What We Believe
We believe the church is made up of people who believe in and follow Jesus. The church is not a building. The church is a grace-filled community filled with different sorts of people with different, ethnic, social, political, and economic backgrounds all united under the cross of Christ. Our unity testifies to the Good News that we delight in celebrating together here and with the church universal. We worship and celebrate as we allow the Holy Spirit to lead us into areas of service as we do life together. More than anything else – we love talking about and modeling our lives after Jesus!
God
We believe God is the One, True, Eternal Creator of the universe and all that is within it. Our words cannot hope to capture all that God is. God is beyond complete human comprehension even if we had the words. We know that God is Glorious and deserving of all worship. God is Love for before God spoke everything into being, God existed in the loving relationship of the Trinity. Furthermore, Scripture reveals that the fullest expression of God is Jesus Christ, who demonstrated His perfect love by rescuing us even though we do not deserve it (Genesis 1, John 1, Matthew 3:17, Colossians 3:15, 1 John 4:16).
Holy Spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit is co-equal with God the Father and God the Son. We believe the Holy Spirit was sent by God and lives within the hearts of disciples of Jesus as counselor, guide, and advocate. God’s Holy Spirit empowers us with gifts that are evidenced by observable characteristics such as love, peace, and kindness so that we may be fully equipped for service (Matthew 28:19; Romans 8:1-27; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Galatians 5:22-23).
Jesus
We believe Jesus is the Son of God, that He came to earth as man, that He died on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins and was raised from the dead. As conqueror of death, His love for humankind is unequaled. Through Him and only through Him – we have eternal life. Throughout His earthly ministry, Jesus referred to Himself as "Son of Man" emphasizing His humanity. We have a Savior who relates to us because He became one of us. He is also referred to as Immanuel or “God with us,” emphasizing his Deity. Jesus summarized the work of God for all believers as He encouraged us to love God and one another. This is our highest aim! (Matthew 22:37-40, John 3:16; 17:3; Romans 8:31-39; Colossians 1:15-20).
The Bible
We believe that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, and complete Word of God. We believe it reveals the nature of God and points the way to Jesus. The Bible is living and active and has the power to transform lives. We study it often and intentionally so that we may be formed more fully into the image of Jesus (Psalm 19; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Timothy 3:16; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Peter 1:21).
These core essentials are generally agreed upon by most Christians worldwide. However, differences of opinion vary greatly when considering how to live out those core essentials in worship and life. The reasons for the differences are vast and often complex and are beyond the scope of this statement. We cannot control what another church does or chooses to believe. However, we can be clear about what we believe and in love – create clear expectations about what it means to be part of the A&M Church of Christ. That leads us then to the remaining, somewhat more distinct aspects of our statement of faith:
The Church
We believe the church is made up of people who believe in and follow Jesus. The church is not a building. The church is a grace-filled community filled with different sorts of people with different, ethnic, social, political, and economic backgrounds all united under the cross of Christ. Our unity testifies to the Good News that we delight in celebrating together here and with the church universal. We worship and celebrate as we allow the Holy Spirit to lead us into areas of service as we do life together. More than anything else – we love talking about and modeling our lives after Jesus! (Matthew 16:18; Acts 4:32-34a; Ephesians 2:8; 3:10-11 & Hebrews 12:18-24).
Relationships
We believe every person on earth is made in God’s image (Genesis 1:26). Therefore, as followers of Jesus, we are called to honor God and one another in all relationships. In marriage for instance, we believe that the Bible defines marriage as one man in exclusive covenant relationship with one woman for life (Mark 10:6-9). We further believe that intimate, sexual activity is a sacred gift of God and intended to be celebrated only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. We also understand that the marriage covenant can be broken. When this happens, we commit to carefully listen and help bring healing to the fullest extent possible (1 Corinthians 6:18; 7:2-5, Hebrews 13:4). In our families, we believe we are to respect and love one another, even as Christ loves his church (1 John 3:16). We believe the unborn are just as precious to God as the rest of us (Psalm 139:13-16; Jeremiah 1:5). We believe in loving our neighbor regardless of race or ethnicity, specifically caring for those who cannot care for themselves
Community
No matter where you are from or where you have been, the desire of our heart is to love and serve as Jesus loved and served. We were broken, but by God’s grace, we are forgiven (1 Cor. 6:9-11), and we invite you to join us on the journey. You are always welcome at the A&M Church of Christ! (Romans 12:9-10).
Baptism
When we turn our hearts toward Jesus (repentance) and accept his free gift of salvation, our baptism demonstrates our decision to die to self, be forgiven of our sins, become new creations, and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Baptism, by immersion, unites us with Jesus in his death, burial, and resurrection. We believe this demonstration of faith is an outward sign of God’s inward work of salvation through Jesus
(Matthew 3:13-16; Acts 2:38; 8:36-38; 22:16; Romans 6:2-11; 2 Corinthians 5:17).
Salvation
We acknowledge that as long as we live in the flesh, we are prone to satisfy our own sinful desires. We realize we cannot save ourselves from ourselves. When Jesus died on the cross, He paid the price for our sins through His perfect sacrifice. Trusting and believing in Jesus as Son of God saves us by His amazing grace (Genesis 8:21; Romans 3:23-24; Ephesians 2:8-9;
Communion
We believe in purposefully reflecting on the ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus by regularly sharing communion. We believe that in communion our Lord invites us to the table with him and is present with us through the bread and fruit of the vine. We invite all who believe in Jesus and have accepted His gift of salvation to share communion with us (Luke 22:17-20;