Mission Statement and Core Beliefs
Mission Statement
We are devoted to fostering a vibrant, inclusive community that celebrates the rich diversity of God’s kingdom. Guided by the teachings of Christ, our mission is to unite individuals from all backgrounds and generations in a loving, supportive family of Christian faith. We commit to nurturing spiritual growth, collaborating with Jesus’ commission to make lifelong disciples, and actively serving our community and beyond.
Core Beliefs
God: the Father
We affirm the revelation of God as the living and true God, perfect in love and righteousness, existing eternally in the three persons of the Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This triune God is equal in essence and distinct in function. The Father orders and directs all things according to His purpose, creating humanity to bring Him glory and honor through His grace. While transcendent, God is actively involved in His creation, offering an eternal relationship through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Verses: Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 6:9; John 5:19-24; Ephesians 1:3-6, 2:1-10; James 1:16-18
Jesus
We believe in Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God and the virgin-born Son of man, fully God and fully human. He lived a sinless life, performed miracles, and offered Himself as the atoning sacrifice for humanity's sins on the cross. His resurrection, ascension, and promised return to establish His kingdom are foundational to our faith. As the sole mediator between God and humanity, Jesus embodies divine love and justice, reconciling us to God and offering eternal life to all who believe in Him.
Verses: Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:22, 23; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 1:3-4; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Philippians 2:5-11; 1 Timothy 6:14-15; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 4:14-15; 1 John 2:1-2, 4:1-3
Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit, co-equal with the Father and the Son, executes God's will in the world by leading, guiding, teaching, convicting, and providing comfort to humanity. The Holy Spirit equips believers with spiritual gifts for building up the church and bears fruit through their lives. The Holy Spirit dwells in every believer from the moment of salvation, providing power, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance for righteous living. The Spirit’s indwelling presence renews hearts, leads believers to repentance and confession of Jesus as Lord, and dispenses spiritual gifts to empower the church as the body of Christ.
Verses: John 16:7-13; Acts 1:5-8, 2:1-4; 1 Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 1:13, 5:18
Scripture
We believe the Holy Bible is the inspired Word of God. Written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit, it represents God’s revelation of Himself to humanity. It is to be received through the Holy Spirit as a trustworthy guide for what Christians should believe and how they should live. Therefore, we believe all of Christian faith and practice should be anchored to what the text clearly communicates and we will not teach anything as essential to salvation that is not revealed in it.
Verses: Psalm 12:6; Psalm 119:105, 160; Proverbs 30:5; 2 Timothy 1:13, 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20-21.
Humanity
We affirm that human beings are the pinnacle of God's creative work, uniquely made in His own image and likeness. As image bearers of God, every human life is of inestimable worth and dignity, irrespective of age, race, gender, or status. We are created to live in fellowship with God, to know Him, and to reflect His character in our relationships and stewardship of creation. We are called to worship God in spirit and truth and to serve Him as stewards of the creation He has entrusted to us. Our ultimate purpose is to live in a loving relationship with God and with one another, fulfilling the Great Commandments to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Verses: Genesis 1:26-27, 2:15; Psalm 8:3-6, 139:14; Matthew 6:25-34, 22:36-40; Luke 10:27; John 4:24; Colossians 3:9-11
Salvation
Salvation occurs when people understand and accept the truth of God’s offer to be in eternal relationship with Him through Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. It is a free gift from God that cannot be earned. Choosing to embrace the salvation Jesus offers that brings us into right relationship with God and saves us from eternal separation from Him. Through actively believing this truth and turning from our own ways to His, we can thoroughly experience the abundant life Jesus promised in this life and throughout all eternity.
Verses: John 1:12, 3:16, 10:10, 14:6; Romans 5:1, 6:23, 10:9-13; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5
Church
We believe the Church is a community of people who tangibly represent God’s continued work in the world. As such, we recognize its universal and particular nature. The Church universal consists of all people who have experienced the redemptive work of Christ in every place and time. As a result, we intentionally desire to reflect the multiethnic and intergenerational diversity of this universal community. We also acknowledge that God calls groups of people to form local churches in particular places and times to fulfill His purposes. As a local representation of the body of Christ, we are called to love God and partner with His mission to love others well in both the local and global contexts in which we live. We are committed to continuously discerning the Holy Spirit’s leading for our community and ourselves. While we realize we might not always agree on everything, we are committed to seeking God together, while prioritizing unity around our shared core beliefs. We also believe each person represents a unique expression of gifts, knowledge, and experiences that are invaluable for our community to achieve God’s purposes for us. Therefore, we desire to empower all people to identify and commit their talents to cultivating a flourishing church that transforms our lives, our communities, and the broader world for Jesus.
