We hold to the earliest Christian creeds, namely 1 Corinthians 15, and then the Apostles Creed and Nicene Creed.
1 Corinthians 15 (abbrev.): But, brothers, I reveal to you the gospel which I preached to you, which you also received, in which you also stand, (2) by which you also are being kept safe, if you hold fast the Word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. (3) For I delivered to you in the first place what I also received, that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, (4) and that He was buried, and that He was raised the third day, according to the Scriptures, (5) and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. (6) Then He appeared to over five hundred brothers at once, of whom the most remain until now, but some also fell asleep. (7) Then He was seen by James, then by all the apostles; (8) and last of all, even as if to one born out of time, He was also seen by me. / (20) But now Christ has been raised from the dead; He became the firstfruit of those having fallen asleep. (21) For since death is through man, also through a Man is a resurrection of the dead; (22) for as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. (23) But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruit; afterward those of Christ at His coming. (24) Then is the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God, even the Father, when He makes to cease all rule and all authority and power. (25) For it is right for Him to reign until He puts all the hostile ones under His feet; Psa. 110:1 (26) the last hostile thing made to cease/be abolished/destroyed is death. (27) For "He subjected all things under His feet;" but when He says that all things have been subjected, it is plain that it excepts Him who has subjected all things to Him. Psa. 8:6 (28) But when all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who has subjected all things to Him, that God may be all things in all.
Cornerstone Creed: We believe in God the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible. We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah), the only son of God, who is one with the Father before all ages, very God of very God by whom all things were made; who appeared in the flesh after being conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary; who established the Kingdom of God on earth in righteousness, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified dead and was buried; who descended to Hades [aka Sheol, the place of the dead, where he "preached to the spirits in prison" - Peter] and on the third day rose again bodily; who ascended bodily into Heaven and is now seated at the right hand of the Father from where he will come again to judge the living and the dead. His Kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy universal Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life of the Age to Come.
This following abridged Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Bible, the "whole counsel" of God's Word, is the sole and final source of all that we believe.
We believe in All of Christ for All of Life!
1 Corinthians 15 (abbrev.): But, brothers, I reveal to you the gospel which I preached to you, which you also received, in which you also stand, (2) by which you also are being kept safe, if you hold fast the Word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. (3) For I delivered to you in the first place what I also received, that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, (4) and that He was buried, and that He was raised the third day, according to the Scriptures, (5) and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. (6) Then He appeared to over five hundred brothers at once, of whom the most remain until now, but some also fell asleep. (7) Then He was seen by James, then by all the apostles; (8) and last of all, even as if to one born out of time, He was also seen by me. / (20) But now Christ has been raised from the dead; He became the firstfruit of those having fallen asleep. (21) For since death is through man, also through a Man is a resurrection of the dead; (22) for as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. (23) But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruit; afterward those of Christ at His coming. (24) Then is the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God, even the Father, when He makes to cease all rule and all authority and power. (25) For it is right for Him to reign until He puts all the hostile ones under His feet; Psa. 110:1 (26) the last hostile thing made to cease/be abolished/destroyed is death. (27) For "He subjected all things under His feet;" but when He says that all things have been subjected, it is plain that it excepts Him who has subjected all things to Him. Psa. 8:6 (28) But when all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who has subjected all things to Him, that God may be all things in all.
Cornerstone Creed: We believe in God the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible. We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah), the only son of God, who is one with the Father before all ages, very God of very God by whom all things were made; who appeared in the flesh after being conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary; who established the Kingdom of God on earth in righteousness, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified dead and was buried; who descended to Hades [aka Sheol, the place of the dead, where he "preached to the spirits in prison" - Peter] and on the third day rose again bodily; who ascended bodily into Heaven and is now seated at the right hand of the Father from where he will come again to judge the living and the dead. His Kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy universal Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life of the Age to Come.
This following abridged Statement of Faith does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Bible, the "whole counsel" of God's Word, is the sole and final source of all that we believe.
- The Word of God - We believe the Bible, in its original languages and original composition(s): is wholly God’s "breathed-out" Word; is the absolute truth concerning Himself, humanity, and every relatable matter; is the revelation of the supernatural nature and person of Jesus Christ (the Messiah); is the final authority of absolute, immutable Truth which is to be trusted with, and in, life and eternity. (II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20, 21; Mark 13:31; John 8:31, 32; John 20:31; Luke 24; Acts 20:32)
- The True God / The Trinity - We believe God: is triune -- perfectly one in three persons, consisting of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; is love, righteous, and just; is wrathful against sin, evil and wickedness, all of which He will destroy forever on the day of Christ; is infinite, sovereign, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, supreme, inexpressibly and unfathomably glorious, holy, and supernatural in every way; is the un-created Creator and Sustainer of everything, by whom all things consist/hold together. He seeks relationship with those made in His image and is therefore loving, unselfish, merciful, generous, gracious, trustworthy, desiring and worthy of worship. (Genesis 1:1-26; John 1:1-3; Matthew 28:19; John 4:24; Romans 1:19-20; Ephesians 4:5-6; Colossians 1, etc.)
