Statement of Faith

Here we take an opportunity to outline the essentials of the faith. This statement does not in any way seek to replace the ecumenical creeds of the first centuries. It is a deliberately ecumenical positive statement of the core principals of orthodox faith that seeks to uphold the biblical witness. It gives the content that is explicated and explored in the other ares of this site. One important thing to note is that it is not meant to be a comprehensive systematic theology, even in outline. Topics which aren't covered aren't necessarily less important. This statement also allows for, and in fact acknowledges, the remaining disagreement which exists on a number of areas. This is certainly not to assert that anything goes in theology, but to acknowledge that we don't have a perfectly complete understanding of God's Truth, even in our best formulations.

�We believe in one God, almighty, triune, the creator of all things, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Holy is God, who was and is and is to come.

�We believe in Jesus Christ, the Son, through whom all things were created. Fully God and fully human, he was born of a virgin in Bethlehem, he proclaimed the kingdom of God in word and deed, suffered, and was crucified, obedient to the Father even unto death. He rose again on the third day, never again to die, the firstfruit of the resurrection to come. He will come again in glory. We believe we are saved by faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, by the grace of God.

�We believe in the Holy Spirit, the divine and personal Spirit, the bringer of life and new life, through whom the church of Jesus Christ is constituted. The Holy Spirit is the presence of Jesus Christ here and now, uniting believers to Christ, and declaring God�s glory throughout the earth, by the grace of God.

�We believe that the Bible, Old and New Testaments, is the written Word of God. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, it is the witness to the grace and love of God, which finds its fullest expression in Jesus Christ. The Bible is the norm for Christian faith and practice, through the power of the Holy Spirit, by the grace of God.

�We believe in salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone. We all are sinners, in need of God�s redeeming grace, which came fully through Jesus Christ, by whose life, death, and resurrection the power of sin is destroyed. By the power of Christ�s blood, through the working of the Holy Spirit, God brings forgiveness to all who believe, and brings new life to us who were dead in our sins, by the grace of God.

�While recognizing the substantive questions that still remain, we recognize the unity of the church, the body of Christ, which spans denominational lines and stands unified throughout time by faith in Jesus Christ, by the grace of God.