We believe that God is eternal, having always existed and never ceasing to exist. He exists as a trinity, made up of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. These three persons of the Godhead are distinct from one another in their function, yet are perfectly unified in their deity; therefore, we agree with the Bible that our God is one God. His nature is revealed in Scripture where he is seen to be holy, sovereign, righteous, just, kind, merciful, pure, wise, powerful, faithful, and good. This nature is eternally unchanging, his knowledge and wisdom and power are infinite, and his reign is absolute. Because of who God is, he deserves our humility, devotion, worship, and service.
We believe that the Bible is truly God's Word in that he inspired the words of the original manuscripts, and has preserved those manuscripts throughout human history. We believe that the Holy Spirit carried the authors along as they wrote making the original manuscripts inerrant and infallible and that God's sovereign preservation of these manuscripts make the modern Bible trustworthy. God has given his Word to reveal himself to us, to make us right with him through faith in his Son, to serve as the final authority on all matters of life and faith, and to help us live lives that will bring him glory. We prefer to teach from the ESV as it holds closely to the original manuscripts.
We believe that God created man and woman in his image as recorded in the book of Genesis. The chief purpose for humanity has always been to glorify God, and this is only possible by being in right relationship with him. Though man was created in the image of God, sin has corrupted our hearts and lives. This corruption began in the Garden of Eden but has passed to every individual person through the sin nature as described in Romans 5. Sin can be simply understood as disobedience to God and his perfect will, whether it be in form of a thought, word, or action. This sin makes all people deserving of God's wrath which ultimately comes in physical and spiritual death.
We believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, that he took on humanity and was truly born of a virgin as described in Luke 2, and that he is fully God and fully man. His life on earth was for the purpose of seeking and saving those who are lost, his teachings have always been absolute truth, his miracles were always legitimate, and his physical death was sacrificial in nature. Jesus took the sin of every person upon himself and suffered the wrath of God in order to make us right with the Father. He was buried in a tomb as described in the Bible, miraculously and literally rose from the dead after three days, and now sits at the Father's right hand serving as our High Priest and Advocate.
We believe that salvation comes only through the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In his death, Jesus endured the wrath of God as the penalty for our sin, and in his resurrection he defeated death by being accepted by the Father as a worthy sacrifice. The purpose of salvation is to make unholy sinners right with the holy God so that they can bring God glory by experiencing transformation through the work of the Holy Spirit. This salvation cannot be earned by works of merit, but is only received as a gift by the grace of God alone through the faith of the believer as revealed in Ephesians 2 and is eternally secure, without the possibility of being lost or undone.
We believe that the Holy Spirit was sent by the Father and the Son shortly after the ascension of Jesus Christ to serve as a Helper throughout our lives. Upon the moment of a sinner's faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit brings that sinner to new life in Christ, indwells them and seals their salvation, securing them until the day they stand in the presence of God. He is responsible for spiritual growth in the life of the believer, a deeper understanding of the Scriptures in the mind of the believer, and a conviction of sin in the heart of the believer. He equips believers to serve through the giving of spiritual gifts and he continually transforms through the development of the fruits of the Spirit.
We believe that the church was instituted by God for the evangelization of the world and the discipleship of the believer. Church membership is vitally important for believers because it brings the believer into a committed and consistent place of biblical teaching, worship, discipleship, fellowship, and accountability. As a church, we require that a believer be baptized before they can join the church as a member. We believe that church leadership in the offices of pastors and deacons should be limited to men though we value, trust, and deeply appreciate our women as well. We uphold and practice baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper as the two ordinances of the local church.
We believe that marriage was instituted by God in the book of Genesis and is therefore God's intentional design for his creation. This biblical concept of marriage is to be upheld with both honor and respect as the primary God-ordained institution for society. Marriage is to be between one biological man and one biological woman who unite in a life-long commitment to one another for the glory of God. In God's design for marriage, the husband bears the responsibility for the household. He should pattern his love for his wife after the love that Christ has for his church, and his wife should support his leadership with humility, respect, and genuine partnership.
We believe that there is coming a day in which God's creation will be restored to its original intention of harmonious peace with God and the continual joy of God. We believe that there will be a literal rapture of all believers, followed by a seven year tribulation period as described in the book of Revelation that concludes with the personal return of Jesus Christ who will conquer his enemies and institute his kingdom for one thousand years. There will be a bodily resurrection of all people, believers to a place of eternal joy in the presence of God in a literal Heaven, and unbelievers to a place of conscious punishment separated from God for the rest of eternity in a literal Hell.
