Article I >> Our Mission

           
The purpose of Living Hope Bible Church is to glorify God by making disciples of Christ who exalt God, edify and equip believers, and evangelize the lost; starting in our own community and extending to the world.

 

Article II >> Our Vision

To compose a compassionate community of Christ-like disciples who exemplify the character and conduct of Jesus Christ, constantly call out to God in prayer, depend solely on the Great Comforter, and contagiously carry out the great Commission and great Commandment.

 

Article III >> Our Values

 

We value Jesus Christ as our Savior, Lord and Head and seek to more fully know, enjoy, proclaim, and exalt Him by giving Him preeminence in all things (Eph. 1:22-23; Col. 1:15-18)

 

We value the Bible as the inspired, inerrant Word of God and recognize it to be the sole authority in all matters and that it cannot be accommodated or compromised by cultural or preferential norms. We affirm it to be the power of God unto salvation and the primary sanctifying agent God uses to transform us more into His image.  It is to be interpreted and practically applied through a literal, historical and grammatical approach ( 2 Tim. 3:16-4:4; Jn. 17:7; Eph. 5:25-27; Ps. 19:7-11).

 

We value the Holy Spirit and recognize His constant presence and our constant need to live and serve our Lord Jesus Christ through His guidance, empowerment and comfort (Jn. 14:25; 2 Cor. 3:17-18; Eph. 5:17-21).

 

We value prayer and affirm that God’s church is to be a house of prayer where His people maintain unbroken fellowship, worship, and guidance through a spirit of authentic and broken dependence on God (Mt. 21:13; Acts 2:42, 4:29-31)

 

We value authentic worship and true celebration of our Lord Jesus Christ through worship that is governed and practiced in Spirit and truth and which assists each believer to more fully experience the power and presence of God in his/her life (Jn. 4:23-24; Ps. 100:150)

 

We value people as unique and precious gifts of God and will strive to honor, respect, and disciple each individual who attends our church (Rom. 12:9-11; Eph. 4:29-32; Phil. 2:3-4)

 

We value the Gospel message of Jesus Christ and believe it to be the sole means of salvation and therefore will diligently seek to uphold, proclaim and live it before our neighbors and surrounding community (Rom. 1:16; 1 Cor. 15:1-4; Mt. 5:13-16; Acts 1:8)
We value biblical communication and conflict resolution and determine to never participate in gossip or any unwholesome speech towards another brother or sister in Christ.  We promise to uphold and practice the four rules of communication derived from Ephesians 4 (Eph. 4:25-32; Jas. 3:1-12; Mt. 12:33-37)

 

We value authentic and genuine relationships which are built on love, honesty and respect. (Prov. 17:17; 1 Sam. 20 20:1-24)

 

We value discipleship and will strive to help each member of our church to grow into the full stature of Jesus Christ and become a fruitful and active believer in our fellowship (Mt. 28:19-20; Jn. 15:1-8; Eph. 4:11-16)

 

We value the family and seek to provide a church environment where the entire family unit can be strengthened, equipped, and assisted in maintaining a healthy and Christ-honoring home (Eph. 5:22-6:4)

 

We value human life and commit ourselves to do all that is legally and spiritually possible to maintain the sanctity of all human life in our country (Gen. 1:26; 9:5-7; Ex. 21:22-25; Ps. 139:13-16)

 

We value godly leadership which exemplifies humility, servanthood, and integrity ( 1 Tim. 3:1-8; 1 Pet. 5:1-4)

 

Article IV >> Our Beliefs

 

The Scriptures – We believe both the Old and New Testaments to be the inspired Word of God without error in the original writings and the final authority for Christian faith and practice – 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21

 

One True God – We believe in one God, Creator and sustainer of all things, infinitely perfect and almighty; eternally existing in three equal but distinct persons as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – Deut. 6:4; Rev. 1:8; Mt. 28:19-20

 

Jesus Christ – We believe that Jesus Christ was the perfect God-man who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary and that He lived a sinless life, died vicariously on the cross for the sins of the world, was buried and rose physically from the grave on the third day, ascended to heaven on the fortieth day, and now intercedes for all believers as their High Priest and spiritual Advocate – Jn. 1:1, 14; Lk. 1:31-35; Heb. 4:14-16; 1 Jn. 2:1-2

 

