We Believe

We believe that the Bible is the authoritative Word of God. It contains all that people in any age need to know for their salvation. We call the Bible God’s Word, believing that, by the power of the Holy Spirit, God speaks to us through this book.

The Bible has two major sections that tell the drama of redemption as God reveals himself to his people and calls them out on mission with him to the world. The Old Testament records God’s work through centuries of Israelite history until about 400 B.C. The New Testament picks up with God’s work through the life of Jesus, the coming of the Holy Spirit in power, and the subsequent spread of the church over the first century A.D.

You could also think of the Bible as a library of sixty-six unique books of various kinds by many authors in different contexts over thousands of years. But it is only one story: the whole of it forms one richly textured story of God’s loving purpose in relation to humans and the whole creation. (crcna.org/welcome/beliefs/Bible)

We believe that the Bible - from the beginnig to the end - reveals Jesus. Jesus is the eternal Son of the Father, who, out of his great love for us, came into the world to live the life I should have lived and died the death that I deserve because of sin. By God's grace and his sovereign power believers put our faith in Jesus and are raised into newness of life. Saved by grace we live by grace as gospel witnesses to world in every aspect of our lives.

This gospel is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe and it is the enthroning of Jesus as the Lord of all creation. And therefore, whether preachers or plumbers we are all priests in the kingdom come and kingdom coming of God.

We are all sent to the world with this message of hope and holiness.

“I see baptism like this: it’s not so much that I choose God, but that he chose me first!”

Baptism is the sign and seal of God’s covenant promises in the life of His covenant children.  In baptism, God claims us in Christ, marks us as His own people, and seals our membership in God’s covenant community, the church. Baptism is the covenant sign that God frees us from the power of sin and death, uniting us with Jesus Christ in His death and resurrection. God’s grace in baptism calls us to give ourselves to Him in trust, love, and obedience.

All His gracious promises are for our children as well. We are to teach them that they have been set apart by baptism as God’s own children so that as they grow older they may respond to Him in personal faith and commitment.

The Lord’s Supper is a single celebration that conveys several layers of meaning. It is a celebration of all that God has done for us, especially in Christ. It is a thankful remembrance of the entire life and ministry of Christ. It is also a celebration and proclamation of Jesus’ real, spiritual presence with us, of the forgiveness offered to us through Christ’s work on the cross, and of the ongoing nourishment He provides. It is a celebration of the unity of Christ’s body, the church, as well as a meal of hope, of anticipating the heavenly feast of Christ’s coming kingdom. (“The Worship Sourcebook”, © 2004, CRC Publications”)   

The Lord’s Supper is also open to the baptized children of believers. We participate in the sacrament at least once a month, often gathering in large circle around the communion table as we serve each other the bread and the juice.

As a starting point, our central beliefs can be summarized by several Christian, biblically-based statements of faith, or creeds: The Athanasian Creed, The Nicene Creed, and the Apostles Creed. Similarly, the Heidelberg Catechism and Belgic Confession are historical documents that still prove relevant today as tools that summarize and explain our faith in God and His plan of redemption in Christ (the Q&A format of the catechism is especially helpful).