The Gospel

The gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, the righteous One, who died for the sin of humanity and who rose again from the dead. He eternally triumphed over all his enemies, so whomever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life and eternal joy.

John 1:1-4, 12-14; John 3:16-17; Romans 1:16; Romans 10:9-10; 1. Corinthians 15:1-28; Ephesians 2:8.9

The Bible

We affirm the divine inspiration, truth, and authority of both Old and New Testaments in their entirety as the Word of God, without error in their original writings and the only true authority in faith and practice.

Deuteronomy 4:1-2; Isaiah 40:8; John 5:39, 10:13-15; Romans 15:4; 1. Thessalonians 2:13; 2. Timothy 3:15-17; Hebrews 4:12; James 1:21-23; 2. Peter 3:15-16

The One True God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

God is the self-revealed Creator, Upholder, Governor and Lord of the Universe. God is eternal in his self-existence and unchanging in his love, goodness, justice, wisdom, holiness and faithfulness to his promises. There is only one true God, eternally existing in three different persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and each person is fully God.

Matthew 3:16; Matthew 28:19; John 10:30, 15:26; Acts 2:33; Romans 1:4; 2. Corinthians 13:14; 1.Peter 1:2

Jesus Christ

He was, and is, the second person of the Trinity, now and forever fully God and fully human. He was virgin-born, lived a life of perfect godliness, died on the cross as the substitutionary sacrifice for our sins, was raised bodily from the dead and ascended into heaven. He reigns now over the universe and will personally return for judgment and the renewal of all things.

Matthew 1:23; Matthew 27:32-56; John 1:1, 1:14, 8:58, 10:30, 20:28; Colossians 1:15-23

Christ's Substitutionary Death

The Father sent the Son to free us from the dominion of sin and Satan, and to make us God’s children and friends. Jesus paid our penalty in our place on the cross, satisfying the retributive demands of divine justice and so made justification possible for whomever trusts in him.
It secured for us a restored relationship with God that brings pardon and peace, acceptance and access to God and adoption into God’s family. All this is accessible for anyone who puts their faith and trust in Jesus.

Isaiah 53:5; Romans 3:25; 2. Corinthians 5:17,21; 1. Peter 2:24, 3:18; 1. John 2:2, 4:10

Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is, together with the Father and the Son, worthy of our worship. The Holy Spirit is true God, and who convicts the world of guilt in regard to sin, righteousness, and judgement. Through the new birth the Holy Spirit unites us with Christ, who is present within all believers; and makes us partake in Christ’s risen life. The Holy Spirit always points us to Christ and frees us from the slavery of sin, producing in us his fruit, granting us his gifts, and empowering us for service in the world.

John 16:7-15; Acts 1:8; Romans 8:11-14; 1. Corinthians 12:11; Ephesians 3:16;

Humans

Men and women have an indescribable dignity and worth because they were created in God’s image to know, love, and serve him. However, humans chose to sin by disobeying God, and therefore were alienated from their Creator and came under divine condemnation. Because of the fall, all humans are born with a sinful nature. Therefore, humans are lost because of their sins and are totally incapable of saving themselves. This is the human condition out of Christ.

Genesis 1:27-31, 3:1-19; Psalm 8:5, 139:13-16; Jerimiah 17:6; Romans 3:10-11, 23; Ephesians 2:1-3

The Church

The church is the universal body of Christ. The church is composed of all true believers with Christ as its head. Each local church is a visible expression of his body. As a body of believers, the church is called to worship God, grow in discipleship, serve each other as part of God’s body, love each other, and preach the gospel of Jesus both locally and to the ends of the earth.

Matthew 16:18-19, Matthew 18:15-20; Acts 2:41-47; 1. Corinthians 12:12-31; Ephesians 1:22-23, 2:19-22; Colossians 1:18;

The World Mission of the Church

The Father sent his Son, and now the Son sends his church out into the world to finish his mission. Jesus commanded all believers to proclaim the gospel to the entire world and make disciples of all nations. The church is at the very center of God’s cosmic purpose and is his appointed means of finishing his mission.

Matthew 28:19-20; John 20:21; Acts 1:8, 20:24; Romans 1:16, 10:14-15; 2. Corinthians 5:17-21; 1. Timothy 2:4; Revelation 21:22-27

The Social Responsibility of the Church

All believers are called to become like Jesus in words and deeds. In a spirit of humility, we are to preach and teach, minister to the sick, feed the hungry, care for prisoners, help the disadvantaged and handicapped, and deliver the oppressed. This is our task as a church and as Christians.

Deuteronomy 10:17-19; Psalm 146: 1-10; Proverbs 14:31, 19:17; Isaiah 1:17; Micah 6:8; Matthew 25:31-46 Luke 4:18-19, 14:12-14; James 1:27

The End of the Age

We believe that Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly, in power and glory to consummate his salvation and his judgement. The promise of his coming is a further spur to our evangelism, for we remember his words that the gospel must first be preached to all nations. At the end of this age God will hold his final judgement, and everyone who has accepted Jesus and put their trust in him will go into eternal life and eternal joy, however, those you have not, will be eternally lost and eternally punished.

Matthew 24:14, 25:31-46; John 14:3; Acts 1:11; Romans 2:6-8; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:27 2. Peter 3:10 Revelation 20:11-15

Theology