The Gospel
The Bible teaches that He is the eternal Son of God—the Creator of all things, and the Savior promised throughout the Old Testament of the Bible. (Read John 1:1-18.)
Jesus was miraculously born to a virgin named Mary. God became a man to provide a way for sinners to be right with God. (Read Luke 15.)
Jesus’ primary mission was to rescue sinners. His perfect obedience earned eternal life, which He offers to us. His brutal death paid the penalty which our sins deserve. Jesus died that we might live. (Read Isaiah 53.)
As promised, Jesus came back to life. Forty days later, He ascended to heaven, vowing to return to earth as King and Judge. He will take to heaven all who have trusted Him and condemn to hell all who have rejected Him. (Read Matthew 27–28.)
The only way for you to be right with God and ready for eternity is to repent of your pervasive sinfulness and trust in Jesus as your only hope of forgiveness. Why not receive Jesus as your Savior today? (Read Acts 16–17.)
Statement of Faith
We believe that the Bible, consisting of the sixty-six canonical books of the Old and New Testaments, is the verbal (every word) and plenary (completely) inspired Word of God as recorded in the original manuscripts. The Bible is the supreme and final authority in faith and life, and is the sole and final source of all we believe (Psalm 19:7-11; 119:89; John 10:35; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:16-21).
We believe in one self-existent, sovereign God, an eternal Spirit existing in three infinite and excellent Persons: God the Father; God the Son; and God the Holy Spirit. Each Person in the Godhead is fully and completely God and equal in every divine perfection, yet one in essence (Exod. 6:3; Deut. 6:4; John 1:1; 4:24; 2 Cor. 13:14; Eph. 4:30; Col. 1:15-16; 1 Tim. 3:16).
We believe in God the Father, flawless in character, Who mercifully concerns Himself with His creation. He is the heavenly Father of all who have come to a saving knowledge of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. God’s vital interests include the salvation of men and subsequent worship and fruitful service by those whom He has redeemed (2 Sam. 22:3; Psalm 8:4; John 1:14; 3:16; Rom. 12:1-2).
We believe in the absolute deity of the Lord Jesus Christ; His incarnation by means of the virgin birth and the Holy Spirit’s conception; His sinless life; His substitutionary death as the atonement for the sins of all men; His bodily resurrection from the dead; His current exaltation to the right hand of God as Lord, Mediator, High Priest, and Advocate; and His imminent return to fulfill His work of redemption through final triumph over all His enemies (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:16-25; Phil. 2:5-7; Heb. 4:14-15; John 1:1-14; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; Rev. 19–21).
We believe in the personality and deity of the Holy Spirit; that He moved holy men to pen the Scriptures; that He convicts sinners of their sin and draws them to Christ for salvation; that He regenerates and sanctifies believing men; that He indwells, teaches, guides, and comforts every believer; that He empowers believers with gifts to serve the Lord; and that the filling of the Spirit is the continual opportunity and responsibility of every believer, assuring joy and power in service along with victory over sin (John 3:3-5; 14:16; 16:7-13; Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 6:19; Eph. 1:13-14; 5:18; 2 Pet. 1:20-21).
We believe that the entire universe was brought into existence by the creating act of the Triune God in six literal twenty-four hour periods (Gen. 1–2; John 1:1-3).
We believe in the existence of Satan, the adversary of men and the arch-enemy of God, whose intent is to supplant God and frustrate His purposes, but that he will suffer ultimate defeat at the hands of the Lord Jesus and will be tormented throughout eternity in the lake of fire (Gen. 3:1-5; Matt. 4:1-11; John 8:44; Rev. 20:1-10).
We believe God created man perfect and in His own image by a direct act. Subsequently, man sinned against his Creator and thereby brought upon himself and the whole human race physical and spiritual death. All men, therefore, are dead in trespasses and sins, and are unable to remedy their lost condition. Without the remission of sins though the forgiveness of God and the new birth, all men will endure eternal punishment in the lake of fire (Gen. 1:26-27; Psalm 51:5; Rom. 3:10-23; 5:12; 6:23).
We believe that the salvation of lost and sinful men is made possible by the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ for sinners, is obtained by faith apart from works, and is received by a sinner when he repents toward God and places his trust in the person and work of the Lord Jesus as his own personal Savior. All who receive the Lord Jesus by faith as Savior are thereby born again and have eternal life (John 3:16-18; Acts 16:31; Rom. 10:9-10; Eph. 2:8-9; Rev. 21:8).
We believe that the evidence of salvation is a righteous life, love of the brethren, and continuance in the teachings of the Word of God (Rom. 13:13-14; Gal. 5:13; Tit. 2:11-15). We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever (John 10:27-30; Rom. 8:35-39; 1 Pet. 1:5).
We believe that the goal of the Christian is to sin not; that victory over sin can be achieved by walking after the Spirit; and that the Christian who confesses his sins receives forgiveness, cleansing, and renewed fellowship through Jesus Christ (John 17:17; Rom. 8:12-13; Gal. 5:16-26; Eph. 4:22-32; 1 John 1:8-9; 2:1).
