OUR STATEMENT OF FAITH
God is love. He is eternal, all-powerful, and all-knowing. He is the Creator of all things and the source of compassion, goodness, and justice. The primary manifestations of God are the all-present Spirit and the beings of the Father and the Son (Jesus).
Revelation 1:8; Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-4, 14, 18; 1 John 4:8; Luke 18:19; Proverbs 29:26; John 4:24; Acts 2:17
The Bible is our principal source of knowledge about God and redemption. It is our ultimate authority for truth, our guidebook for life, and the primary way God speaks to us.
God created human beings in His likeness. But the first human (Adam) chose to disobey Him and, thus, cut off the connection to Him and His goodness. As a result, all humanity is sinful. However, God has a plan to reconnect us to Himself and restore His goodness in us. God, in the form of Jesus, lived a sinless human life that fully met God’s standard of holiness. When He died on the cross, He voluntarily bore all the guilt of humanity, making His death a complete atonement (compensation) for our sin. He earned eternal life because we never could (any goodness in our lives is simply a fruit of the new life we have in Him), and He offers eternal life to us. Our part is to accept His gift and rely on Him as our Redeemer and Lord. Without Him, we share in the sinfulness of Adam and the consequence of eternal death (being separated from the only source of life). With Him, we share in His goodness and the consequence of eternal life. The Bible calls this grace – favor we have not earned for ourselves.
Our great hope is the soon return of Jesus to earth, this time in all His glory, to rescue the redeemed and seal the victory over sin forever. His return will be literal, visible, and experienced worldwide. You can’t miss it.
John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Matthew 16:27; Revelation 1:7
As the world around us seems to spin faster and faster, we thoughtfully press pause each week and enjoy the retro-practice of Sabbath time. Each Saturday (as Moses, David, Jesus, and other Bible characters did before us), we celebrate and savor this gift of grace. We rest, recharge, and reflect on the stories of God and how they relate to our own. We listen to and love the people who matter most to us. We explore God's creation. We count our blessings. We worship. We reflect on all that is good in the world and look for opportunities to be the good in the world. And we remember that we don't have to be God, being everything to everyone, everywhere. We can rest in His grace and care and take a day to sync our hearts and minds with His.
Water baptism by immersion publicly signifies our decision to die to our own ways and allow Jesus to live out His life in us (being born again).
God’s design is for all Christians to be part of His body – the church. In a world where people are often misunderstood, criticized, and harmed, the church must stand, in contrast, as the place where people are protected, valued, and unconditionally loved. Only in this environment can the church fulfill its twofold purpose: (1) to encourage each other and worship God together; (2) to serve the disadvantaged and fulfill the Great Commission.
Romans 12:4-5; Ephesians 4:1-16; 2 Corinthians 5:17-19; Acts 2:42-47; Matthew 25; Matthew 28:16-20
2013 Statement of Beliefs