A Commitment to Biblical Authority
We believe the Bible is God’s inspired, inerrant Word. All doctrine, faith and practice must align with the ultimate authority of God’s Word. Faithfulness to the Bible is essential to living in a manner that pleases God. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Grace Makes All the Difference
One word separates Christianity from every other belief system. That word is "grace". We are forgiven, cleansed, and accepted because of God's grace, not by virtue of our own goodness. As recipients of God's amazing grace, we seek to be a community of God's people who are known for their grace. We accept others as they are and love them enough to help them become everything God wants them to be. Grace is unique to the Christian message and central to salvation. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
Grace should affect the way we relate to each other, as well as how we respond to people with a less-than-perfect past. It should influence the way we talk about other believers or churches. Grace should guide us as we engage with our family members, neighbors and friends who are not yet believers.
We Seek Transformation, Not Just Information
God wants every part of our lives to be changed. His Word (the Bible) is our foundation, our compass, and a catalyst for the change He desires. Life change happens when our hearts are awakened, our minds are transformed, and our actions mirror Christ's.
Our primary goal is not only to impart information but to teach the sound doctrine of the Bible with relevance and practicality, so that lasting transformation will result. Information alone will never change a person's life. Jesus closed the Sermon on the Mount by saying that the key to real spiritual growth is found in living by what He taught, not just hearing it. (Matthew 7:24–27)
God not only measures our spiritual maturity by what we know, but by what we do with what we know. The most convincing argument for the gospel will be the lives of those who believe it and live it. (James 1:22–25)
Found People Find People
Personal evangelism is all about personal involvement. It takes time to invest in the lives of others and invite them to meet Jesus Christ. Our role is simply to partner with the Holy Spirit as we share the Gospel. As individual believers, we draw other people to Christ by making relational investments of time, compassion, and conversation. We also invite them to continue their search by hearing the Word of God and involvement in our church family. As we invest and invite, we play our part in the unseen process of helping people find their way to Christ.
Small Groups Are a Big Deal
We believe that God has designed spiritual formation to happen best in the context of Christian relationships. We seek to cultivate a church where true biblical community is the foundation and experience of every attender. Our ministry is thrives when believers learn together, pray together, and encourage one another toward spiritual maturity. We desire to be a church family with small groups, not just a church of small groups. This happens in a Bible study each Sunday morning and also through seasonal small group Bible studies.
Dedicated followers of Christ are devoted to continual life change. We believe life change happens best in small groups of a local Christian community. This means that we are connected to other Christians in God-honoring ways. We value opening our lives up to others for accountability and growth. (Acts 2:42-47, Philippians 1:6)
We Are Crew Members, Not Passengers
One of the most powerful New Testament metaphors used to describe the church is the picture of the human body. Our human bodies can only be fully healthy when every part is functioning according to its purpose. In the same way, our church can only be healthy when every person who is part of our "body" is functioning according to their design. Therefore, we are committed to helping all regular attenders find a place of service where their unique gifts and abilities can be best utilized. This happens as attenders discover their place in the local church and join fellowship as they serve and partner together.
God's desire believers to join fellowship with a local assembly by becoming a member. Attending is a wonderful start, but it is only the beginning of a process in serving the Lord.
Serving and giving were the essence of Jesus' ministry. (Mark 10:45) If we are truly His followers, then serving and giving should be definite habits in our lives. Every believer has something to offer. (1 Peter 4:10) When a believer is not serving, the rest of the body is poorer. As we engage people in serving, they grow and we grow also. Believers who receive but never give can easily grow stagnant and stale in their faith. Joy and spiritual refreshment comes when we serve others. (Proverbs 11:25)
His Best Deserves our Best
The God of our salvation gave the best He had to offer – His Son. The only reasonable response is for us to give our best to Him. We believe that enthusiasm and excellence should permeate every ministry of our church because God is worthy of our best efforts.
When believers carry out their mission with passion, excellence and commitment, they make a compelling statement to others about the importance of the Gospel. We pursue excellence for very different reasons than a corporation, an athlete or a craftsman. We are motivated by a drive to glorify God, to please the Savior, and to do our best in His power for His sake. In other words, our pursuit of excellence must be theologically based and biblically driven.
By giving our best, we give God the honor He deserves. The Old Testament prophet Malachi had some very strong words for the people of Israel when they were giving God the leftovers of their lives. (Malachi 1:8)
By giving our best, we validate our message. If we want people outside the church to take our message seriously, they must see that we take it seriously. We demonstrate a passion for the gospel by giving attention to the way we live and the way we carry out our ministry.
By giving our best, we reciprocate God's grace. Our freedom from guilt and condemnation was made possible by the offering of a perfect sacrifice. The only appropriate response to this gift is to give the best of our time, treasure and effort as an act of worshipful gratitude. (Romans 12:1-2)
We Pray Hard, We Work Hard
Trying to effectively serve without diligent prayer can be like playing God. On the other hand, praying without dedicated, consistent stewardship of abilities and resources can be ungrateful presumption. We work as if it depends on us and pray with the awareness that it depends on God.
God's work is almost always accomplished through His empowerment of human effort. God has always sought to use people in His work of helping people. At the inception of the church, prayer was a priority for believers. The book of Acts describes the birth and growth of the church and the days immediately following the ascension of Christ. (Acts 2:42-47) We are fighting a spiritual battle, requiring spiritual weapons. (Ephesians 6:12-18)
