Moreover, this God is a speaking God who by his Spirit has graciously disclosed himself in human words: we believe that God has inspired the words preserved in the Scriptures, the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, which are both record and means of his saving work in the world. Revelation God has graciously disclosed his existence and power in the created order, and has supremely revealed himself to fallen human beings in the person of his Son, the incarnate Word. Immortal and eternal, he perfectly and exhaustively knows the end from the beginning, sustains and sovereignly rules over all things, and providentially brings about his eternal good purposes to redeem a people for himself and restore his fallen creation, to the praise of his glorious grace. He is the Creator of all things, visible and invisible, and is therefore worthy to receive all glory and adoration. This one true and living God is infinitely perfect both in his love and in his holiness. The Tri-une God We believe in one God, eternally existing in three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, who know, love, and glorify one another. You will find attached both our Confessional Statement and our Theological Vision for Ministry-a vision rooted in the Scriptures and centered on the gospel.įor more about our confessional statement, check out our series of 14 booklets written by the Council and edited by co-founders D. We yearn to work with all who, in addition to embracing the confession and vision set out here, seek the lordship of Christ over the whole of life with unabashed hope in the power of the Holy Spirit to transform individuals, com- munities, and cultures. As pastors, we intend to do this in our churches through the ordinary means of his grace: prayer, the ministry of the Word, baptism and the Lord’s Supper and the fellowship of the saints. Our desire is to serve the church we love by inviting all our brothers and sisters to join us in an effort to renew the contemporary church in the ancient gospel of Christ so that we truly speak and live for him in a way that clearly communicates to our age. We desire to champion this gospel with clarity, compassion, courage, and joy-gladly linking hearts with fellow believers across denominational, ethnic, and class lines. This reality compels us to stand with others who are stirred by the conviction that the mercy of God in Jesus Christ is our only hope of eternal salvation. Such a biblically grounded and united mission is the only endur- ing future for the church. We want to generate a unified effort among all peoples-an effort that is zealous to honor Christ and multiply his disciples, joining in a true coalition for Jesus. We desire to advance along the King’s highway, always aiming to provide gospel advocacy, encouragement, and education so that current- and next-generation church leaders are better equipped to fuel their ministries with principles and practices that glorify the Savior and do good to those for whom he shed his life’s blood. What replaces the gospel will never promote a mission-hearted faith anchored in enduring truth working itself out in unashamed discipleship eager to stand the tests of kingdom-calling and sacrifice. Yet we often see the celebration of our union with Christ replaced by the age-old attractions of power and affluence, or by monastic retreats into ritual, liturgy, and sacrament. We believe that in many evangelical churches a deep and broad consensus exists regarding the truths of the gospel. We have committed ourselves to invigorating churches with new hope and compelling joy based on the promises received by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. We not only hear of these influences, we see their effects. These movements have led to the easy abandonment of both biblical truth and the transformed living mandated by our historic faith. On the one hand, we are troubled by the idolatry of personal consumerism and the politicization of faith on the other hand, we are distressed by the unchallenged acceptance of theological and moral relativism. We have become deeply concerned about some movements within traditional evangelicalism that seem to be diminishing the church’s life and leading us away from our historic beliefs and practices. We are a fellowship of evangelical churches in the Reformed tradition deeply committed to renewing our faith in the gospel of Christ and to reforming our ministry practices to conform fully to the Scriptures.
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