WHAT WE BELIEVE
Scripture
* We believe in the holy scriptures, written by man but divinely inspired by God’s revelation of Himself through Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
* We believe that the Bible is God’s Word and that it is authoritative for the way we ought to live our life and practice our faith.
God the Father
* We believe in one and only one true God, who created the world and all that is in it. The one triune God has revealed himself to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence or being.
* We believe that God is sovereign; meaning that he is the ruler of the universe and our lives.
* We believe that God is love and that we can experience his love and grace through a personal relationship with his Son, Jesus Christ
God the Son
* We believe that Jesus is God’s one and only Son. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.
* We believe that Jesus Christ was God in the human flesh, who came to this world to die for our sins and who was raised from the dead and is alive today.
* We believe that salvation comes through faith in Christ. In Christ we receive abundant life and forgiveness of sins, which gives us eternal life.
God the Holy Spirit
* We believe that the Holy Spirit draws people to Christ and lives within every believer who has received Christ.
* The Holy Spirit draws us closer toward Jesus and comforts us in our journey.
* We believe the Holy Spirit’s power enables us to become holy and guides us to love and serve God as we were intended.
Salvation
* We believe that Salvation; the forgiveness of sins is available only by the grace of God through the blood of Jesus Christ.
* This free gift of salvation is offered to all who trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and commit to follow HIM.
* When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith, we are saved and eternal life begins the moment we do this.
Justifying Grace
2 Corinthians 5:19 —“But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us” . Romans 5:8 —“In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them”. These verses demonstrate the justifying grace of God. They point to reconciliation, pardon, and restoration. Through the work of God in Christ our sins are forgiven, and our relationship with God is restored. There are no hoops through which we have to jump in order to please God and to be loved by God. God has acted in Jesus Christ. We need only to respond in faith.
Pursing Our Faith…
2 Tim 3:14-17 NIV: “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Our Sin
* God created us in his own image, but we have strayed from his plan for our lives.
* Our attitude of ignoring or rejecting God and his will, is what the bible refers to as sin and because of this we are lost and live without hope if we don’t know Jesus Christ.
* The trouble is that our sins have cut us off from God and this causes many problems in our lives.
* The answer to sin is love and obedience to God, and our hope for the final triumph comes through God’s one and only Son, Jesus Christ.
Grace
* Simply stated this is God’s unmerited favor given freely to us and with out grace we would not be drawn to the Savior.
* Three types of grace are central to understanding the love of God and the Christian life.
Prevenient Grace
God takes the initiative in relating to humanity. We do not have to beg and plead for God’s love and grace. God actively seeks us! God’s grace stirs within us a desire to know HIM and empowers us to respond to his invitation to be in relationship with him through Jesus Christ his son.
Sanctifying Grace
Salvation is not a one-time event in our lives. It is the ongoing experience of God’s gracious presence transforming us into the person God intends us to be. This on-going work of grace is sanctifying grace or holiness. Through this grace we grow and mature in our ability to live as Jesus lived. As we pray, study the scriptures, fast, worship, and share in fellowship, we deepen our knowledge of the love for God.