We believe in the separation of believers unto Christ and from the world so as to maintain good works and to have no fellowship with the evil works of darkness; that Christians are to live in such a manner as to not bring reproach upon our Savior and God; and that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations is commanded by God. On this basis, we urge all believers to abstain from every questionable thing and from every appearance of evil according to the teachings of God’s Word (Rom. 12:1-2; 2 Cor. 6:14-18; 1 John 2:15-16; 2 John 9-11).
We believe that the Church is a spiritual organism made up of all true believers in Jesus Christ in this present age, that the New Testament teaches and defines the establishment and continuance of local churches, and that a local church is an assembly of believers who have followed the Lord through the waters of baptism, and who are associated together to worship the Lord, evangelize all the earth with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, edify the saints in love by fellowship and mutual care, and educate the saints in the precepts of God’s Word (Matt. 16:17-18; Acts 2; 1 Cor. 1:2; Eph. 2:19-22; 5:25-27; Col. 1:18).
We believe that there are two Christian ordinances: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian Baptism is the immersion of a believer in water, and that it is symbolical of the redemption provided by Christ, of the experience of the believer (death to sin and resurrection to newness of life), and of the hope of the believer (the promise of resurrection unto eternal glory). We believe that the Lord’s Supper is a commemoration of our Lord’s death to be regularly observed until He returns, that the elements are only symbols of His broken body and shed blood, and that the observance of such is a visual testimony of the believer’s fellowship with the crucified Savior (Matt. 26:26-30; 28:18-20; Rom. 6:4; 1 Cor. 10:16-21; 11:17-34).
We believe that God bestows spiritual gifts upon the church as a whole and to individual believers, and that the gifts of evangelists, pastors, and teachers are sufficient for the edification and perfecting of the saints today. Prophesying and the giving of knowledge beyond that revealed in Scripture ceased as the New Testament Scriptures were completed and their authority became established (John 15:7; Eph. 2:19-22; 4:7-12; Heb. 2:2-4; 1 John 5:14-15).
We believe that, when man’s rebellion against God reaches a climax, the Lord Jesus Christ will come to earth (“Second Coming”) to bring to naught every wicked device of man and will sit on His Messianic throne to reign in righteousness for one thousand years. (Isa. 2:1-4, 65:17-25; Ezek. 36:16-38; 2 Tim. 3:1-7; Rev. 19:11–20:15).
We believe that Christ’s Second Coming is a two-fold event: (1) a pre-tribulational, premillennial, personal, and imminent coming of the Lord Jesus in the air for all the dead and alive in Christ to deliver them from the wrath to come (“the Great Tribulation”), and (2) a post-tribulational visible appearance of the Lord Jesus with His saints on the earth to set up His Millennial Kingdom promised in the Old Testament (Isa. 65:17-25; Matt. 24:29-30; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 5:9-10; Rev. 3:10; 19:11-16).
We believe that the souls of all the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection when soul and body are reunited before the Millennium to be glorified forever with the Lord (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23, 3:21; Rev. 20:4-6).
We believe that the souls of all the redeemed are, at death, absent from the body and present with the Lord, where in conscious bliss they await the first resurrection when soul and body are reunited before the Millennium to be glorified forever with the Lord (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23, 3:21; Rev. 20:4-6).
We believe that, after death, the souls of unbelievers remain in conscious misery until the second resurrection when, with soul and body reunited, they will appear at the Great White Throne Judgment and shall be cast into the Lake of Fire to suffer everlasting conscious punishment (Matt. 25:41-46; Luke 16:19-26; 1 Cor. 15:20-26; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 6-7; Rev. 20:11-15; 22:4-6).
We believe that eternity will be composed of Heaven and the Lake of Fire, Heaven being a place of eternal blessedness and the Lake of Fire being a place of eternal suffering. We believe that, in Heaven, all true believers in Jesus Christ will be fully redeemed from sin’s penalty, power, and presence, and will enjoy the blessing of unbroken fellowship with God forever. We believe that all unrepentant sinners and rebels against God will suffer the torments of the Lake of Fire for all eternity (Matt. 25:46; Luke 16:19-31; Rom. 2:1-16; Rev. 20:11-15; 21:22).
