What We Believe

Our Beliefs

  • We believe in one God, creator and sustainer of the universe, who eternally exists in three persons; the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

    God as Creator: Genesis 1:1; Nehemiah 9:6; Psalms 33:6, Psalms 102:25; Jeremiah 10:12; Acts 17:24-25; Hebrews 11:3. / God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: Matthew 3:16-17; Matthew 28:19-20; John 15:26; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Galatians 4:4-5; Ephesians 4:4-6; 1 Thessalonians 1:2-5; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-15; 1 Peter 1:2; Jude 20-21

  • We believe that God has revealed his heart and character in creation, the person of Christ and the Holy Scriptures. We believe that the Holy Scriptures (the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament) are the very word of God written by human authors under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Scriptures are wholly sufficient in all matters pertaining to life and godliness, completely reliable in all they affirm, and are the supreme and final authority for all who believe.

    Exodus 34:27-28; 2 Samuel 23:2; Psalm 19:7-11; Jeremiah 56:1-4; Hebrews 1:2; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21

  • We believe men and women were created in the image of God to reflect the heart and character of God and to live and thrive in an intimate relationship with Him, but humanity as a whole, and each of us as individuals have willfully rejected the gracious rule of God and have forfeited the blessedness of living in the presence of a Holy God.

    Man Created in God's Image for Fellowship with Him: Genesis 1:26-27; Genesis 5:2; 1 Colossians 1:9; 1 John 1:3. / The Result of Sin: Psalms 14:1-3; Psalms 51:5; Romans 5:12-14; Romans 7:5; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23; Romans 8:19-21; Ephesians 2:1-5; Jeremiah 7:9

  • As a result of our sin, we are separated from the life of God and subject to physical and spiritual death. Should we fail to receive God's gracious provision for our sin through faith in Christ, we will enter into a godless eternity, suffering the due penalty for our sin forever.

    Daniel 12:2; Matthew 25:46; John 3:36; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:1-2; 2 Thessalonians 1:8, 9; Hebrews 9:27

  • We believe Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully human and fully divine, conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary; and that out of his boundless grace and mercy, God sent his Son to live in perfect submission and obedience to Him, and die on the cross in our place—bearing in his body the due penalty for our sin.

    Jesus' Human Nature: Luke 2:6-7; John 1:14; Matthew 1:20; Luke 2:52; Hebrews 2:14; 1 John 4:2. Jesus' Divine Nature: John 1:1-4; 1 John 5:20; John 1:18, Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:25; John 5:18; Romans 9:5; Philippians 2:5-6; Colossians 2:9-10; Hebrews 1:3; 2 Peter 1:1. The Vicarious Death of Christ: Isaiah 53:5-6; Matthew 20:28; John 3:14-15; Romans 5:6-8; Galatians 3:15; Colossians 2:13-15; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 2:2

  • We believe that God freely offers eternal life to anyone who would place his or her faith in the person and work of Christ. Our salvation from beginning to end is a work of God: He chooses us in Christ before the foundation of the world, effectively calls us into relationship with him, generates a living faith in us, and renews our hearts and minds through the power of the Spirit. While our works cannot bring us into a saving relationship with Christ, our salvation will inevitably produce works that are pleasing to God.

    Romans 6:23; John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8-9; John 5:24; John 11:25; John 20:31; Romans 8:38-39; 1 John 5:11-13; Titus 3:5; John 10:10

  • We believe in the bodily resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ and accept it as a divine affirmation that he is indeed the Son of God, has conquered sin, death, and Satan, and holds out the hope of eternal life for all who trust in him.

    Romans 1:1-4; Romans 4:25; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:20-22; Ephesians 1:18-21; 1 Peter 1:3-4; Matthew 16:21; Matthew 28:1-11; Luke 8:31-33; Luke 24:45-47; Luke 2:19-22; Acts 2:24; Acts 13:31; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8

  • We believe that the Holy Spirit is fully God and is at work in the world convincing men and women of their need for God and enabling them to come to Christ in faith. He gives new life to those who belong to Christ, indwelling and empowering them to live a godly life in Christ Jesus and endows them with spiritual gifts for effective service in the body of Christ.

    Ezekiel 36:27; Romans 8:9, 11, 26; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 6:19; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Ephesians 2:22; 1 Corinthians 12:2-11; John 14:16-18, 26; John 16:7-8; Acts 1:8; 2 Thessalonians 2:13

  • We believe that all believers are baptized by the Spirit into the body of Christ and that we experience the fullness of the Spirit as we turn from sin and live in obedience to God's word under the Spirit's power and guidance.

    The Baptism of the Holy Spirit: Matthew 3:11; Romans 8:9, 11, 26; 1 Corinthians 6:19; 2 Corinthians 12:13; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 4:3-6; / The Fullness of the Holy Spirit: Romans 8:9, 13-15; Galatians 5:16-17, 22; Galatians 6:7-8; Colossians 3:15

  • We believe that those who are truly in Christ will be kept by Christ so that they persevere in faith and works that are pleasing to Christ until to the day of Christ.

