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Beliefs
We’re a Bible-believing church in the evangelical Protestant tradition. As evangelical Christians, we’re happy to allow a range of beliefs at PCF about certain things (for example, you’ll find that folks at PCF take different positions on the presence of supernatural sign gifts for today, or questions concerning the last things). These beliefs we keep in an “open hand.” We want our members to take biblically informed positions, but we recognize that Christians can agree to disagree on these and other non-essential issues.
However, there are other points of teaching and belief that we hold in a “closed hand.” These are the core beliefs of historic, orthodox Christianity, the things the Bible is very clear on. These truths we prize and build our lives upon, holding them passionately and firmly. Among these beliefs are the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture, the doctrine of the Trinity, the deity of Jesus, justification by faith, and the personal, visible return of Jesus at the end of time.
In our Statement of Faith below, you’ll see the biblical teachings we hold to and prize together as a church.
We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, complete in the 66 books of the Bible, to be the only inspired Word of God, inerrant in the original writings, complete as the revelation of God’s will for salvation and all that God requires us to believe and do, and the supreme and final authority in all matters to which they speak.
We believe in One God, Creator and Sustainer of all things, eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe that they are equal in every divine perfection and that they perform distinct but harmonious roles in the work of creation and redemption and are equally worthy of all glory and honor.
We believe in God the Father, the sovereign, eternal, personal Spirit, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, unchanging, perfect in holiness, wisdom, justice and love. We believe He compassionately and wisely involves Himself in the lives of people. We believe He hears and answers prayer. We believe that He saves from sin and spiritual death all who come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ.
We believe that Jesus Christ is God’s eternal Son and has the same nature, attributes and perfection as God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. We believe He is true God and true Man, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. We believe that in the Incarnation He surrendered only the prerogatives of deity but nothing of the divine essence, either in degree or kind. We also believe in His sinless life, His substitutionary atonement by His shed blood, His bodily resurrection from the dead, His ascension into heaven, His priestly intercession on behalf of His people, and His personal, visible, bodily return from heaven at the end of the age.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, His divine personhood and His work in regeneration, sanctification, and preservation. He is equal with God the Father and God the Son, and of the same nature. His ministry is to convict of sin, of judgment, and of righteousness. We believe He is the author of the Holy Scriptures. He bears witness to the truth of the gospel in preaching and testimony. He is the life-giving agent of the new birth, and His indwelling presence within the believer is the very presence of God within us. He seals, empowers, guides, comforts, teaches, and sanctifies the believer.
We believe God created humankind, male and female, in the image of God, for the purposes of glorifying Him, enjoying fellowship with Him, and exercising dominion over His created order. Created free from sin, Adam voluntarily disobeyed God and fell from his sinless and happy state, in consequence of which all humankind is now of a sinful nature, and sins, not by constraint, but by choice, and is therefore under just condemnation without defense or excuse, resulting in both spiritual and physical death. We believe that those who are born again by the Holy Spirit, who repent of sin, and who turn to Jesus Christ as Savior are reconciled to God and restored to true fellowship with Him.
We believe in salvation through Jesus Christ alone. This salvation is based upon the sovereign grace of God, was purchased through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, by the shedding of His blood on the cross, and is received through faith apart from any human merit, works or ritual. This free gift is available to any person who will repent of sin and trust in Jesus Christ. We believe that all who truly trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, have a right standing before God and eternal life with Him, and grow in faith and obedience.
We believe that the church is the spiritual body of Christ, of which Christ is the head. The church universal is composed of all persons throughout time who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit. This body finds expression in local assemblies whose members have named Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and have associated themselves for the purpose of glorifying God through worship, instruction in the Bible, administering the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, evangelism, Christian service, and the building up and fellowship of believers. We believe God gives unique and spiritual gifts to each member of the body of Christ. We also believe it is biblical for local assemblies of the true church to cooperate with each other for the purposes of mutual edification and furthering the gospel.
We believe that baptism is an outward sign of the inward reality of the conversion and new life of a believer. It is an ordinance commanded by Scripture and is a command to be obeyed after one has received the free gift of salvation.
We believe that the celebration of the Lord’s Supper is a remembrance and proclamation of the Lord Jesus Christ and of His death on the cross. The observance of this ordinance should not be taken lightly; individuals should examine themselves so they do not take the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy manner. We observe the Lord’s Supper in order to express our full acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior and our unity as believers.
We believe the supreme task of all believers is to glorify God in their lives by enjoying him forever. We believe a desire to be obedient to the Word of God will be found in every believer, and that through the empowering of the Holy Spirit, the believer is able to live a life of increasing holiness in conformity to the will of God. Though there will be struggles and setbacks, the believer will progressively become more like the Lord Jesus Christ, yearning for full maturity in Christ. The believer will also face opposition from Satan who is a created, spiritual being opposed to God. We believe that Satan was defeated at the cross of Christ and doomed to receive eternal judgment from God.
We believe in the personal, visible, bodily return of the Lord Jesus Christ to judge all people and renew His creation. We believe in the bodily resurrection of the saved and the lost. The saved will rise to eternal life in the new creation, and the lost will rise to eternal condemnation and conscious punishment in Hell. God will be fully present with His people in His new creation, and there will be no sin, no death, and no crying or pain.
