The Godhead

We believe that the one true God consists of three distinct eternally existent persons that are co-equal with one another; those three persons are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. One God, three persons. The Father is not the Son nor is He the Holy Spirit. The Son is not the Father nor is He the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is neither the Father nor the Son.

God the Father

We believe that God the Father is the God of all eternity. He has positional authority within the Godhead and is the supreme being and only sovereign being anywhere and everywhere, and He is the creator of heaven and earth – employing both God the Son and God the Holy Spirit as He chooses. We believe that God the Father sent God the Son to die on the cross for the sins of the entire world. Three days following the Son’s death and subsequent burial, God the Father raised His Son from the dead by the power of God the Holy Spirit. We believe that God the Father is a spirit who is worthy of worship and those who worship Him must do so with their inner spirit and in accordance with the truth of God’s word.

God the Son

We believe that Jesus of Nazareth as described in the Bible is God the Son; He is both God and Lord. We believe that the Lord Jesus is both fully God and fully human and is the long predicted and awaited Messiah (the Christ) of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus being fully God, we recognize that He has eternally existed and is the creator, having created all things for His glory. The Lord Jesus being fully human, we recognize He was miraculously conceived and born of a virgin. We believe that after living a sinless life, He willingly laid down His life, even death on a cross. He shed His innocent blood, dying on the cross and thereby atoning for all sins, once for all time. After being buried for three days, the Lord Jesus was physically, literally, and bodily raised from the dead. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. To be clear, we believe that Jesus of Nazareth is: God, Lord, Son of God, Christ, Savior, Redeemer, King of kings, Lord of lords, Lamb of God, Alpha and Omega, the First and Last, the Beginning and End, the head of the Church, and the King of Glory.

God the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the triune Godhead. He is co-equal with both God the Father and God the Son. We believe that the Holy Spirit personally raised the Lord Jesus from the dead and is rightly referenced as the Spirit of Christ. Following the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, we believe that the Holy Spirit was gifted to the church and that Holy Spirit’s ministry has been ongoing since the day of Pentecost, indwelling believers in the Lord Jesus, spiritually forming each believer progressively over time as He wills. We believe that if a person is not indwelt by the Holy Spirit, they do not belong to Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit distributes spiritual gifts to the Church. The Holy Spirit is worthy of the same praise that is due to the Father and to the Son.

Satan

We believe that Satan, also known as the devil, is the prince of demons (evil angels). He is the enemy of God and the enemy of God’s redeemed people. We believe that when the Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross, He intentionally limited Satan’s power. The Lord allowed Satan to retain some power for His God-ordained purposes that have not been fully revealed to humans. One day the Lord Jesus will take all of Satan’s power and deliver the final nail of defeat. Accordingly, Satan will spend eternity in hell along with all demons and those humans that reject the Lord Jesus.

Salvation

We believe that salvation is a free gift of God for those that believe on the Lord Jesus. To believe on the Lord Jesus is to trust and rely on the fact that Jesus is Lord, that He died on the cross for sins, was buried, and that He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. We believe that when God created humans, He gave the volition and the ability to believe and act on those beliefs. We believe that salvation is a gift of God that He freely gives to those who on their own volition believe (trust and rely) on the Lord Jesus. We believe that those who believe on the Lord Jesus are graciously forgiven for their sins, justified (declared righteous), and credited with the righteousness of Christ, and thereby receive salvation, inheriting eternal life. Moreover, we believed that anyone God justifies, they are given the Holy Spirit, who seals them until the day of redemption. As a result, anyone that receives salvation is saved and are always saved because they were sealed by the Holy Spirit the moment they first believed. We also believe that the Lord Jesus’s death on the cross made provision for everyone to have an opportunity to receive salvation, although everyone will not receive salvation. We believe that God freely offers salvation to all people, therefore those who do not receive salvation, do not receive it because they chose to willfully reject the Lord Jesus and not acknowledge His lordship and resurrection. As a result, non-believers do not inherit salvation because they rejected the Lord and His salvific act, thereby thwarting the only means by which they could be justified.

Hell

We believe that hell is the final resting place for Satan and his demons. Hell is also the final resting place for those that reject the Lord Jesus. We believe that hell is eternal punishment that results in separation from God and that neither demon nor human will be destroyed.

The Church

We believe the Church is the collective assembly of God’s redeemed people. The Lord Jesus is the Head of the Church. Accordingly, the Church has at least two basic functions: (1) to operate as a collective body that worships and glorifies God, and (2) to make God known to others by making disciples of all nations. We believe that the eternal state of the Church is its co-reign with Christ as His bride, bringing Him glory by whatever means He chooses. This local church exists to advance the mission of God on earth for the glory of God. This local church recognizes two sacraments, (1) baptism and (2) communion.

Marriage

We believe that marriage is between one man and one woman. We believe that the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church. We believe that the husband has a God-ordained responsibility to love his wife as Christ loves His bride, the church, and gave Himself for her.

The Bible

We believe that the Bible is the infallible and inerrant word of God. We also believe that the Bible adequately speaks to all areas of life and godliness, and when understood rightly in proper context, glorifies God. We fully acknowledge that people, non-believers and even well-meaning believers, have caused harm by inappropriately using the Bible. This fact, however, does not discredit the Bible but rather people who misuse the Bible. Therefore, we acknowledge the Bible as God’s word and encourage believers to read, know, pray, and mediate on the words in the Bible.