Affirmations
General Positions
Reformed/Covenantal with regards to Soteriology
Egalitarian with regards to Leadership
Specific Doctrinal Positions*
The Scriptures
I believe in the divine inspiration of Holy Scripture and its’ consequent entire trustworthiness and supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. They are to be interpreted according to their context and purpose as well as in reverent obedience to the Holy Spirit who speaks through them in living power.
The Trinity
I believe in one God, creator and sustainer of all things, eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that these are equal in every divine perfection and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence, and redemption.
God the Father
I believe in God the Father, infinite, personal, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love. He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of women and men, hears and answers prayer, and He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit.
God the Son
I believe that the only mediator between God and humankind is Christ Jesus our Lord, God’s eternal Son, who, being conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, fully shared and fulfilled our humanity in a life of perfect obedience. By dying in our stead, Christ revealed the divine love and upheld divine justice, removing our guilt and reconciling us to God. Having redeemed us from sin, the third day he rose bodily from the grave, victorious over death and the powers of darkness. Our risen Lord ascended into heaven where, at God’s right hand, he intercedes for his people and rules as Lord over all.
God the Holy Spirit
I believe in the person of the Holy Spirit and the work of regeneration, sanctification, and preservation. The Spirit’s ministry is to glorify Jesus, implement His redemptive work, and empower believers for godly living.
Creation
I believe that God reveals himself in and through the natural world he created. Properly interpreted, Scripture and nature are complementary and faithful witnesses to their common Author. God typically sustains the world using faithful, consistent processes that humans describe as “natural laws.” Yet, God can work outside of natural law in supernatural events, including the miracles described in Scripture. In both natural and supernatural ways, God continues to be directly involved in creation and in human history. The methods of science are an important and reliable means to investigate and describe the world God has made. Thus, faith and science are mutually hospitable. God continues to sustain the existence and functioning of the natural world, and the cosmos continues to declare the glory of God.
I believe that God created the universe, the earth, and all life over billions of years. God continues to sustain the existence and functioning of the natural world, and the cosmos continues to declare the glory of God. Therefore, we reject ideologies such as Deism that claim the universe is self-sustaining, that God is no longer active in the natural world, or that God is not active in human history.
I believe that the diversity and interrelation of all life on earth are best explained by the God-ordained process of evolution with common descent. Thus, evolution is not in opposition to God, but a means by which God providentially achieves his purposes. Therefore, we reject ideologies that claim that evolution is a purposeless process or that evolution replaces God.
Humanity
I believe God created humanity, male and female, to glorify God through mirroring Him to all of creation. Humanity instead opted to erect for themselves gods in their own image. As a result, the image of God in humanity has been shattered.
Salvation
I believe in salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus alone. This salvation is based upon the sovereign grace of God, was purchased by Christ on the cross, and is received through faith apart from any human merit, works, or ritual. I believe salvation results in righteous living, service, and concern for all of creation, in particular, humanity.
The Church
I believe that the Church is the spiritual body of which Christ is the head and is composed of all persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit. This multi-national, multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual body expresses itself in local assemblies whose members have been baptized and have associated themselves for worship, instruction, evangelism, and service. The ordinances of the local church are baptism and the Eucharist or Lord’s Supper. I also believe in the interdependence of local churches and the mutual submission of Christians to each other in love. With the universal church being multi-national, multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, and multi-lingual, the local church and its members are to place allegiance to the eternal Kingdom of God and her adopted sisters and brothers in Christ above any and every other temporary, earthly nation.
Christian Conduct
I believe that the supreme task of every believer is to glorify God in life and conduct and be blameless before the world. Each Christian should be a faithful and generous steward of all possessions and seek to realize in every area of life the full stature of maturity in Christ. I believe the way of Jesus is the Spirit-empowered path of peace, non-violence, and non-resistance.
The Last Things
I believe Jesus is coming one day to usher in his final and perfect kingdom on earth. On that day, He will judge the living and the dead. All those who believe and obey Jesus will live forever with him here in the new heavens and new earth. All those who don’t believe in Jesus will face an irreversible punishment for their sin and rejection of God.
* Adapted or quoted directly from Biologos, Denver Seminary, Fuller Theological Seminary, or Regent College.
Tyler A. Saldaña 