CREENCIAS

We believe in one God, the creator of all that exists both the seen and the unseen. God is infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, equal in power and glory. God is love, good, holy, and just.

We believe in One Lord, Jesus Christ, true God, and true man, having been conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. We believe Jesus of Nazareth was God’s Messiah as foretold by the prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures and empowered by the Holy Spirit to preach the Good News, reveal God’s love, overcome the power of evil, heal the sick, free the oppressed, and perform miracles. Jesus modeled for the world the way God intended human life to be lived and proclaimed that he came so we might have life and have it to the fullest. Jesus was crucified, died, was buried and he rose again according to the Bible as the hope and guarantee that we too, can have eternal life. Jesus ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf. We believe that according to the Bible, Jesus will come again in power, glory, and love.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, one with the Father and the Son, equal in power and substance and worthy of worship and glory. The Holy Spirit spoke through the prophets, priests, poets, apostles, and scribes of old to reveal God’s love to humanity through the Holy Scriptures. When Jesus ascended to Heaven he sent the gift of his Holy Spirit to empower his followers to fulfill His Great Commandment and the Great Commission. The Holy Spirit regenerates and indwells believers in Jesus Christ and fills them to produce the Spirit’s fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

We believe the Words of the Bible are uniquely and divinely inspired by God. The Bible is our grounding source and supreme authority in all matters of life and faith. We believe these words are eternal truth to bring hope, comfort, and guidance to us in our relationship with God and one another. We believe the Bible was given by God through human authors to convey God’s timeless message to the world. It is therefore essential in our preaching and teaching to “correctly handle the word of truth” by interpreting the Bible in the historical, cultural, literary, linguistic, and grammatical context out of which these words were first written. We are foundationally and unequivocally a Bible based church. It is the source and norm for all we do.

As humans, we are complex beings with the capacity for both great good and great evil. We are created in the image of God, male and female, with inherent worth, dignity and goodness... but we also have the ability to choose our own paths and make our own decisions. Sin is a reality that we all face in life as we inevitably fall short, not only of our own ideals, but we fall short of living the goodness and love of God in our lives. However, we believe that God’s grace is greater than our sin, and that through repentance and transformation, we can live lives that reflect God’s love, grace, and goodness. We acknowledge the complexity of the human experience and strive to engage with it in a thoughtful and compassionate manner, seeking to understand ourselves and others as we journey towards peace and wholeness.

Evil is a real power in the world that can’t be denied or ignored and that manifests itself in various forms like violence, deceit, cruelty, greed, corruption, oppression, etc. The Bible addresses and describes the evil in our world as “an active force” working against God’s good design and purpose for people and this world. In the Bible the entity behind this force is known as the Evil One, The Enemy, Satan, and the Devil who deceives, tempts, manipulates, oppresses, and torments. In all its forms, Evil is the enemy of God, God’s beloved children, and the goodness of Creation. As the people of God, we proclaim and teach that God’s goodness and power are greater than any evil that may come our way. We believe that God can bring beauty from suffering and even in the darkest moments, there is hope for redemption and transformation. We acknowledge the complexity of the problem of evil and strive to address it, resist it, and join Jesus in his mission for a world where God’s love and justice prevail.

We believe in one, holy, universal Church composed of all Christ-followers from around the world. Together we form the living Body of Christ organized into many local and regional expressions to fulfill Jesus’ mandates in the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. The church is foremost a community of believers, united by our common faith in Christ and our commitment to living out his teachings. Through the church, we support and encourage one another, and work together to bring about God’s kingdom on earth. The church is not just a building or an institution, but a living and dynamic body, being transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. As such, we believe it is essential that we remain connected to the church, actively participating in its life and mission, so that we may grow in our relationship with Christ, one another, and be empowered to live out our faith in our daily lives. There are special means of grace Jesus gave his followers to receive through the church that are sometimes called sacraments, ordinances, rites, rituals, or means of grace. We observe and celebrate Baptism and Holy Communion as the ordained ordinances of our church.

We believe that salvation is only made possible through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through faith in Jesus, we are able to receive God’s love, grace, and forgiveness, be reconciled to God, ourselves, one another, and creation, and begin the journey towards wholeness. Salvation is more than just a one-time event, it is also a process of spiritual growth and transformation as we seek to live out our faith, hope and love in the world. We believe salvation is available to all people and as followers of Jesus, we are called to share this message of hope and salvation with others, inviting them to join us on this journey towards wholeness and new life in Christ. It is through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ ALONE, grace ALONE, and faith ALONE that we are saved and reconciled to God.