Trinity

We describe God in three persons. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are commonly used to refer to the threefold nature of God.

God

• We believe in one God, who created the world and all that is in it.
• We believe that God is sovereign; that is, God is the ruler of the universe.
• We believe that God is loving. We can experience God’s love and grace.

Jesus

• We believe that Jesus was human. He lived as a man and died when he was crucified.
• We believe that Jesus is divine. He is the Son of God.
• We believe that God raised Jesus from the dead and that the risen Christ lives today. (Christ and messiah mean the same thing—God’s anointed.)
• We believe that Jesus is our Savior. In Christ we receive abundant life and forgiveness of sins.
• We believe that Jesus is our Lord and that we are called to pattern our lives after his.

The Holy Spirit

• We believe that the Holy Spirit is God with us.
• We believe that the Holy Spirit comforts us when we are in need and convicts us when we stray from God.
• We believe that the Holy Spirit awakens us to God’s will and empowers us to live obediently.

The Church

• We believe that the church is the body of Christ, an extension of Christ’s life and ministry in the world today.
• We believe that the mission of the church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ.
• We believe that the church is “the communion of saints,” a community made up of all past, present, and future disciples of Christ.
• We believe that the church is called to worship God and to support those who participate in its life as they grow in faith.

The Bible

• We believe that the Bible is God’s Word.
• We believe that the Bible is the primary authority for our faith and practice.
• We believe that Christians need to know and study the Old Testament and the New Testament (the Hebrew Scriptures and the Christian Scriptures).