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Brief Reflections on Our Core Commitments: #2 Prayer

Our Core Commitments We believe the following commitments flow naturally from both our stated mission and our doctrinal commitments. Because we exist for the glory of God, our desire is to follow and worship Jesus Christ while influencing others to do likewise. This Christ-following life, the life of a disciple, takes a particular shape. Some of the most central aspects of this discipleship are outlined under following five headings: Word, Prayer, Holiness, Love, and Mission. Prayer "Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication" ( Ephesians 6:18 ). The life of the disciple must be lived in the posture of prayer, for we have no power in ourselves to love or serve God. We commit to spend significant portions of our corporate worship in prayer ( Acts 2:42 , 13:3 ) We commit to consistent private prayer ( 1 Thessalonians 5:17 ) We commit to setting apart time for the elders to gather specifically for prayer ( Acts 6:4 ) -----------------------

Brief Reflections on Our Core Commitments: #3 Holiness

Our Core Commitments We believe the following commitments flow naturally from both our stated mission and our doctrinal commitments. Because we exist for the glory of God, our desire is to follow and worship Jesus Christ while influencing others to do likewise. This Christ-following life, the life of a disciple, takes a particular shape. Some of the most central aspects of this discipleship are outlined under following five headings: Word, Prayer, Holiness, Love, and Mission. Holiness "As he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct" ( 1 Peter 1:15 ). When God saves his people, he sets them apart and calls them to live lives distinct from the world. We commit to live personal lives of repentance from sin ( 1 John 1:8-9 ) We commit to live lives of tangible and sacrificial love for others ( John 13:34-35 ) We commit to live by the marriage and sexual ethics set forth in the Bible ( Hebrews 13:4 ) We commit to live lives of integrity that are abov

Brief Reflections on Our Statement of Faith: #10 The Future

Article 10. – The Future. We believe in the personal and bodily return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic mission. We believe that the souls of those who have trusted in Christ pass immediately into His presence at the moment physical death occurs, and remain in conscious spiritual joy until the resurrection of the glorified body when Christ comes for His own, whereupon soul and body reunited shall be associated with Him forever. The souls of unbelievers who have died physically remain conscious of condemnation and in misery until the final judgment, when soul and body reunited shall be cast into the Lake of Fire to be punished with everlasting destruction (Luke 16:19-26; 23:42; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 1:6-7; Revelation 20:11-15). -----------------------------------------

Brief Reflections on our Statement of Faith: #9 The Church

Article 9. – The Church. We believe that the Church, which is the body and the espoused bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all born again persons of this present age which began on the day of Pentecost (Matthew 16:16-18; Acts 1:5; 11:15; 1 Corinthians 12;13; Ephesians 1:21-23; 5:25-32). We believe the Scripture teaches that this spiritual body is made manifest locally in congregations of believers, and that each local church should be governed by a plurality of elders (Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 5:1-4; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; 1 Timothy 5:17-18; Acts 20:28; 1 Timothy 3:1-7). We believe there are two ordinances which were prescribed by Christ to be performed by His Church. Baptism: We believe that baptism into water pictures our identification with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection (Matt 28:18-20; Acts 8:36-39; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4). The Lord’s Supper: We believe that the Lord’s Supper exists to remind us of the death of Christ on our behalf, to tes

Brief Reflections on Our Statement of Faith: #8 Salvation

Article 8. – Salvation. We believe that, owing to universal death through sin, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless born again; and that no degree of improvement however great, no attainments in morality however high, no culture however attractive, no baptism or other ordinance however administered, can help the sinner to take even one step toward heaven. What is absolutely essential to salvation is a new nature imparted from above, a new life implanted by the Holy Spirit through the Word, and only those thus saved are sons of God. We believe that our redemption has been accomplished by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. He was made to be sin for us, dying in our place; and nothing can add in the very least degree to the value of His blood, or to the merit of His finished work. We believe that salvation is received only through faith in Jesus Christ. Salvation is a gift of God brought to man by grace, and is received by faith. All who so believe are regenerated and are seal

Brief Reflections on our Statement of Faith: #7 Sin

7. Sin We believe that all have sinned and have come short of the glory of God. To sin is to stray from God’s standard, to miss the mark of God’s holiness. It is fundamentally a rebellion against God Himself. The penalty for such rebellion is death. The Good News is that Christ died for sinners. We must either accept Christ’s payment or personally experience the eternal conscious torment of death in hell and the Lake of Fire. When a Christian sins he has an advocate in Jesus Christ, and he is commanded to confess and forsake his sin (Isaiah 53:6; 64:6; Romans 3:23; 5:8; 6:23; 1 John 1:1-9; 2:1-2). ________________________________________________________ Sin is one of the primary through-lines of the Bible. Starting in Genesis three when Adam and Eve rebelled against the righteous rule of God in their lives, all the way to Revelation 20 and the final defeat of Satan, sin plays a central role in how the Bible's story unfolds. We often think of sins simply as discrete, i