COME AS YOU ARE

There is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and co-eternal (I John 5:7; Genesis 1:26; Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19; Luke 1:35; Isaiah 9:6; Hebrews 3:7-11).

Jesus Christ is God the Son, the second person of the Trinity. On earth, Jesus was fully God and fully human. He is the only human ever to have lived a sinless life. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed miracles, died on the cross for humankind and thus, atoned for our sins through the shedding of His blood. He rose from the dead on the third day according to the Scriptures, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and will return again in power and glory (John 1:1,14, 20:28; 1Timothy 3:16; Isaiah 9:6; Philippians 2:5-6; 1Timothy 2:5).

The Holy Bible is the authoritative Word of God. It alone is the final authority in determining all doctrinal truths. It is a collection of inspired and infallible texts that are entirely perfect for their purpose—the self-revelation of God in Jesus Christ. “The Bible is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it commands, trusted in all that it promises, and revered in all that it reveals.”* (2Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Proverbs 30:5; Romans 16:25-26).

*This language is borrowed from: Kevin Vanhoozer, Jerry L. Walls, et. al., A Reforming Catholic Confession: A “Mere Protestant” Statement of Faith to mark the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. 2017.

SALVATION: We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ; His death, burial, and resurrection. Salvation is a gift from God, not a result of our good works or of any human efforts. The atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ is entirely sufficient to cleanse humankind of all sin. Jesus allowed Himself to be crucified for both our sinfulness and our sins, enabling all those who believe to be free from the penalty of sin, which is death (John 1:29; Acts 16:31; Romans 3:10-12, 23, 5:9, 10:9-10; Galatians 2:16, 3:8; Ephesians 2:8-9; Colossians 1:20; Titus 3:5; Hebrews 9:22; 1 John 1:7; Revelation 1:5, 5:9).

The Holy Spirit is manifested through a variety of spiritual gifts to build and sanctify the church, demonstrate the validity of the resurrection, and confirm the power of the Gospel. The Bible lists of these gifts are not necessarily exhaustive, and the gifts may occur in various combinations. All believers are commanded to earnestly desire the manifestation of the gifts in their lives. These gifts always operate in harmony with the Scriptures and should never be used in violation of Biblical parameters (Hebrews 2:4; Romans 1:11, 12 :4-8; Ephesians 4:16; 2 Timothy 1:5-16, 4:14; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31, 14:1-40; 1 Peter 4:10).

The church is the Body of Christ, the habitation of God through the Spirit, with divine appointments for the fulfillment of Jesus’ great commission. Every person who is born of the Spirit is an integral part of the church as a member of the body of believers. There is a spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:22, 2:19-22; Hebrews 12:23; John 17:11, 20-23).

Water Baptism: Following faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the new convert is commanded by the Word of God to be baptized in water in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38).

The Lord’s Supper: A unique time of communion in the presence of God when the elements of bread and cup (the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ) are taken in remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. Those who receive the elements with faith participate in Christ, are nourished by the power of the Holy Spirit and are commissioned to break themselves and pour themselves out for the world (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 16:16; Acts 8:12, 36-38; 10:47-48; 1Corinthians 10:16, 11:23-25).

Jesus Christ was physically resurrected from the dead in a glorified body three days after His death on the cross. (Luke 24:16, 36, 39; John 2:19-21, 20:26-28, 21:4; Acts 24:15; 1 Corinthians 15:42, 44; Philippians 1:21-23, 3:21).