WHAT WE BELIEVE
STATEMENT O F P U R P O S E
As a church, we are called to reach out to spiritually unresolved people and share the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are equally committed to nurturing an authentic and loving Christian community (Acts 2:42). At Emerging HOPE Ministries, we take Christ's words in The Great Commission very seriously; He commanded us to make disciples (Matthew 28.19-20). We believe we are here to share the Gospel to a dying world and to teach/disciple those that come into His Kingdom family. It is by the guidance of the Holy Spirit that we do all things. There is REAL hope for REAL people living in a REAL world.
STATEMENTS O F F A I T H
WHAT WE BELIEVE
GOD
There is one and only one living and true God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal Being, the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe. God is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. God is all powerful and all knowing; and His perfect knowledge extends to all things, past, present, and future, including the future decisions of His free creatures. To Him we owe the highest love, reverence, and obedience. The eternal triune God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence, or being. (Genesis 1:1, 26-27, 3:22; Psalm 90:2; Matthew 29:9; 2 Corinthians 13:14 1 Peter 1:2
GOD THE FATHER
God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the flow of the stream of human history according to the purposes of His grace. He is all powerful, all knowing, all loving, and all wise. God is Father in truth to those who become children of God through faith in Jesus Christ. He is fatherly in His attitude toward all men. (Genesis 1:1; 2:7; Exodus 3:14; 6:2-3; 15:11ff.; 20:1; Leviticus 22:2; Deuteronomy 6:4; 32:6; 1 Chronicles 29:10; Psalm 19:1-3; Isaiah 43:3,15; 64:8; Jeremiah 10:10; 17:13; Matthew 6:9.; 7:11; 23:9; 28:19; Mark 1:9-11; John 4:24; 5:26; 14:6-13; 17:1-8; Acts 1:7; Romans 8:14-15; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 4:6; Colossians 1:15; 1 Timothy 1:17; Hebrews 11:6; 12:9; 1 Peter 1:17; 1 John 5:7.)
GOD THE SON (JESUS CHRIST)
He is the Son of God, yet equal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for our sins by dying on the cross. God raised Him from the dead on the third day after His death to demonstrate His power over sin and death. (1 Corinthians 15:3-5) He ascended to heaven's glory and will return again someday. As reigning Lord, He offers forgiveness of sins and eternal life to all those who repent and believe.
(Matthew 1:18-23; 3:17; 8:29; 11:27; 14:33; 16:16,27; 17:5; 27; 28:1-6,19; Mark 1:1; 3:11; Luke 1:35; 4:41; 22:70; 24:46; John 1:1-18,29; 10:30,38; 11:25-27; 12:44-50; 14:7-11; 16:15-16,28; 17:1-5, 21-22; 20:1-20,28; Acts 1:9; 2:22-24; 7:55-56; 9:4-5,20; Romans 1:3-4; 3:23-26; 5:6-21; 8:1-3,34; 10:4; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 2:2; 8:6; 15:1-8,24-28; 2 Corinthians 5:19-21; 8:9; Galatians 4:4-5; Ephesians 1:20; 3:11; 4:7-10; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 1:13-22; 2:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; 3:16; Titus 2:13-14; Hebrews 1:1-3; 4:14-15; 7:14-28; 9:12-15,24-28; 12:2; 13:8; 1 Peter 2:21-25; 3:22; 1 John 1:7-9; 3:2; 4:14-15; 5:9; 2 John 7-9; Revelation 1:13-16; 5:9-14; 12:10-11; 13:8; 19:16)
GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT
The Holy Spirit is equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make people aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He is also the liberating gift of Jesus to those who repent of their sins and put their faith in Him. The Holy Spirit lives in you from the moment you place your faith in Christ. He provides the follower of Christ with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right as we live our lives. He is also the giver of spiritual gifts. As followers of Christ, we are to seek to live under His control daily. (Genesis 1:2; Judges 14:6; Job 26:13; Psalms 51:11; 139:7; Isaiah 61:1-3; Joel 2:28-32; Matthew 1:18; 3:16; 4:1; 12:28-32; 28:19; Mark 1:10,12; Luke 1:35; 4:1,18-19; 11:13; 12:12; 24:49; John 4:24; 14:16-17,26; 15:26; 16:7-14; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4,38; 4:31; 5:3; 6:3; 7:55; 8:17,39; 10:44; 13:2; 15:28; 16:6; 19:1-6; Romans 8:9-11,14-16,26-27; 1 Corinthians 2:10-14; 3:16; 12:3-11,13; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30; 5:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; 1 Timothy 3:16; 4:1; 2 Timothy 1:14; 3:16; Hebrews 9:8,14; 2 Peter 1:21; 1 John 4:13; 5:6-7; Revelation 1:10; 22:17)
THE BIBLE
The Bible is God's Word to us and was written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. We believe God inspired the Bible; it was literally "God-breathed" (2 Timothy 3:16), and because of that, it is truth without any mixture of error. God's Word has been preserved throughout the centuries through copies of the original works. It is from these copies that we are able to translate the message of God's love into different languages and styles. (Psalm 119:106, 160; 2 Timothy 1:13; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
HUMAN BEINGS
People are made in the image of God and are the supreme object of God's creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all people are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God. God calls this attitude "sin". Sin separates us from God and causes problems in life. (Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6a, 59:1-2; Romans 3:23)
SALVATION
Salvation is God's free gift to us, but we must repent of our sins and put our faith in Jesus in order to receive it. We can never make up for our sin by "self-improvement" or "good works". Jesus died, was buried, and was resurrected, and only by trusting in Christ as God's offer for forgiveness can we be saved from sin's penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and repent of our sin and believe upon Jesus in faith, we are saved. (John 14:6; Romans 5:1, 6:23; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5)
ETERNAL SECURITY
Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ the true believer is secure in that salvation for eternity. If you have been genuinely saved, you cannot 'lose your salvation”'. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God; He is the giver of salvation and its security. (John 10:27-28; 2 Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
ETERNITY
People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin in a place called Hell, or with God because of the forgiveness offered through His Son Jesus in a place called Heaven. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence. (Matthew 1:8, 2:44,46; John 2:25, 3:16, 5:11-13; Romans 6:23; Revelation 21:8)
THE CHURCH
We believe that a local, visible church is a congregation of baptized believers who are united by a common commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ. The church is to observe the two ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s supper as governed by His Word. The church must exist to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth and should be self-governed as it is empowered by God to determine its own strategies and programs. (Matthew 18:17-20; Acts 2:41-42, 4:32-35, 5:11, 6:1-4, 8:1, 10:48; Romans 6:1-4; 1 Corinthians 11:23-29; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; Titus 1:5-9; Hebrews 10:25, 13:17)