Anchored to Christ
Christ is the Head of the Church, our source of life. He leads us and is the source of our message.
Colossians 1:18
We believe the Bible is God’s divinely inspired, inerrant Word to the world. We believe that it reveals everything pertaining to life, godliness, and His will for humanity.
2 Peter 1:3, 19-20 | 2 Timothy 3:16-17 | Deuteronomy 6:1-9, 32:47
Guided by the Word
Building up the Body in Love:
God has gifted all believers uniquely to serve in unity as one body, universal and local. We believe that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are given uniquely to the individual members of the Body and are vital for accomplishing God’s purposes. However, without the love of Christ being the defining trait in each believer’s life, the gifts are useless.
Ephesians 4:15-16 | 1 Corinthians 13:1-3
We have been charged by Christ to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ’s victory over sin and death to the ends of the earth. We are called to make disciples of all nations, so as a body we boldly proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ in our community and around the world.
Matthew 28:19-20
Proclaiming the Gospel
Together
We have been created by God for community. As the body of Christ, we display God’s love through Christ by how we love one another and those we encounter in the world.
John 13:34-35 | Galatians 5:13 | Ephesians 4:2
Our Vision
We build up the body of Christ with the goal of unity of the faith leading to maturity of the believer, with Christ as our head and example. This maturity is marked by a commitment to God’s Word and the truth of Jesus Christ, resulting in a growing intimacy with Christ. Maturity is also marked by practicing the love of Jesus with one another within our local church and to our neighbors, locally and abroad.
Our desire is that we would be a church marked by our:
Preaching of the Gospel:
As believers in Jesus Christ, our message above all is the good news of His gospel. We preach the gospel both to unbelievers for salvation and to believers for their edification, including ourselves. We believe there is only one message of hope for the world, and it is found in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
2 Tim. 4:1-12, Matt 28:18-20, Acts 2:42
Commitment to God’s Word:
We believe in the sufficiency of God’s inerrant Word to guide us in everything related to life and godliness. The Bible is our source of wisdom and counsel when meeting the issues and problems facing our congregation, our community, and our world.
2 Tim. 3:16, 2 Pt 1:20-21, Isa. 40:8, Ps. 19:7-11
Allegiance to Christ:
We desire that being followers of Jesus would be the foremost descriptor of who we are individually, and as a church. Our identity in Christ supersedes all earthly designations, affiliations, or worldly desires. He is the source of our life, identity, and purpose.
Matt. 6:24, Lk. 9:23, Jn. 14:15, Phil. 3:20, Col 3:1-3
Obedience to the Holy Spirit:
We desire that our commitment to the authority of Scripture would lead to a sensitivity to the direction of the Holy Spirit for our church. We know that without the presence of the Holy Spirit, our ministry efforts will not come with God’s blessing, so we rely on our sensitivity to the work of the Holy Spirit along with an understanding of what has been revealed in God’s Word to stay in the center of God’s will.
Matt 28:19, Jn 3:3-7, Titus 3:5, 1 Cor. 6:19, Rom. 8:9, 1 Cor. 2:12, 12:13, Eph. 4:30, Col. 3:14
Love for One Another:
We are created by God for community. Our aim is to build up all members of our congregation in the love of Christ. Christ said that our unity as believers is a testimony to the world of His ministry on Earth. We all need each other for encouragement and correction as we strive together towards Christlikeness.
Jn. 13:34-35, Gal. 5:13, Eph. 4:2
Passion for Making Disciples:
Our allegiance to Christ and our commitment to His Word and to His people is our motivation for extending the invitation of salvation to the world. We desire to be obedient to the calling of the Great Commission in making disciples of all nations, here in our local community and to the ends of the earth.