    John 10:28-29; John 4:13-14; John 6:35, 37, 39; Romans 11:29; Romans 8:29-30; Ephesians 1:13-14

  • We believe the Church is made up of all who by faith have come to Christ and is the visible expression of his life and ministry in the world. The Church expresses itself in local congregations which are bound together in covenant and fellowship to glorify Christ, minister to one another in the fullness of the Spirit, to demonstrate the love and compassion of Christ to those in need, and to proclaim the good news of God’s gracious provision in Christ to the world.

    Church as the Body of Christ: 1 Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 2:19-22; Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:18; Romans 12:4-5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13; John 10:16; Acts 2:42-47. / Church Expressed in Local Bodies: 2 Corinthians 8:23; Galatians 1:2; Acts 8:1; Acts 13:1; Acts 18:22; Acts 20:17; Romans 16:1-5

  • We believe that the Lord Jesus instituted the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's Supper to be observed by all believers until His return.

    While we do not believe that baptism is necessary for salvation, we believe that it is a public testimony and visible sign of the believer's new life in Christ and is therefore an essential act of Christian obedience.

    Baptism: Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:37-41; Acts 8:12, 36-38; Acts 10:47-48; Acts 16:31-33; Acts 22:14-16; Mark 16:16. 1 Peter 3:21-22 / Communion: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; 1 Corinthians 10:16; Luke 22:14-19; Acts 2:42. The Nature of Water Baptism: 1 Peter 3:21-22; Acts 2:38; Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:16, Acts 22:16.

  • We believe that all people are eternal beings who either spend eternity in God's presence, enjoying and delighting in him as a result of their faith in Christ, or separated from God, suffering the due penalty for their sin, because of their rejection of God's gracious provision in Christ.

    Daniel 12:2-3. / Heaven: Isaiah 66:1; John 14:2-3; Psalms 16:11; Psalms 23:6; Psalms 73:24-26; Matthew 6:20; Luke 23:43; 1 Thessalonians 4:17; Revelation 21:23-27. / Hell: Isaiah 66:24; Matthew 10:28; 25:46; Luke 16:23-26; Romans 2:8; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9; Mark 9:43

  • We live in anticipation of the Lord's visible and bodily return to judge the living and the dead, assign them to their eternal destinies, and to renew and restore all of creation in a new heaven and new earth.

    Matthew 16:26-27; Matthew 24:30-31; Matthew 25:31-33; Luke 9:26; Luke 12:40; Acts 1:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18

*For a fuller statement of faith and vision of ministry, see The Gospel Coalition Foundation Documents and Statement of Beliefs.

Core Values

  • We value THE GOSPEL, the good news that Jesus Christ has accomplished for us what we could never accomplish for ourselves by dying on the cross in our place and rising on the third day, freely offering forgiveness of sin and the gift of new life to those who believe in Him.

  • We value WORSHIP that encompasses all that we are and do, is deeply rooted in the Biblical story, lived out in faithful obedience to Christ and overflows in personal and corporate expressions of praise and thanksgiving.

  • We value BIBLICAL COMMUNITY knowing that we grow in Christ as we grow together in the body of Christ. We open our homes and lives to one another, enjoying each other's company, engaging with God and one another through the Word and prayer, and walking with one another through the highs and lows of life.

  • We value THE LOCAL CHURCH as God’s design for fulfilling his mission in the world, and are committed to planting gospel-centered churches that are committed to planting other gospel- centered churches around the world.

  • We value EXPOSITORY PREACHING, teaching through the Bible in its literary and historical context, presenting the story of God’s redemptive plan as it unfolds throughout Scripture and inviting people to find their place in His story.

  • We value PRAYING TOGETHER, humbly seeking God's guidance for our church, casting all our cares on Him, desiring above all to experience His active presence in our church and community.

  • We value MISSIONAL LIVING where every member, every community group and the church as a whole are actively for our city by sharing the love of Christ and the hope of the gospel with our friends, neighbors, and co-workers who do not know Christ.

  • We value BIBLICAL GENEROSITY, the wholehearted giving of ourselves to God and the faithful stewardship of our time, talent and financial resources in fulfilling His purposes in the church and throughout the world.

Our Vision For Ministry

  • The gospel changes our relationship with God from one of hostility or slavish compliance to one of intimacy and joy. The core dynamic of gospel–centered ministry is there- fore worship and fervent prayer. In corporate worship God’s people receive a special life– transforming sight of the worth and beauty of God, and then give back to God suitable expressions of his worth. At the heart of corporate worship is the ministry of the Word. Preaching should be expository (explaining the text of Scripture) and Christ–centered (expounding all biblical themes as climaxing in Christ and his work of salvation). Its ulti- mate goal, however, is not simply to teach but to lead the hearers to worship, individual and corporate, that strengthens their inner being to do the will of God.

