1. WITH THE ANCIENT CHURCH, WE CONFESS THE APOSTLES’ CREED:
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Christian Church,
the communion of the saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
2. JESUS IS THE SOLE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD. John 1:29; John 3:16; John 5:24; Romans 8:37; Ephesian 2:1-9; Colossians 2:15; Hebrews 2:14; 1 John 1:9. Jesus came into the world to save all people through His life, death and resurrection. Through His death and resurrection, He secured the forgiveness of our sins, overcame our physical and spiritual death, and disarmed all satanic powers and authorities. Through faith alone in Jesus Christ, we receive His complete forgiveness of our sins, His free gift of eternal life and His power to overcome all the evil we face.
3. JESUS IS LORD AND KING. John 14:6; Colossians 1:15-18; Philippians 2:9-11; John 18:36; Luke 17:20-21. Jesus is the head of the Church. Unity among the various expressions of the Body of Christ is achieved through focusing on Jesus, who alone is able to draw all people to Himself. Jesus is the King of the Kingdom of God and is establishing His Kingdom on earth by His effective will through His supreme power and authority. Jesus is the complete and ultimate expression of the living God and is a person of the divine Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
4. WE LIVE UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE WORD OF GOD. John 1:1, 1:14; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Romans 15:4; Psalm 1. We accept the full authority of the Bible and receive it as the sole guide for life and faith. We accept that all Biblical Scripture is inspired by God and is without error. However, because not all interpretation is without error, we support and encourage the study of the original manuscripts, recognizing the original audiences, cultural contexts and purposes of a text. We rely on Scripture to interpret Scripture and always rely on clearer texts to interpret less clearer texts. The Scriptures are a living Word that are always relevant to reveal God’s purposes for all of creation at all times and places.
5. WE DESIRE GENUINE WORSHIP. John 4:23-24; Romans 12:1-2; Psalm 105:1-4. Worship establishes and encourages a right relationship between God and His people; God is the audience. Worship is essential for the believer and central to the life of the Church. In worship we cast our eyes to the cross, come under the instruction of God’s Word, receive the gift of Baptism, are strengthened with the Lord’s Supper, and grow together as Christ’s body. Worship involves the whole person – body, mind, heart and soul.
6. WE ARE CALLED BY GOD. John 15:16; 1 Peter 2:9; Ephesians 1:3-6 & 4:11-16. We believe in “the priesthood of all believers.” All of God’s people are called to ministry and each member of the Body of Christ must recognize and affirm that call. Jesus has given each believer the greatest “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to be His apprentice and, with His help, discover our spiritual gifts in order to learn how to effectively use them to build up the Body of Christ and grow His Kingdom. We trust that God will give us all that we could ever need to adapt to our changing surroundings and become “all things to all people” without compromising our obedience to Him.
7. WE ARE FREE IN CHRIST. John 8:31-36; Romans 8:1-2; Galatians 5:1; Ephesians 2:13-22. Because of what Jesus has accomplished for us through the cross we are free from the bondage of sin and enjoy peace with God. We are free to serve God as the Lord leads us and not out of guilt, obligation or duty. We serve God joyfully in response to all that the Lord has done for us, is doing for us, and will do for us.
8. WE WILL “GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES.” Matthew 28:18-20; Matthew 4:18-20; Luke 19:10; 2 Corinthians 2:14. Jesus gave his disciples this command: “Go and make disciples of all nations.” Disciples of Jesus make disciples of Jesus. A disciple of Jesus is one who believes in Him as Savior and Lord. Disciples of Jesus intentionally apprentice themselves to Him as the one Master of their life. They, in turn, act as the hands and feet of Jesus in order to spread His saving knowledge and grow His Kingdom—inviting every person to consider a personal, active and everlasting relationship with Him. We are called not only to spread His knowledge and way of life, but also to help cultivate this in all those who have come to trust in His name.
9. WE CELEBRATE THAT GOD IS CHANGING LIVES. John 8:1-11; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Colossians 3:15; Romans 8:29-30; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23; Galatians 5:16–18; Galatians 5:19–26; Ephesians 5:18. It is God alone who spiritually regenerates and transforms people into new creations who grow, through the process of sanctification, (spiritual formation), to more beautifully reflect the image of His beloved Son. Through sanctification, the Holy Spirit works in believers’ lives to eliminate “works of the flesh” and produce “the fruit of the Spirit.” Believers are commanded to “be filled with the Spirit”, which means they are to yield themselves to the Spirit’s full control.
10. JESUS HAS INSTITUTED WATER BAPTISM INTO THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND THE SON, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT. Mark 1:4-5; Acts 2:37-41; Galatians 3:27; Romans 6:3-4. Baptism is an outward sign of the inner rebirth of the believer. Baptism is solely God’s work. In baptism we are buried with Christ in His death and raised to new life in His resurrection. Without repentance and belief in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives, baptism alone has no promise of salvation.
11. JESUS INSTITUTED THE REGULAR PRACTICE OF THE LORD’S SUPPER. 1 Corinthians 11:23-29; John 6:32-58. When we receive the Lord’s Supper (Communion) with a repentant heart we are assured that our sins are forgiven and are spiritually nourished and renewed with Christ’s life. It is at the Lord’s Table that we together proclaim Christ’s death on the cross for the sins of the world.
12. WE AFFIRM THAT GOD ESTABLISHED THE SACRED COVENANT OF MARRIAGE. Genesis 1:27-28; Genesis 2:24-25; Matthew 19:4-6. God created us male and female, and it is His will and intention that all human sexual expression and fulfillment take place only within the boundaries of marriage between one man and one woman. Marriage is God’s one-flesh complementary union and covenant that He established from the beginning to beautifully bind together husband and wife.
13. WE MAKE IT OUR AIM TO LOVE AS WORD OF LIFE TEACHES US TO LOVE. Matthew 22:37-40; John 14:15; John 17:26; 1 Corinthians 13; 1 John 4:7-21. Love of God and our neighbor is to be the sole focus of our lives. Without the love of God actively working in our lives, guiding, inspiring and directing our daily decisions, our actions come to nothing worthy of God’s name. God is love and expects His followers to be controlled by His love. Love in us produces works of love toward others and empowers us to love all people regardless of their actions and beliefs.
14. WE HOLD THAT ALL HUMAN LIFE IS UNIQUELY SACRED. Genesis 1:25-28; Psalm 139:13-16; John 1:12-13. In the beginning, God uniquely created humankind in His perfect image and likeness. Every person was first conceived in the mind of God, comes into being at physical conception and remains sacred in the eyes of God throughout their life. Because God alone is the giver and sustainer of life, all human acts with the intention to harm or destroy human life without just cause, are an affront to the Creator “who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4).