Statement of Faith

The Infallibility of the Holy Bible

The Holy Bible is the inspired Word of God, God-breathed and given to men, alive and active, serving as revelation, teaching, correction, and training; it is an infallible and authoritative guiding lamp to our feet and we should obey it—Scripture is truth giving us hope, instruction, and encouragement that we may persevere until the end. We are to use Scripture to test the truth and reliability of another’s message so as to not be led astray.

Psalm 119:105, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:20-21, John 17:17, Psalm 119:160, James 1:25, Acts 17:11, Hebrews 4:12, James 1:22, Luke 11:28, Psalm 119:9, Psalm 18:30, Matthew 7:24

The Truth About God

God is the Creator who has existed from everlasting to everlasting in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit—each is God, and God is one. Through Him, everything was created. He is the Alpha and Omega who is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. He has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness, and we will all have to stand before Him. God is faithful and does not slumber as He watches over us. The LORD is patient with us does not want any to perish but to instead seek Him and live.

Psalm 90:2, Deuteronomy 6:4, Genesis 1:1, Revelation 22:13, Jonah 4:2, Acts 17:31, Psalm 96:13, Psalm 121:3, 2 Corinthians 5:10, Ecclesiastes 12:14, 2 Peter 3:9, Amos 5:4

The Nature of Humanity

We were created, male and female, in the image of God but have been separated from Him by sin. Apart from Christ, we exist under the curse of sin and cannot achieve a righteousness sufficient to obtain perfect union with God. We are, by nature, sinful. We are the poor in spirit, beggars before the throne of God. And, we all need salvation. Also, each one of us (fallen nature aside) have fallen short. We are not only born into a fallen nature, but also, through the course of our lives, we all actively commit sinful deeds making us, without the free salvation of Christ, enemies of God alienated from His presence.

Ephesians 2:3; 2 Peter 1:4; Colossians 2:11, 13; Romans 7:5, Genesis 1:27, Romans 7:25; Romans 8:3, Genesis 3:23-24, Romans 5:10, Colossians 1:21

The Gospel of Christ

Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, came in accordance with the Father’s will to seek and save the lost and to serve as an atonement for our sins; through His life, death, and bodily resurrection, we are offered salvific atonement through faith and not by works. By the blood of Christ we are washed clean, made not only adopted sons and daughters but also indebted heirs, and are clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Through our disobedience of and rebellion against God’s commandments, we, apart from Christ, were enemies of God—yet, while we were still sinners, while we were enemies of God, Christ died for the ungodly that we may be called sons of God. Salvation is a free gift available to us all by the mercy and love of God who sent His one and only Son that we may have the glorious assurance of eternal life in perfect union, in right standing, with our Abba (our Daddy, our Father in Heaven). Through Christ, we are no longer held hostage as slaves to sin—we have been set free! This gift must be accepted by faith and cannot be gained by trusting in our own attempts to obtain a righteousness from ourselves; it is by His wounds, the willing sacrifice of the Holy Anointed One, that we receive healing.

John 3:16-17, Romans 3:25, 1 John 2:2, Isaiah 53:5, 1, Peter 2:24, John 1:1, John 1:14, Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 6:22, Galatians 5:1, Hebrews 10:19, Romans 1:16, Philippians 3:9, Romans 8:12-17, Revelation 22:14-16, Romans 5:10

The Holy Spirit

Believers in Christ are baptized with the Holy Spirit and become the Temple of God because the Spirit abides within all who call upon the Name of the LORD. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is an assurance of our salvation, an assurance of our adoption as heirs with Christ, in addition to serving as a Helper guiding us in all truth. Through the Holy Spirit, the love of God has been poured into our hearts. The indwelling of the Spirit produces recognizable displays of righteousness (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control) through our continuous sanctification and bestows upon believers giftings necessary for the uplifting of the Church. Those who are in Christ are led by the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 3:16-17, Romans 5:5, Acts 1:4-8, Mark 1:8, Genesis 1:2, Romans 15:13, Luke 24:49, Ephesians 1:13, John 16:4-15, Romans 8:1-30, Acts 2:1-47, Zechariah 4:6, 1 John 2:20-27, Romans 12:6-8, 1 Corinthians 12:1-13, Galatians 5:16-36

Faith in Action

Christians are called to live according to the will of God which means in a manner that displays genuine and relational love to others. We are, in fact, commanded to love others. And, this is a consistent message throughout Scripture. Jesus taught that love of one’s neighbor is the second greatest commandment only subsidiary to love of God; Paul taught such love is the fulfillment of the Law. Furthermore, James states that our actions give credence to our faith because the Gospel of Christ is not only a message but a call to action. We are called to bear fruit by an actionable Gospel—a message of good news to the hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, incarcerated, oppressed, grieving, poor, injured, and ashamed. We are to help those in need!

Luke 16:19-31, Matthew 25:31-46, Deuteronomy 15:7-11, 1 John 3:16-18, James 2:14-16, Luke 4:16-21, Isaiah 61:1-8, Romans 12:9-21, Leviticus 19:18, Mark 12: 28-31, Romans 13:8-10, Mark 11:12-21, John 15:1-4, Psalm 82:4

Referenced Scriptures are not meant to represent the totality of available Biblical citations supporting each section of the statement of faith.