Our Beliefs

What is grace?
God loves us. 
And he loves us even though we do not deserve his love because of our rebellion against him.  In fact, he loves us so much that he sent his son, Jesus Christ, to die in our place – to pay the penalty for our sin.  That is what the bible means by grace.  It’s God’s riches at Christ’s expense.  And it’s undeserved.  And it has the power to change everything.  If you want to read a verse or two in the Bible about it, look up Ephesians 2:4-10 or Romans 5:8.

What is worship?
Loving God more.
Worship begins to happen when we respond to grace by investigating and responding to God’s great love for us.  We do that by building a loving, growing relationship with him.  That’s what we mean when we say, “loving God more.”  The more we understand and experience his grace, the more we will desire to love God with all of our heart, mind, and soul.  Worship includes singing, praying, and giving, but it really is a total life experience.  When it comes to worship, Romans 12:1-2 help to set the foundation for us.

What is family?
Loving people more.
The bible is clear that when you respond to God’s grace, you become part of a new family – the family of God (see John 1:12 & Matthew 12:46-50).  By family, we mean that we belong to one another and that we are designed to do the Jesus-centered life together — not alone or apart.  So when we say loving people more, we mean that we want to grow in our love for one another as brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.
What is kingdom?
Loving more people.
When we use the term kingdom, we are talking about sharing God’s transforming grace with others, just as God shared it with us in his Son Jesus Christ.  This includes both acts of mercy and justice as well as verbally telling people about Jesus Christ and how they can be saved by his life, death, and resurrection.  Jesus prayed for the kingdom of God to come, and promised that God will give us what we need if we make his kingdom our primary concern in this life.  Want to read for yourself what Jesus has to say?  Check out Mark 1:15, Matthew 6:10, and Matthew 6:33.  Another set of foundational verses for us in this area is 2 Corinthians 5:17-19.