Holy Spirit – We believe in the divine and eternal personhood of the Holy Spirit and His present ministry to convict, regenerate and seal the believing sinner as well as indwell, empower, guide, instruct and sanctify the believer for godly living and service for Jesus Christ – Jn. 16:7-11; 14:26; Rom. 8:11; 2 Cor. 1:21; 3:18; Tit. 3:5

 

Creation – We believe in the literal and historical creation account given to us in Gen. 1.  That God created the universe in six literal days instantaneously from nothing (ex nihilo) without any evolutionary process and that all men are direct descendants from the first parents of the entire human race, Adam and Eve – Gen. 1:1-3; Ex. 20:8-11; Ps. 33:6-9; 1 Cor. 15:39; Heb. 11:3

 

The Fall of Man – We believe man was created in the image of God but fell into sin through disobedience and therefore, incurred spiritual death, or separation from God, as well as physical death.  All of mankind through the Adamic race, therefore, are sinners by nature and practice and in need of God’s salvation – Gen. 1:26-27; 3:6-7; Rom. 5:12-15; 1 Cor. 15:21-22

 

Salvation – We believe all of mankind to be spiritually dead, or separated from God and in need of a salvation which only Jesus Christ can procure for them through His substitutionary death and resurrection.  We believe sinful man can receive the forgiveness of his sin and the gift of eternal life through faith alone in the redemptive work of Christ.   It is only through the righteous blood of Christ that man’s sin can be atoned.  We believe this salvation to be solely of grace, unmerited, instantaneous and eternally secure through the supernatural power and love of God – Rom. 3:23; 6:23; Eph. 2:1-10; 2 Cor. 5:21; Acts 4:12; Rom. 10:9-13

 

New Birth – We believe that through repentant and trusting faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ that an individual is spiritually born again and receives forgiveness of sin and a new nature that will evidence itself in a new life of progressive sanctification and Christlikeness – Rom. 6:1-4; Jn. 3:3-8; Mt. 7:15-20

 

Heaven and Hell – We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and unjust, the everlasting blessedness of the saved in heaven, and the everlasting punishment of the unsaved in hell – Rev. 20:11-21:4

 

The Church – We believe that the true Church is composed of all such individuals who by faith have received Jesus Christ as their personal Savior from sin, have been spiritually born again and placed into the universal body of Christ.  We believe in and recognize all autonomous churches which hold Christ as their head, and seek to represent His truth and love by proclaiming and living the Gospel message while making disciples of Jesus Christ – 1 Cor. 12:12-13; Eph. 1:22-23

 

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper – We believe water baptism and Communion comprise the two ordinances given by Christ to His church.  We believe Christian baptism is the single immersion of a believer in water that pictures his identification with the crucified, buried and risen Savior, and his death to sin and new life in Christ.  We believe the Lord’s Supper to be a commemoration of Christ’s death for the believer, as well as a time of personal reflection and repentance of sin that reminds the believer of his spiritual identification in Christ’s death and resurrection.  As in the case of baptism, we believe the ordinance of Communion to be only a symbol of our redemption in Christ, and that it possesses no salvific power in itself – Rom 6:1-11; 1 Cor. 11:23-34

 

Rapture and End Times – We believe in the pre-millennial and pre-tribulational return of Christ and that it is imminent, or can occur at any time.  We believe in a literal seven-year tribulation period in which God will judge the world for its rejection of His Son, preserve and redeem a remnant from the nation of Israel, and conclude at the literal and bodily return of Jesus Christ who will establish a literal one thousand year reign on earth; at its conclusion, He will judge the world and usher in eternity through His recreation of the earth – Rev. 19:11-20; 1 Thes. 4:13-18; Phil. 3:20-21; Mt. 24:1-22

 

Separation and Testimony – As believers in Jesus Christ we believe God has called us to be “in the world” but not “of the world”.  With this understanding we recognize our need to love, minister, and reach out to the lost sinner with the Gospel message of Christ.   We also recognize, however, our calling to separate ourselves from the worldly and sinful lifestyles of the lost and avoid becoming unequally yoked with the darkness and apostasy of this age.  Consequently, we believe it biblically necessary to separate ourselves from all ecumenical movements such as the World Council of Churches and its liberalistic teachings which support abortion, same-sex marriages, homosexual lifestyle and euthanasia.  As God’s light and salt we repudiate and oppose all such teachings while extending the love and grace of Jesus Christ and the Gospel message to those who practice such acts – Jn. 17:13-19; Rom. 12:1-2; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 4:1-5