As a congregation of God’s people, we want to begin our beliefs where the Bible begins: God. God is more than some abstract idea that we are trying manifest on earth; He’s more than just a name; He is our everything. God made man. In His image, He made you and me (Genesis 1:27). 

And in one of the saddest stories ever told throughout history, man has ruptured His relationship with God time and time again. In fact, the Bible tells us that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23). Sin is the plague of mankind, and death is the only outcome it promises (Romans 6:23). 

The great news is that we have a Savior named Jesus Christ – God in the flesh (John 1:1-2, 14) – who came into this world and lived perfectly, that is He lived without sin. And because of His perfect life He was able to offer Himself up to God as a sacrifice for our sins, that is the sins He did not commit (1 Peter 1:18-19). And because of that great act of love for us, those who would only reach out and take of His offer of grace are utterly forgiven of their sins (Hebrews 8:12) and are placed into His body, called the church (Colossians 1:18).

We believe that Scripture tells us that we are saved by grace through faith, an act not of ourselves (Ephesians 2:8). We signify our acceptance of His offer of this grace by being baptized in water (Acts 2:38). When we do this by faith, we are appealing to God for a good conscience (1 Peter 3:21) and He responds by cutting away our sinful flesh (Colossians 2:11-13) and clothing us with Christ (Galatians 3:27). This baptism signifies and identifies us with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Romans 6:1-4). “For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection.” (Romans 6:5). In essence, what it does is restores our ruptured relationship with Him, and gives us back the perfect fellowship we read about in Genesis 1-2.

While we are on still on this earth, Christ has called every Christian to fulfill the purpose He has for all men: to spread the gospel and invite as many as possible accept the offer of His saving blood (Matthew 28:18-20; 1 Peter 2:9). God wants all men to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9), and His church is the only avenue that He has instituted to carry out this great mission. This work is not left up to one man to do, but it is accomplished when His body employs the gifts He has given to each person to carry out this work as a unit (Ephesians 4:11-16)

The Bible also teaches that Jesus Christ is coming back a second time to raise us all (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). Everyone will rise from the dead – those who were cleansed by the blood of Jesus will go to a resurrection of life, and those who refused to obey His gospel will go to a resurrection of judgment (John 5:28-29).