What We Believe
Our Mission:
“A family of faith called to grow in the love of Christ, share that Good News, and serve the world.”
The church exists to share the good news of Jesus Christ, who has called us, claimed us, and compels us to follow in his ways. The God of the universe became human in Jesus the Christ, calling us out of sin and into his holiness. In Jesus we see the face of the invisible God, who reveals himself and shows us how to love God and neighbor. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, FPC seeks to nurture and equip faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, through worship, fellowship, study, and service.
What We Believe:
About God
God is the Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer of all that exists, creating the world from nothing. God created human beings in the image of God and loves us with an everlasting love. We worship the God of heaven and earth who has revealed himself through the pages of Holy Scripture as one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
About Ourselves
While God has created us in his image, we are sinners who have turned away from God’s loving kindness. God pursues us with his love and invites us to follow in his ways, despite our sin. We are wholly dependent upon God’s grace to lead and guide us through faith in him.
About Jesus
Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God who pursues us in his incarnation and ministry. He draws us into God’s love and forgiveness, making reconciliation with God the Father possible through his life, death, and resurrection. Jesus is both Lord and Messiah and the world’s only Savior. Following Jesus calls us to put God first in our lives and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
About the Holy Spirit
Jesus promised his disciples that they would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit once he ascended into heaven. The Holy Spirit is the indwelling presence of God in our lives; claiming us as God’s own, and leading us to follow God faithfully. The Spirit comes in power, convicting us of our sin, comforting us in our sorrow, empowering us to live and proclaim Christ’s lordship, guiding us in our personal and corporate discipleship, and uniting us to Christ at all times.
About the Bible
The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the unique and authoritative Word of God. These are God’s words to us, allowing us to know who God is, who we are in light of God, and our call to bear witness to God’s unwavering love and grace towards us. They are authoritative because they are the only rule of faith and life; written by fallible human beings, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to show us how we are to be in relationship with God and with one another. They are unique because they are not stagnant; the Spirit opens the Scriptures to us in new ways every time we read and hear God’s Word proclaimed.
About the Sacraments
Jesus commands his disciples to do two things he instituted: to remember him through the Passover meal he reinstituted with his disciples, and to make disciples of him, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. These two sacraments, baptism and communion, are outward signs of an invisible grace that the Holy Spirit imparts to us.
As we receive this meal, most often referred as the Lord’s Supper, the Last Supper, Holy Communion, or the Eucharist, not only are we reminded of Jesus’ death, but also his presence among us as the resurrected Savior. This meal gives us sustenance to live faithfully as Christ’s disciples in the world. In baptism we proclaim Christ’s claim on our lives, being united with him through his death and resurrection, and the good news of our sins being washed away. We believe in one baptism, which is God’s work and not our own, in and through this sacrament.
About the Church
God calls us into communal fellowship, called the church, or the Body of Christ. While our faith is personal, it is not private, and so we are called collectively as the Body of Christ to worship, fellowship, study, and serve using our spiritual gifts to edify and build up the church. God’s relationship within the Holy Trinity is living proof of God calling the faith community into being. Our church is rooted in the Presbyterian (USA) tradition, which shapes and identifies us, but does not limit our connectionalism to the greater Body of Christ in the world.
About Diversity
We recognize and affirm that we are all created unique and different, but by the same God. God calls us together despite our differences, to his greater good – to be a united people in service to him. While we don’t agree on every political or theological issue, we maintain unity in diversity as we fulfill Christ’s mission to live out and proclaim the gospel to ends of the earth. No specific social issue defines us as a congregation; rather the saving grace of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior defines who we are and how we are called to live together.