  • Because the gospel (unlike religious moralism) produces people who do not disdain those who disagree with them, a truly gospel–centered church should be filled with members who winsomely address people’s hopes and aspirations with Christ and his saving work. We have a vision for a church that sees conversions of rich and poor, highly educated and less educated, men and women, old and young, married and single, and all races. We hope to draw highly secular and postmodern people, as well as reaching religious and traditional people. Because of the attractiveness of its community and the humility of its people, a gospel–centered church should find people in its midst who are exploring and trying to understand Christianity. It must welcome them in hundreds of ways. It will do little to make them “comfort-able” but will do much to make its message understandable. In addition to all this, gospel–centered churches will have a bias toward church planting as one of the most effective means of evangelism there is.

  • Because the gospel removes both fear and pride, people should get along inside the church who could never get along outside. Because it points us to a man who died for his enemies, the gospel creates relationships of service rather than of selfishness. Because the gospel calls us to holiness, the people of God live in loving bonds of mutual accountability and discipline. Thus the gospel creates a human community radically different from any society around it. Regarding sex, the church should avoid both the secular society’s idolization of sex and traditional society’s fear of it. It is a community which so loves and cares practically for its members that biblical chastity makes sense. It teaches its members to conform their bodily being to the shape of the gospel—abstinence outside of heterosexual marriage and fidelity and joy within. Regarding the family, the church should affirm the goodness of marriage between a man and a woman, calling them to serve God by reflecting his covenant love in life–long loyalty, and by teaching his ways to their children. But it also affirms the goodness of serving Christ as singles, whether for a time or for a life. The church should surround all persons suffering from the fallenness of our human sexuality with a compassionate community and family. Regarding money, the church’s members should engage in radical economic sharing with one anoth-er—so “there are no needy among them” (Acts 4:34). Such sharing also promotes a radically generous commitment of time, money, relationships, and living space to social justice and the needs of the poor, the oppressed, the immigrant, and the economically and physically weak. Regarding power, it is visibly committed to power–sharing and relationship– building among races, classes, and generations that are alienated outside of the Body of Christ. The practical evidence of this is that our local churches increasingly welcome and embrace people of all races and cultures. Each church should seek to reflect the diversity of its local geographical community, both in the congregation at large and in its leadership.

  • The good news of the Bible is not only individual forgiveness but the renewal of the whole creation. God put humanity in the garden to cultivate the material world for his own glory and for the flourishing of nature and the human community. The Spirit of God not only converts individuals (e.g., John 16:8) but also renews and cultivates the face of the earth (e.g., Gen 1:2; Psalm 104:30). Therefore Christians glorify God not only through the ministry of the Word, but also through their vocations of agriculture, art, business, government, scholarship—all for God’s glory and the furtherance of the public good. Too many Christians have learned to seal off their faith–beliefs from the way they work in their vocation. The gospel is seen as a means of finding individual peace and not as the foundation of a worldview—a comprehensive interpretation of reality affecting all that we do. But we have a vision for a church that equips its people to think out the implications of the gospel on how we do carpentry, plumbing, data–entry, nursing, art, business, government, journalism, entertainment, and scholarship. Such a church will not only support Christians’ engagement with culture, but will also help them work with distinctiveness, excellence, and accountability in their trades and professions. Developing humane yet creative and excellent business environments out of our understanding of the gospel is part of the work of bringing a measure of healing to God’s creation in the power of the Spirit. Bringing Christian joy, hope, and truth to embodiment in the arts is also part of this work. We do all of this because the gospel of God leads us to it, even while we recognize that the ultimate restoration of all things awaits the personal and bodily return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

  • God created both soul and body, and the resurrection of Jesus shows that he is go-ing to redeem both the spiritual and the material. Therefore God is concerned not only for the salvation of souls but also for the relief of poverty, hunger, and injustice. The gospel opens our eyes to the fact that all our wealth (even wealth for which we worked hard) is ultimately an unmerited gift from God. Therefore the person who does not generously give away his or her wealth to others is not merely lacking in compassion, but is unjust. Christ wins our salvation through losing, achieves power through weakness and service, and comes to wealth through giving all away. Those who receive his salvation are not the strong and accomplished but those who admit they are weak and lost. We cannot look at the poor and the oppressed and callously call them to pull themselves out of their own difficulty. Jesus did not treat us that way. The gospel replaces superiority toward the poor with mercy and compassion. Christian churches must work for justice and peace in their neighborhoods through service even as they call individuals to conversion and the new birth. We must work for the eternal and common good and show our neighbors we love them sacrificially whether they believe as we do or not. Indifference to the poor and disadvantaged means there has not been a true grasp of our salvation by sheer grace.

*Taken from The Gospel Coalition Theological Vision For Ministry, Section VI