BH
CC
Statement of Faith
We believe that the Bible, in its sixty-six (66) books, is our supreme written authority for faith and life (Ps.19:7-11; Acts 17:11; 2 Tim. 3:15-17). We believe it to be “God’s Word,” meaning that it is true in what it teaches (Ps.12:6; 119:160) and can be trusted for giving us direction for life (Ps.119:105) by pointing us to Christ our Savior, the ultimate focus of all the scriptures (Jn.5:39; 5:46).
We believe in one God (Deut.6:4; Is.45:5), Creator of all things (Gen.1:1; Col.1:16; Rev.4:11), who is eternally self-existent (Ps.90:1-2) in three equally-divine persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Mt.3:16-17; 28:19; 1Pet.1:2). This one God is holy (Lev.11:45), loving (Jn.3:16; 1Jn.4:16), omnipotent (Job 42:1), omniscient (Ps.138:1-6; Jn.2:24-25), omnipresent (Ps.139:7-10) and good (Ps.119:68). He is our Sovereign Lord who rules over all the affairs of mankind (Ps.103:19; Eph.1:11) and sustains all things (Heb.1:3).
We believe that God created mankind to reflect His being and glory (Gen.1:26-27) but that sin marred our race: beginning with our first parents (Rom.5:12) and carried down to every person (Rom.3:10-12). We believe that all have sinned (Rom.3:23) and that all are, therefore, without the intervention of saving grace, doomed and damned, being by nature under God’s wrath and alienated from God (Jn.3:36; Rom.5:8-10; Eph.2:3).
We believe that at just the right time (Rom.5:6; Gal.4:4), God sent His eternal Son into the world, born of the virgin Mary (Is.7:14; Lk.1:34), to save those whom God foreknew (Rom.8:29). Jesus was that incarnate Son (Phil.2:5-8) – fully God (Col.1:15) and fully man (Heb.2:17-18) – who showed us and taught us the way to live (1 Pet.2:21). By His death and resurrection, He brings forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God to all He has chosen (Eph.1:4-8): to those who believe on His name (Jn.3:16) and confess Him as Lord and Savior (Rom.10:9-10). We believe that our salvation is rooted in the precious work of Christ on the cross (1 Pet.1:18-21; 2:24) and in His resurrection (Romans 4:25; Romans 10:9-10). Christ's work is applied to our account when we, in faith, repent of our sins and turn to Him (Acts 2:37-38; 16:31; Lk.13:5; 1 Jn.5:11-12).
We believe that God’s Holy Spirit convicts the sinner (Jn.16:8-11), reviving the spirit of all those who have been dead in their trespasses and sins (Jn.3:5-8; Eph.2:4-5), so that they might exercise the gift of faith within their being so as to be saved (Heb.11:6). Furthermore, the Holy Spirit is a great Comforter to our souls (Jn.14:16,26): assuring us of forgiveness (1 Jn.3:21-24), uniting our hearts with other believers (Rom.8:16; 1 Cor.12:13), and granting us assurance of spending eternity with God (Eph.1:13-14).
We believe that God’s desire is to make His glory and truth known throughout the earth (Ps.96:3; Rom.1:20) and that the principal means of doing that is by means of the church: His called-out ones (Mt.28:18-20; 1 Pet.2:9). The church is the visible body of Christ (Jn.17:14-18; 1 Cor.12:27) of which He is the head (Eph.4:15; 5:23), left here on earth to show Christ to the world (Eph.5:1-2). At least two sacraments or ordinances exist in church life: baptism (Mt.28:19; Rom.6:1-4) and the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor.11:23-26). Both of these are visible confessional expressions of the truths regarding Christ and His death (1 Cor.11:26) and resurrection (Rom.6:4) for sinners.
We believe that every Christian’s personal life has some bearing on the lives of others (Josh.7): for good (Gen.39:5) or bad (1 Cor.5:6-7). We therefore take the challenge to live a godly life seriously (Col.3:1-6). The Bible (2 Tim.3:15) and the teachings of the church through the centuries (Acts 2:42; 2 Tim.1:13) are our guides for Christian living. We need to avoid those sins that may easily beset us (Heb.12:1). We affirm with the church historic that sexual sins (fornication, adultery, homosexuality, and abortion (1 Cor.6:9-10; Rev.22:15)) as well as social sins (racism (Phil.2:3; 1 Jn.3:15) and injustice (Is.58:6)) are indeed sins, regardless of what the world may teach. We further affirm the teaching of scripture that marriage is only between a man and a woman (Gen.2:24).
We believe that just as Christ came the first time to save (Jn.3:17), He will come a second time to judge the world (Rev.19:11-16). We believe that any and all attempts to fix a date or timeline for His return are misled (Mk.13:32; Lk.12:40; Acts 1:7). It is better to simply live with a constant expectation of His return in a way that reflects our readiness for Him (Mt.25:13; Eph.5:15-16; Heb.10:24-25).
We believe that all of mankind will face the judgment seat of Christ (Rom.14:10: 2 Cor.5:10; Rev.20:12-15). We will, at that time, “give an account” of all that we have done in this life (2 Cor.5:10). Grace – the saving grace of God in Christ alone – will be our only basis of finding mercy on that day (Tit.3:5). We believe that no works of righteousness that we have done will be enough to satisfy the holy justice of God (Mt.5:20; Gal.2:16), but for all who have truly placed their trust upon the merits of Christ and His finished work, there will be eternal life (Jn.3:16; 1 Jn.5:11-12; Rom.6:23). For those who have not accepted God’s provision for forgiveness, the Bible is clear in promising just the opposite: eternal alienation from God (Dan.12:2; Mt.25:41; 2 Thes.1:8-9).
We believe that given all that has been already affirmed, the mission of the church is clear enough: to declare to the world the message of God’s love and how turning to Christ, in repentance (Acts 17:30) and faith (Acts 16:31), is absolutely critical. The “Great Commission” to go (Mt.28:18-20) is fleshed out by the “Great Commandment” to love (Jn.13:34-35), and vice versa. We do not believe that we have been redeemed by God so as to merely enjoy life (1 Cor.9:16: Eph.5:8-16). We have a mission: to be Christ before the world and to do what we can to see the world truly redeemed (2 Cor.5:17-20), coming under the Lordship of Jesus Christ (Phil.2:10-11). No effort made to that end shall be considered a waste(1 Cor.15:58; 2 Tim.2:8).