We Believe

We believe the 66 books that comprise the Old and New Testaments are the inspired Word of God, the only infallible truth for faith and life. We believe the historic Christian interpretation of the Scriptures directs us in deriving God’s intended meaning. The church's authority is established upon and accountable to the Scriptures as God’s authoritative Word to his people.

On the basis of the Church and the Scriptures, we affirm the Apostles’ Creed as the ecumenical¹ expression of the Christian faith. We also reasonably accept the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message as a contemporary expression of the historic Baptist faith.

Although Jesus possesses two distinct and complete natures—simultaneously fully God and fully man—he is nevertheless one integral person, God the Son incarnate. Jesus is not only God or only man; neither is he part God and part man; he is fully God and fully man.

The God of the Bible is a singular, all-powerful God who exists outside of time, apart from the created order (transcendence²). God expresses himself in three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God’s pluralistic expression allows humans to relate to God in his fullness through our unique relationship with each person of the Trinity (immanence³).  

God will work through the Holy Spirit in all times and places according to his will and purpose. For this reason, no gifts of the Holy Spirit have ceased necessarily. Neither is the Holy Spirit working all gifts at all times and places. Instead, the Scriptures testify that ‘there are different gifts’ which the Spirit ‘distributes to each person as he wills’ (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). Further, spiritual gifts must be exercised to further God’s ordering of the world, not perpetuate human chaos, particularly during corporate worship gatherings (1 Corinthians 14:33).

There is one people of God represented throughout the Old and New Testaments. God elected the Israelites to be his people, yet those whose faith is accredited as righteousness belong to God (Romans 4:1–5). Many Israelites were cut off for lack of fidelity to God, and in Christ, many Gentiles are grafted in (Romans 11:17–24). Therefore, the Gentile church and Israel are not two peoples of God but one. God expresses himself to his people through covenant–God’s covenants with Abraham, with Israel at Mount Sinai, and with King David–finding ultimate expression in Christ through the New Covenant.

Sin may be described as human activity contrary to God’s will. In some contexts, sin describes external actions performed by human beings, such as murder or adultery. In other parts of the Bible, sin includes the human’s inner thoughts and desires. All humans sin (Romans 3:23) because they are naturally sinners (Psalm 58:3). The consequence of human sinfulness, stemming from the sins of Adam, is the wrath of God (Romans 2:5, 6:23), resulting in eternal condemnation (Romans 5:18). The heart is, by nature, sinful (Jeremiah 17:9); likewise humans are, by nature, enemies of God (Romans 5:10). Therefore, regeneration, or a renewal of the human heart, is necessary to overcome sin, sinfulness, and condemnation.

The Gospel is the message of Christ, the kingdom of God, and salvation. The good news or Gospel of Christ is that faithfulness to Jesus results in forgiveness of sins and a new heart. Humans enjoy forgiveness for their sins due to Jesus’s death on the cross. Further, humans enjoy new life according to Jesus’s resurrection. Jesus’s ascension and enthronement at the Father's right hand in heaven means that Jesus is King. Those who have received the Gospel of Jesus Christ through baptism and repentance have forsaken allegiances to the world and proclaim allegiance to Christ alone as the source of all righteousness and holiness.