What We Believe

We believe that local churches, when they’re functioning the way God intends, are the hope of the world.  Far too often, the church has been a slumbering giant, satisfied with mediocre, welcoming only its own, getting worked up by minutia, making the most engaging person in history (Jesus) seem like a cardboard cutout, and inspiring few if any to do great things.  Yet, where better than the church for God’s refreshing love and astounding power to be not only spoken about but experienced?  What other community has greater potential to change the world child by child, person by person, family by family, neighborhood by neighborhood?  Could there be a more readily accessible place for people of every stage of life to find love and value and purpose?  God has uniquely crafted every individual on the planet, and shaped each person with particular gifts and purposes that no circumstances in life can cancel.  The local church, when it’s truly functioning as the body of Christ, brings each living piece together to bind up the brokenhearted, bring good news to the poor, place the lonely in families, set the captives free, inspire a grander vision, and bring new life to all, now and forever. 

 

Statement of Faith

Core Values

Doctrine

 

 

 

 Statement of Faith

God desires an intimate relationship with each of us. This desire finds its highest expression in the person of Jesus Christ, God's only Son, who was sent to shatter the barrier between sinful humanity and a perfect and sinless Creator. Jesus' life of obedience, death on the cross, and resurrection from the dead, have made a way for us to receive new and eternal life. With the help of God's Holy Spirit, we can turn from the darkness of sin and live in the light of God's love, joy and peace, enabled and strengthened to live out His will for us. 

Foundational is our conviction that the Bible is the completely trustworthy Word of God. Though its composition involved human authors writing in specific contexts, the Bible is not simply a human book, but rather Spirit-breathed (inspired by God). God still speaks through the Bible, showing us His intentions for human relationships and everyday living. As we trust in His Word, God brings us new hope and new faith, and reveals a Love for us that knows no end.

 


Core Values

1.  It’s about Jesus.  (Matthew 22:34-40; John 14:6)  Jesus is the head of the Church.  As such, he receives all the glory and calls all the shots.  By focusing on Jesus rather than what divides us, we actively work toward unity among the various expressions of the body of Christ.  The Great Commandment (to love the Lord Jesus with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength) is the center of who we are and how we are to live.  Jesus came full of grace and truth, neither watering down God’s Word in dealing with others, nor requiring sinners to “get cleaned up” before receiving his love.  We want to be a church that looks like Jesus.

2.  Passion for the pre-Christian.  (Matthew 28:18-20; Matthew 4:18-20)  Because of Jesus’ Great Commission to the church, the church is the only organization which exists primarily for the sake of its non-members.  Passion for those far from God must affect our budget, small groups, worship, Bible studies, and every aspect of congregational life.  We expect and organize to grow, not only in depth, but in breadth also.

3.  Renewal through the Holy Spirit.  (John 14:26; 16:7-15; 1 Cor. 12; Galatians 5:22-26)  We affirm the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, and look to Him to bring renewal to our lives, both individually and as a congregation.  We seek the Holy Spirit’s power to bring people to faith, to convict people of sin, and to restore the joy of salvation to sinners.  We acknowledge and desire all the gifts of the Spirit and each aspect of the fruit of the Spirit to be manifest in our lives.

4.  People of prayer.  (James 5:13; Matthew 6:9-13; 7:7-11; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)  God’s plans for us will always exceed our plans for God, and the chief way for Jesus to function as the Head of the church, and for the Holy Spirit to renew His church, is through prayer.  Quite often prayer is not intended by God to be a means to an end, but an end in itself, as He seeks an intimate and personal relationship with His children.

5.  High view of Scripture.  (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Romans 15:4; Psalm 1)  We accept on faith that since all Scripture is inspired by God, all Scripture is also without error, and is a living Word that is always relevant.  Not all interpretation of Scripture is without error, and therefore we uphold the interpretive functions of studying the original manuscripts, the original audiences and purposes of a text, and a thorough comparison with the whole canon of Scripture.  We seek to teach and live the whole counsel of God’s Word, and simultaneously to live out the full grace embodied by Jesus Christ, the Word of God in the flesh.

6.  Passionate worship.  (1 Peter 2:9; John 4:23-24; Psalm 98:8-9; Psalm 105:1-6)  Worship in the first place is for God, and only because God is so self-giving and loving toward His children does worship also bless the worshipers.  Worship involves the whole person – body, mind, and emotions.  Forms of worship are optional, and to be chosen to best enable those present to unreservedly show their love for their Lord and Savior, while experiencing God’s presence through His Word and sacraments (baptism and Holy Communion).

7.  Intimacy with one another.  (1 John 4:7-8)  Jesus is often the only reason two sisters and brothers in Christ find themselves in relationship with one another – and Jesus is sufficient for a high level of unity.  As our love for Jesus grows, our love for each other grows, despite differences in personality or experience.  Christianity is a team sport, and so high priority is placed on small group opportunities to minister to, love, and serve alongside other Christians.

8.  Gifts for everyone. (1 Corinthians 12:12-31)  God has designed His body, the church, so that everyone has an essential role to play and gifts to use for the common good.  The only hierarchy in the church is one Lord, Jesus Christ, directing one body of believers. As Christians submit to one another out of reverence for Christ, the Holy Spirit becomes less hindered to flow freely and gift graciously. Staff members are called not to do the ministry of the body, but to equip the entire body for ministry.

9.  Here, there, and everywhere. (Acts 1:8)  Jesus’ last recorded instruction to his disciples was to witness first where they are, and then expand the circles to the ends of the earth.  We trust God to reveal to us specific ways to invest in our neighborhood in Tucson – local elementary schools are one area that God has led us to so far.  Globally, God has given us significant opportunities in Mexico, Haiti, and Tanzania thus far.

 

Doctrine

  • That God is One, revealed in the Scriptures as three persons, the Father, the source and creator of all, the Son, our Savior and Lord, and the Spirit, who calls us to faith and empowers us for holy living and effective service.
  • That Jesus Christ, true God and true Man, through His virgin birth, sinless life, death on the cross on our behalf, and resurrection from the dead, offers eternal life to all who believe, and that the same grace that saves also empowers for victorious living.
  • That the whole human race has fallen into sin and cannot be rescued from bondage to sin and to Satan without Christ.
  • That the Word of God, the Bible, is true, and that we can therefore trust in it without reservation. We accept all the canonical books of the Old and New Testaments as a whole and in all their parts as the divinely inspired and revealed Word of God and joyfully submit to it as the only infallible authority in all matters of life and faith.
  • That the Church is composed of all those who have been born of the Spirit by believing in the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ. The Church is the Body of Christ, with Jesus Christ as the Head. We strive to submit to Christ’s headship in all things.
  • That baptism unites us with Christ’s death and resurrection and the Lord’s Supper gives us fellowship with the living Christ in His true body and blood.
  • That the local congregation consists of true believers, submitted to Christ, and carrying out His ministry and mandates in the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit, and that pastors help equip the members to do the ministry.
  • That the Holy Spirit gives gifts to all members of the Church to do the supernatural ministry of Christ until He returns. That Christ will return for His Bride, the Church, and that true believers will live forever with Christ, while unbelievers will be sent to eternal punishment.
  • That the Ecumenical creeds, the Apostolic, the Nicene, and the Athanasian, are true declarations of the faith we affirm.
  • That how we live affirms or denies what we profess. We do not want to deny the Gospel by wrong living. We adorn our creed with our conduct.
  • That right relationships are as necessary as right theology. We will not invalidate sound doctrine by unsound attitudes and actions toward others