WE BELIEVE . .
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We believe in the Triune God – God the
Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
We believe in one God in three persons.
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We believe that God the Father created
the universe. He is loving,
compassionate, just and kind. His
deepest desire is to live in an intimate relationship with all people, and He
constantly extends an invitation to experience that relationship to all
humankind.
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We believe that, because of God’s desire
to live in a relationship with us, God became a human being in the person of
Jesus. Born to the virgin, Mary, Jesus
is both fully God and fully human. Jesus
came to embrace us with God’s love through his death and resurrection, removing
all the barriers – sin, guilt, and shame – that keep us from enjoying that
embrace. We believe that Jesus is the
Way, the Truth, and the Life. Through
Him and Him alone people can experience a relationship with God their Creator.
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We believe that the Holy Spirit is the
presence of God among us. Through the
Spirit, God lives in us and empowers us to live the Christian life. We believe that all Christians are
Spirit-filled and have Spirit-given gifts that enable them to serve Christ
through the church, in the community, and around the world.
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We believe that the Bible is God’s Word
and is absolute truth. The entire Bible
is God-breathed and God-inspired and is the only authority for faith and
life.
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We believe that the church, be it a
local congregation or the worldwide fellowship of believers, is the Body of
Christ. As His Body, we are invited to
worship him, serve Him, and be the vehicle through which the Good News of Jesus
Christ is shared with the world.
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We affirm and identify with the
Confessions of the Lutheran
Church – Missouri
Synod. We affirm the essence of grace
alone, faith alone, and Word alone.
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We believe in and practice the
Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion.
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We believe that through the waters of
Baptism God initiates and welcomes us into a
relationship with Himself. He adopts us
into His family, making us His, offering us all of the promises and gifts of
the Gospel. Through Baptism God gives
the gift of new life, not based on our decision, but on God’s. We practice and believe in infant Baptism as
it captures the essence of the Gospel – God accepting us before we can accept
Him.
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We believe that in the Lord’s Supper
(Holy Communion) Jesus gives us His body and blood to eat and to drink together
with the bread and the wine. At the same
time, along with His love, we receive the forgiveness of sins and all God’s kindness. Communion also encourages us to live out the
Christian life each day, while drawing us closer to God Himself and to one
another.
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We believe that human beings have been
created in the image of God and therefore have supreme worth and value. Their worth is dependent not on
accomplish-ments, but on God’s love.
Because God sees humanity as worth dying for, we uphold the dignity of
each individual.
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At the same time, we acknowledge that
humanity is separated from God because of sin. We joyfully proclaim the Good News that
because of Jesus Christ forgiveness is a reality. God sent Jesus not to condemn us, but to save
us – to deal with the problem of sin on our behalf. Because of Jesus we can enjoy God’s love and
kindness each day.
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We believe in and anticipate the return
of Jesus. Though we don’t know the day or the hour, we
joyfully proclaim His soon return. At
the last day, Jesus will judge all people who have ever lived. His judgment will show his perfect justice
and his amaz- ing
grace. Believers in Christ will live
with him in heaven in perfect happiness forever. Those who die rejecting God’s forgiveness
will go to never-ending punishment in hell.