The Covenant
Having been led, as we believe, by the Spirit of God2 to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior,3 and on the profession of our faith in Him,4 having been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,5 we do now in the presence of God, angels, and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another, as one body in Christ.6
We agree, therefore, as the Holy Spirit shall enable us,7 to strive for the advancement of this church8 in knowledge,9 holiness,10 and compassion;11 to promote its prosperity and spirituality;12 to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace; to sustain its doctrines, worship,13 ordinances,14 and discipline;15 to give it a sacred preeminence over all institutions of human origin;16 to contribute cheerfully and regularly17 to the financial support of its ministries,18 with special attention to the care of the needy19 and the spread of the Gospel everywhere.20
We further agree to walk together in brotherly love;21 to exercise a mutual care and watchfulness as members one of another;22 to participate in one another’s joys; to be slow to take offense,23 but always ready for reconciliation;24 to consider one another to provoke unto love and good works;25 to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together;26 and to avail ourselves of the privilege of prayer for one another and all men.27
We further agree to maintain family28 and private29 devotions; to bring up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord;30 to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances and all others;31 to walk discerningly in the world,32 denying ungodliness and worldly lusts;33 to be just in our dealings,34 faithful in our engagements,35 and exemplary in our deportment;36 to refrain from gossip,37 backbiting,38 and excessive anger;39 to abstain from every appearance of evil,40 including the sale and use of intoxicating beverages;41 to maintain a clear line of separation from all religious apostasy and all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations;42 and, ever remembering our relationship to Jesus Christ our Lord,43 to seek in all things to live to His glory.44
- Numbers 30:2
- John 14:26
- John 1:12
- Acts 8:37
- Matthew 28:19
- 1 Corinthians 12:12
- John 16:13
- Ephesians 2:21-22
- 2 Peter 3:16
- 2 Corinthians 7:1
- 1 Thessalonians 5:14
- Jude 20
- Hebrews 10:25
- Matthew 28:19; 1 Corinthians 11:24-25
- 2 Thessalonians 3:6
- 1 Timothy 3:15
- 1 Corinthians 16:2
- 1 Corinthians 9:9-14; Galatians 6:6
- James 1:27
- Luke 24:46-48; Acts 1:8
- Ephesians 5:1-2
- 1 Corinthians 12:25-26
- Romans 12:19
- Matthew 5:23-24; 18:15-18
- Hebrews 10:24
- Hebrews 10:25
- Ephesians 6:18
- Deuteronomy 11:18-20
- Matthew 6:6
- Ephesians 6:4
- Mark 5:19
- Matthew 5:16; Ephesians 5:15-16; Philippians 1:10
- Titus 2:12
- Romans 12:17
- Ephesians 4:25
- Ephesians 5:8
- Ephesians 4:31-32
- 2 Corinthians 12:20
- 1 Corinthians 6:10; Ephesians 5:18
- 1 Thessalonians 5:22
- Proverbs 20:1
- 2 Corinthians 6:14-18
- Hebrews 3:1-2
- 1 Corinthians 10:31
Our Values
We believe that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, and sufficient Word of God. As a result of this conviction, the expositional teaching of Scripture is the foundation of all we do, whether in the pastor’s sermon’s or the Sunday School teacher’s lessons. We believe that God’s Word is alive and powerful; our opinions aren’t. So we are committed to accurate, clear, practical Bible teaching.
We are passionate about the message of salvation from sin through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We believe that the Gospel is the only hope, both for non-Christians and Christians alike. We unite around the Gospel, not political positions or secondary issues. Our singing, preaching, and praying are saturated with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
We long to see sinners come to Christ for salvation. And we long to see believers keep coming to Christ for growth in godliness. Whether you are a non-Christian, a baby Christian, or a mature Christian, we want to help you understand and apply the Scriptures, so you can be a faithful follower of Jesus.
We’re not hiding from the world, as though we were a monastery. Rather, we want to be “the light of the world . . . a city set on a hill” (Matthew 5:14). We believe in proclaiming the forgiveness of sins and eternal life only through faith in Jesus Christ as personal Lord and Savior. Through preaching and personal evangelism, we long to reach our ethnically diverse community, which means that our make-up will also reflect our ethnically diverse community.
We are aggressive in our endeavors to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the entire world. We send missionaries, and we support missionaries, giving generously to both missionary personnel and projects; we generally support fewer missionaries so that we can give them greater financial support. And we pray for missions, regularly and fervently.
Our ministry is designed to develop and encourage families by teaching God’s role for each member of the home, as well as to provide godly relationships for the spiritual benefit of each person.
We are self-governing, and free from any affiliation with conventions or associations. We cooperate with like-minded believers as much as we can, but we do so freely, without associational expectations.
That means that we hold to the historic, orthodox doctrines of Christians throughout the centuries. It also means that we make our fellowship with other Christians dependent on their fidelity to Scripture—not in a schismatic manner, but because we love Christ, His Word, and His sheep. We believe in separating from those church groups who reject the plain truths of the Bible.
That’s not our primary focus, however; we are first Christians and Bible-believers. But we do hold to the historical Baptist distinctives including regenerate church membership, believers’ baptism by immersion, separation of church and state, congregational church government, and the priesthood of all believers. We fellowship with like-minded believers, whether or not they claim the name “Baptist.”
We are growing spiritually, as we mature to be more like Christ. And we are growing numerically, praying for the Lord to send us like-minded Christians in need of a church home and not-yet Christians in need of a Savior. We are ambitious for God’s glory, eager to be more and more useful in the advance of the Gospel.