Verses: Matthew 6:18-19; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 7:17, 12:12-30; Philippians 2:1-4; Colossians 1:17-20, 3:15; 1 Timothy 3:14-15; Revelation 7:9-12
We affirm the revelation of God as the living and true God, perfect in love and righteousness, existing eternally in the three persons of the Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This triune God is equal in essence and distinct in function. The Father orders and directs all things according to His purpose, creating humanity to bring Him glory and honor through His grace. While transcendent, God is actively involved in His creation, offering an eternal relationship through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Verses: Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 6:9; John 5:19-24; Ephesians 1:3-6, 2:1-10; James 1:16-18
Jesus
We believe in Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God and the virgin-born Son of man, fully God and fully human. He lived a sinless life, performed miracles, and offered Himself as the atoning sacrifice for humanity's sins on the cross. His resurrection, ascension, and promised return to establish His kingdom are foundational to our faith. As the sole mediator between God and humanity, Jesus embodies divine love and justice, reconciling us to God and offering eternal life to all who believe in Him.
Verses: Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:22, 23; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 1:3-4; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Philippians 2:5-11; 1 Timothy 6:14-15; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 4:14-15; 1 John 2:1-2, 4:1-3
Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit, co-equal with the Father and the Son, executes God's will in the world by leading, guiding, teaching, convicting, and providing comfort to humanity. The Holy Spirit equips believers with spiritual gifts for building up the church and bears fruit through their lives. The Holy Spirit dwells in every believer from the moment of salvation, providing power, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance for righteous living. The Spirit’s indwelling presence renews hearts, leads believers to repentance and confession of Jesus as Lord, and dispenses spiritual gifts to empower the church as the body of Christ.
Verses: John 16:7-13; Acts 1:5-8, 2:1-4; 1 Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 1:13, 5:18
Scripture
We believe the Holy Bible is the inspired Word of God. Written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit, it represents God’s revelation of Himself to humanity. It is to be received through the Holy Spirit as a trustworthy guide for what Christians should believe and how they should live. Therefore, we believe all of Christian faith and practice should be anchored to what the text clearly communicates and we will not teach anything as essential to salvation that is not revealed in it.
Verses: Psalm 12:6; Psalm 119:105, 160; Proverbs 30:5; 2 Timothy 1:13, 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20-21.
Humanity
We affirm that human beings are the pinnacle of God's creative work, uniquely made in His own image and likeness. As image bearers of God, every human life is of inestimable worth and dignity, irrespective of age, race, gender, or status. We are created to live in fellowship with God, to know Him, and to reflect His character in our relationships and stewardship of creation. We are called to worship God in spirit and truth and to serve Him as stewards of the creation He has entrusted to us. Our ultimate purpose is to live in a loving relationship with God and with one another, fulfilling the Great Commandments to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Verses: Genesis 1:26-27, 2:15; Psalm 8:3-6, 139:14; Matthew 6:25-34, 22:36-40; Luke 10:27; John 4:24; Colossians 3:9-11
Salvation
Salvation occurs when people understand and accept the truth of God’s offer to be in eternal relationship with Him through Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. It is a free gift from God that cannot be earned. Choosing to embrace the salvation Jesus offers that brings us into right relationship with God and saves us from eternal separation from Him. Through actively believing this truth and turning from our own ways to His, we can thoroughly experience the abundant life Jesus promised in this life and throughout all eternity.
Verses: John 1:12, 3:16, 10:10, 14:6; Romans 5:1, 6:23, 10:9-13; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5
Church
We believe the Church is a community of people who tangibly represent God’s continued work in the world. As such, we recognize its universal and particular nature. The Church universal consists of all people who have experienced the redemptive work of Christ in every place and time. As a result, we intentionally desire to reflect the multiethnic and intergenerational diversity of this universal community. We also acknowledge that God calls groups of people to form local churches in particular places and times to fulfill His purposes. As a local representation of the body of Christ, we are called to love God and partner with His mission to love others well in both the local and global contexts in which we live. We are committed to continuously discerning the Holy Spirit’s leading for our community and ourselves. While we realize we might not always agree on everything, we are committed to seeking God together, while prioritizing unity around our shared core beliefs. We also believe each person represents a unique expression of gifts, knowledge, and experiences that are invaluable for our community to achieve God’s purposes for us. Therefore, we desire to empower all people to identify and commit their talents to cultivating a flourishing church that transforms our lives, our communities, and the broader world for Jesus.
Verses: Matthew 6:18-19; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 7:17, 12:12-30; Philippians 2:1-4; Colossians 1:17-20, 3:15; 1 Timothy 3:14-15; Revelation 7:9-12