Flash: ON   September 7, 2010 
Search:     
What We Believe
Statement of Faith
 
The Bible
We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, divinely inspired; that it contains no errors in the original manuscripts and is preserved by God for us; that it is authoritative for this church and each and every one of us of every age.
 
God
We believe that God exists eternally in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  These three are one God.
 
We believe God created the universe by His power and Word.
 
We believe God is all-knowing, all-powerful, all-loving, and ever-present.
 
We believe God is love, holy, righteous, and just.
 
Jesus
We believe Jesus Christ was sent by God the Father into the world to save people from the sin penalty of death and restore them to a relationship with God.
 
We believe Jesus was born of a virgin, sinless in life, and mighty in words and deeds.
 
We believe Jesus was born both God and man, was crucified for our sins, and was bodily raised from the dead. He then ascended to His Father’s side where He is head of the church and intercedes for believers.
 
We believe Jesus Christ is coming again personally, visibly, and bodily to reign as King.
 
Holy Spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit is a person, is God, and has all the divine characteristics.
 
We believe the Holy Spirit draws lost people to Christ.
 
We believe He indwells all believers, baptizes and seals them at the moment of salvation.
 
Humanity
We believe all humans are valuable because they were created in the image of God.
 
We believe God created people to be in a relationship with Him, but they disobeyed God by breaking his laws and sinfully going their own ways. As a result, they are under the penalty of sin, which is death, and need God’s saving grace to restore their relationship with Him.
 
Salvation
We believe that Jesus, through His death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, paid our sin penalty in full and provided salvation (forgiveness of sins/relationship with God) for all people. However, to receive forgiveness and begin a relationship with God, one must place his/her faith in Jesus Christ. We beleive the Bible teaches that rejection of Jesus Christ as one's Lord and Savior results in eternal punishment in hell.
 
We believe a person experiences forgiveness and begins a relationship with God by faith (trusting in Jesus Christ) alone through grace (what Christ has done) alone, that salvation is not trying ourselves but trusting in Jesus Christ.
 
We believe a Christian is eternally secure and cannot lose his or her salvation. All who place their faith in Jesus Christ will at death depart to be with him in their spirits and at Christ’s return receive a new body that will be like His glorious body.
 
The Church
We believe the Church is both a large amount of people worldwide and a local body of people in the community who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ.
 
We believe the church exists, as modeled by Paul in the book of Acts, to encourage and educate believers with the truth of the new covenant of grace ushered in through the death and resurrection of Jesus, and evangelize unbelievers with the truth about grace.
 
The Church has two ordinances:
Baptism symbolizes the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the new identity and life we have in Him.
 
The Lord’s Supper is a reminder of Christ’s death and resurrection and anticipates His coming. It symbolizes that Christ paid for all our sins, that we are completely forgiven, and that by faith Christ lives in us.

Copyright 2010 Grace Church Gulf Coast. All Rights Reserved.