We believe in the Trinity, which is the doctrine that there is one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each person of the Trinity is fully God, and yet distinct in their roles of operation. In both Creation and redemption all things are from the Father, through the Son, and by the Spirit. What the Father plans, the Son accomplished, and the Spirit applies. For all eternity, our Triune God has existed in glory and love (John 17:5, 24). What was God doing before Creation? Existing forever in perfect love and delight. That eternal love then overflowed into Creation. Knowing God as Trinity is foundational to then understanding how God reveals himself in Scripture and how we can know him today.

We believe that the Bible is divinely inspired, inerrant in its original manuscripts, and infallible in all that it claims. The Protestant Reformers captured this doctrine well when they said that Scripture is the only infallible authority of the church. The Bible is how God has chosen to reveal himself and the story of His work of redemption. We believe that the Bible is one unified story that culminates in Jesus. The Bible is our standard for life, and its truth, integrity, and relevance is of utmost importance. The Bible is not just a book, but a living guide, full of God’s wisdom and guidance. Through Scripture, we learn about God’s character, how to live and act, and how to grow in our spiritual journey. We believe that by reading and studying the Bible, we are able to draw closer to God and deepen our understanding of His love.

We believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He is the central figure of Christianity, the Word of God made flesh. He is the eternal Son of God, who took on flesh to be the ultimate sacrifice for our sins so that we could enjoy an eternal life with Him. Jesus’ teachings on love, forgiveness, humility, and repentance are at the core of our beliefs. Jesus lived a sinless life in our place, died an innocent death in our place, and then rose to a glorious resurrection in our place. He did all of that so that we could share in his life, death, and resurrection. Jesus is the object of our faith and we are saved by Christ alone.

John 1:1-19, Colossians 1:15-20, Philippians 2:1-11, Hebrews 1:1-4

We believe that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Our redemption is accomplished and applied by God through the work of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. Our response is faith in Him. It is not the strength of our faith that saves us, but the object of our faith. Salvation is all of grace, and not through any works of our own.

We believe that all humans are created in God’s image. This means we are created by God, for God’s glory, to be representations of God in His world. Sin, however, has messed all this up, so that we needed Jesus to come as the perfect image of God in order to restore us back to God.

We believe that the image of God extends from the womb to the tomb. We want to honor both children who are yet to be born those at the end of life who deserve to die with dignity and honor.

Humanity is created in God’s image as male and female. While these two are different in their sex, they have much more in common than they have in their differences. They both bear God’s image and are given God’s creation mandate. This difference bears itself out in the Bible’s portrait of marriage as between one man and one woman for life. These differences also flesh out in families, and eventually in the New Testament church which is often described as a family. Men and Women both have necessary, though different, roles to play in families and in the church.

Genesis 1-3, Colossians 1, 1 Timothy

We believe that baptism is a picture of our salvation in Christ and a means of grace where God meets in our identification in Christ. We are baptized into Christ Jesus, meaning that we are united with him. We practice believer’s baptism by immersion, meaning that we only baptize professing believers as a picture of their new life in Christ. Baptism is a crucial piece of our discipleship as we publicly identify with Jesus.

Matthew 28:18-20, Romans 6:1-4, Colossians 2:12

We believe in the Holy Spirit, who is the third person of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit has a spotlight ministry, always pointing to Jesus. The Spirit is the seal of our salvation, the downpayment of what God has started and assurance of what He will one day finish. The Spirit brings home to our hearts the fullness of all Christ has accomplished for us. He empowers us to live the Christian life, causes us to bear fruit, and gives us gifts for the good of the church. There is nothing in the Christian life we can do apart from the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit also empowers us to be faithful witnesses to Jesus, giving us boldness and words as we share the gospel and make disciples.

Acts 1:8, Galatians 5:22-25, Romans 8, 1 Corinthians 12-14

We believe in the holy, universal church. The church is made up of all believers across all places and all times. Local churches are small, tangible expressions of that universal church in one time and place. The church is made up of true believers who have been filled with the Spirit and given spiritual gifts to serve one another and build one another up. We believe that God has given His church a mission to be a witness to the gospel in the world. We are meant to make disciples, helping people discover Jesus and learn to walk with Him. The church is an outpost of heaven. It is a foretaste of our heavenly community that we look forward to one day.

1 Corinthians 12-14, Romans 12, Ephesians 2, 1 Peter 2