​Statement of Faith

​I Believe in the Lordship of Christ - Jesus is Lord is the distinctive confession of the Christian faith. As individuals and as churches, we should seek to make Jesus Lord of every aspect of our lives.

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I Believe in the Authority of the Bible - I believe that the Bible shows us God's way for living. As radical believers, we should seek to root our lives in the revelation of God's truth.
  
I Believe in Baptism for Believers - On the basis of my understanding of the New Testament, baptism is for believers only. Baptism is for those who are able to declare Jesus is Lord. As a symbol of Jesus' claim on our lives, we should practice baptism by immersion, in which candidates symbolize a desire to die to self and to live for Christ.



I Believe in the Local Church - I understand the church as a community of believers who gather together for worship, witness, and service. In every believer's church, every member has a role to play, whether in teaching, faith-sharing, evangelism, social action, pastoring, guiding, serving, biblical insight, praying, healing, administration, or hospitality.
 
I Believe in Interdependence - Churches from every nation and denomination should come together for support and fellowship. On the basis of the New Testament, I believe that churches should not live in isolation from one another but rather be interdependent. I believe that being a Christian involves not only commitment to Christ, but also commitment to Christ's Church. I also believe our faith involves a commitment not only to work together to extend Christ's Kingdom, but also to love one another and stand by one another whatever the cost.
  
I Believe in Sharing our Faith - I believe each Christian has a duty to share his or her faith with others.  Along with this emphasis on evangelism, however; I recognize that a balanced mission includes social action and involves promoting justice, social welfare, healing, education, and peace in the world.



I Believe in Religious Freedom - Religious freedom for all has always been a keystone of our nation's freedom. We must, "make every effort to live at peace," with tolerance for differences of outlook and diversity of practice. (The definition of tolerance is: The ability or willingness to abide, bear, or put up with something, in particular the existence of opinions or behavior with which one may disagree. This is very different from accepting all ideas and opinions as equally true.)