- Jesus - We believe that Jesus Christ/Messiah: is God incarnate, the effluence of God's very person and character, the exact imprint of His nature; is Lord of the Old and New Testaments; is the unequivocal Son of the One True God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; was born of the virgin Mary; is both a descendant and the Lord of King David, and is therefore his rightful heir to the throne as King of Israel; is the Fulfillment of all Old Testament prophesies concerning the Messiah and is the fulfillment of the Law of Moses; lived a perfectly sinless life; contained eternal life/atonement in His life's blood; allowed Himself to be slain on the cross, under Pilate, as the propitiation for the sin of mankind; physically rose from the dead on the third day; ascended bodily into Heaven; makes intercession for us at God's right hand; is ruling right now in Heaven and will do so until he has put all enemies under his feet; will return bodily, render justice, judge the living and the dead, destroy death and the curse, complete the purposes of God which include: every knee bowing and every tongue confessing to God's glory, the restoration of all things / making all new, and the deliverance up of all things to God so that God will be "all in all". (Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38; John 1:1; 20:28; Romans 5; 9:5; 8:32; II Corinthians 5; Colossians 1; I Peter 2:21-23; John 20:30, 31; Matthew 20:28; Ephesians 1:4; Acts 1:11; Romans 5:6-8; 6:9, 10; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 9:28; I Timothy 3:16; Revelation 21)
- Salvation / Regeneration - We believe: that both male and female humans were created by God in His own image; that man sinned and thereby incurred the judgment of death; that those people who repent (i.e. confess and forsake sin) and trust Jesus Christ as their only Savior are regenerated by the Holy Spirit and become new creatures, are delivered from condemnation and receive eternal life (i.e. the life of the age of Christ, which Jesus also affirmed results in resurrected life that never dies); that salvation is by Grace through Faith in Jesus Christ alone, and is not attained by works of the Law, religious ritual, or any other means of personal merit, but is free to everyone who will accept it, whom God calls to Himself; that salvation is evidenced in the believer’s actions, speech, works, perseverance, and the bearing of the Fruit of the Spirit. We believe Jesus died to and for sin, and offers immortal, resurrected life to those who trust in him fully. (Genesis 1:26; 5:2; Genesis 3; Genesis 2:17; 3:19; Ecclesiastes. 2:11; John 3:14; 5:24; John 5:30; 7:13; 8:12; 10:26; Romans 9:22; II Thessalonians 1:9; Revelation 19:3, 20; 20:10, 14, 15; 21:18; Psalm 51:7; Jeremiah 17:9; James 1:14; Romans 3:19; 5:19; Proverbs 28:13; I John 1:9; John 3:16; John 1:13; II Corinthians 5:17; Romans 8:1; Galatians 5:22
- Marriage & Family – (i) The Institution of Marriage: We believe that marriage is an institution created by the God of the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures, therefore, only God can define what marriage is—its nature and makeup—and has done so in the Bible (both Old and New Testaments) as being composed of one man and one woman. We prescribe and adhere to the Bible’s definition of marriage—that marriage can only be between one man and one woman; that marriage is a covenant between one man and one woman before God, which conveys the sublime and mysterious union between Christ and his Church, and any other combination of persons is blasphemous to God; (Gen. 1-2; Ex. 20:12; Deut. 6:4-9; Ps. 127:3-5; Prov. 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; Mk. 10:6-12; 1 Cor. 7:1-16; Eph. 5:21-33; 6:1-4; Col. 3:18-21; 1 Pet. 3:1-7; Mathew 5 & 19; Romans 1; 1 Corinthians 7; Ephesians 5). Mal. 2:14-17; Matt. 19:3-12; Mark 10:11-12; Rom. 7:1-3; I Tim. 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6; I Cor. 7:10-16)
- Protection of Children: We believe that children are a heritage from the Lord and must be absolutely protected within the church from any form of abuse or molestation. This church has a "zero tolerance" policy towards any threat, or potential threat, against children. (Ps. 127:3-5; Matt. 18:6; Matt. 19:14; Mark 10:14). All personnel who work with our church's children undergo a thorough background check through the FBI.
- Worship & Meeting Together: We believe that worship is to be directed toward God alone, for His glory alone. We meet together on the First Day of the week (Sunday, aka the "Lord's Day") as we are convinced was the practice of the early church (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2). This was the day on which Christ rose bodily from death in the tomb (Matt. 28; Mark 16; Luke 24). We celebrate Christ's resurrection and our position in him weekly!
- Ordinances: We believe Christ gave his church two ordinances which are to be regularly observed: 1.) Baptism, which is administered to new believers by total immersion, 2.) The Lord's Supper / Communion in which two elements are consumed by all believers, i.e. wine and bread in representation of Christ's body and blood.
- The Gospel: We do not hold to any partial Gospel or any counterfeit Gospel (e.g. of works or towards material prosperity). Instead, we hold to the full Gospel of Jesus Christ which places the faithful believer in Christ and God's Spirit in the believer, making us one with God and each other. We believe in the "exchanged life"--that Jesus became our sin in his flesh on the cross to pay for sin and to satisfy and remove God's wrath, that we might become his righteousness. (Isaiah 53; John 15-17; Romans 6-8; 1 Cor. 15; 2 Cor. 5).
We believe in All of Christ for All of Life!