STATEMENT OF FAITH
The Church is the body of Christ on earth, the community of believers throughout the world. Upon surrender to Christ, a person is added to the Church. In addition, the priesthood of all believers means each Christian is called to be a serving minister (1 Peter 2:9-10). The Church’s mission is the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20).
Human beings were created by God to walk in fellowship with Him. However, all (except Jesus) have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23) and must rely on God’s grace and forgiveness. Every human from the moment of life takes on the image of God (imago dei); a person to be nurtured, protected, and developed.
Salvation is by God alone through Jesus Christ alone. We believe faith in Jesus requires repentance, confession of that faith before witnesses, and obedience to His word.
Baptism (by immersion) demonstrates our faith and obedience while it depicts our union with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection. In baptism a believer is immersed, crucified and buried with Christ (Rom. 6:3-4), receives forgiveness of sin and the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38), and is resurrected (Col. 2:12) and clothed with Christ (Gal. 3:27).
The Lord’s Supper is the celebration of the New Covenant in which the Christian community remembers Christ and celebrates the covenantal relationship they have with Him and with each other. Christian Churches like ours typically celebrate the Lord’s Supper every week (1 Cor. 11:17-34; Acts 20:7).
The Final Coming of Jesus is a time when Christ will personally come again as savior and judge of the world. When Jesus returns, there will be the bodily resurrection of the dead—believers going to eternal life with God and unbelievers
to eternal judgment. Sin will be no more, and believers will live in fellowship with
God forever (I Thess. 4:13-18 and Rev. 20:11-15).