Jesus Christ is God's Son
Luke 24:1-7; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8; John 3:16
Jesus Christ is the one and only Son of God. We believe this about Jesus based on his birth, his life, his miracles, what his friends said about him, what his enemies said about him, his death, and his resurrection from the grave.
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The Bible is God's message to us.
2 Timothy 3:16; Psalm 119:105
The Bible is inspired by God and written by men who were guided by His Holy Spirit to do so. Although we say we take the Bible literally as we interpret scripture, what we mean by that is that we take the Bible "literately". To understand the Bible, we look for the authors intended meaning in his own time and context. Once understood, we can then uncover principles of God that are timeless and applicable to every culture.
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We're all sinners.
Romans 3:23; Isaiah 64:6; Genesis 2:15-17 & 3:6
There isn't a list of "good" people and another list of "evil" people. According to the Bible, every person has worth and value as a creation of God, but equally true is that every person has fallen short of the perfection that God desired for us. We are all on the "sinners" list.
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There is hope for us even still.
John 3:16; Romans 6:23; Galatians 1:3-4; Ephesians 2:8
Even though we are all on the sinners list, there is actually one person in history who managed to live life perfectly. He's the only one who has managed to earn his way onto the "good" list by the way he lived. And here is the greatest part about that news: He offers his perfect life to us! He offers to exchange his perfect life for our "fallen short" one. This great exchange is possible because of the way Jesus died on the cross. The cross accomplished the forgiveness of sin and also comes with a promise of eternal life for whoever will choose to trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The gospel that we believe with all of our being is this: we can't live the perfect life required for a relationship with God, but a perfect life is imparted to us because Jesus lived perfectly on our behalf!
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We have to unwrap the gift.
Romans 10:9; Acts 2:38; I Peter 3:18-22; Matthew 28:18-20; Galatians 3:26-27
Just like getting a gift on Christmas day, a gift is only truly accepted and claimed when it is opened. How cruel to the giver to reject the gift and leave it sitting under the tree! God offers the gift of salvation freely to us, but that doesn't mean it's automatically received. We have to open the gift. "Opening the gift" of salvation Biblically includes belief, repentance, confession of faith, and baptism according to the directives of Jesus Christ.
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All who trust Christ are now in this together.
Luke 22:37-39; Romans 12:1-21; Ephesians 4:1-16
Jesus left this world, but he did not leave it without. Those who trust in Christ are collectively called "the Church". The Church is the very body of Christ himself on the earth that continues to do and say the things that Jesus would do and say if he were here. The Church isn't perfect, but it is empowered by the Holy Spirit to love God above everything and also to love others. We gather together continually in order to encourage one another to keep abiding in faith in God, love for others, and in good works for the world.
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Jesus is coming back!
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Matthew 19:28; Acts 1:11 & 3:21; Colossians 1:19-20
In the same way he left this earth, we are promised that Jesus will return to it. When he returns he will do so as the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. He will establish a new earth and a new heaven, restoring all things, and will reign forever with those who trusted in his name.
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EXHAUSTIVE Statement of Faith
