembrance, involving the administering of the elements by the elders and giving thanks. It is not to be taken lightly, and any broken relationships between believers and any unrepentant sins must first be addressed before properly engaging in a time of communion.
(See Matthew 26:26; 28:19, 20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:30; John 6:11; Acts 2:38, 42, 46, 47; 8:36-39; Romans 6:3-5; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Ephesians 5:23)
Spiritual Gifts
We teach that the Holy Spirit grants spiritual gifts to believers, and that the sign gifts – supernatural powers given to an individual to perform miraculous signs to attest to the validity of the gospel – were used to establish a foundation for God’s church. We believe that God still retains the ability to work miracles and to heal in a way and time that He chooses.
(See Romans 12:3-8; I Corinthians 12:4-11; Ephesians 4:7-12; James 5:13-16; I John 5:14-15; Hebrews 2:3-4; Ephesians 2:20)