Statement of Faith
At Church on the Rock, our faith is firmly grounded in the Bible as God's inspired and authoritative Word. The following summary outlines the essential doctrines that guide our teaching, worship, and community life:
The Triune God
We believe in one God who eternally exists in three equal Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—who know, love, and glorify one another. This one true and living God is infinitely perfect in both love and holiness. As Creator of all things visible and invisible, He is worthy of all glory and adoration. God perfectly knows the end from the beginning, sovereignly rules over all things, and works all things according to His purpose to redeem a people for Himself and restore His fallen creation.
Divine Revelation
God has revealed Himself in creation, supremely in His Son Jesus Christ, and through the Scriptures—the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. We believe the Bible is God-breathed, completely authoritative and without error in its original writings. Scripture is fully sufficient for all matters of faith and practice, providing everything we need for life and godliness. While our finite, human understanding is limited, the Holy Spirit enables believers to truly understand God's Word.
Creation
Everything that exists was created by God from nothing, by His word, in six days. Humankind—male and female—stands as the pinnacle of creation, made in God's image through a special act of creation rather than through evolution. The first humans, Adam and Eve, were created good and lived in perfect fellowship with God. Men and women, equally bearing God's image, have equal access to God through faith in Christ while fulfilling complementary roles in family, church, and society.
The Sanctity of Human Life
We believe all human life is sacred, created in God's image, and of immeasurable worth from conception through natural death. We are committed to defending, protecting, and valuing all human life.
The Fall
Through Adam's disobedience, sin entered the world, corrupting human nature and separating us from God. All people are born with a sinful nature, subject to God's righteous judgment, and in desperate need of salvation. Our greatest need is reconciliation with God, which can only come through His undeserved grace and mercy.
God's Plan of Redemption
From eternity past, God determined to save a multitude of people from every nation and language group. This salvation flows entirely from God's grace—He justifies, sanctifies, and will ultimately glorify all who place their faith in Jesus Christ. While God has chosen those who will be saved, He genuinely calls all people to repentance and faith in Christ.
The Gospel
The gospel is the good news that Jesus Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead according to Scripture. This message is the power of God for salvation to all who believe. The gospel is historical (based on actual events), theological (explaining God's plan of salvation), apostolic (entrusted to Christ's witnesses), and personal (saving individuals who receive it by faith).
The Person and Work of Christ
Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became fully human while remaining fully divine. Born of the virgin Mary through the Holy Spirit's power, He lived a sinless life, performed miracles, died on the cross, rose bodily from the dead, and ascended to heaven. Through His perfect life, sacrificial death, and triumphant resurrection, Jesus acted as our substitute—bearing our sins, satisfying God's justice, and reconciling believers to God. Salvation is found in Christ alone.
Justification
Through Christ's perfect obedience and sacrificial death, believers are declared righteous before God. This justification comes by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone—with nothing we can contribute to earn God's favor. This free gift of righteousness produces in believers a desire to live obediently out of gratitude to God.
The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit applies Christ's saving work to believers. He convicts the world of sin, regenerates spiritually dead sinners, and baptizes them into union with Christ. The Spirit indwells all believers, renewing, sanctifying, and adopting them into God's family. He distributes spiritual gifts, empowers Christian living and ministry, and serves as the down payment of our future inheritance.
The Kingdom of God
Through faith in Christ and the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit, believers enter God's kingdom—experiencing forgiveness, transformation, and the hope of future glory. While God's kingdom is already present through the church, it is not yet fully realized. As kingdom citizens, we engage in our communities as salt and light, pursuing justice and showing Christ's love to our neighbors.
The Church
The church is Christ's body, composed of all true believers, and is manifested in local congregations. The church is distinguished by its gospel message, its sacred ordinances (baptism and Lord's Supper), its discipline, its mission, and the love of its members for God, each other, and the world. The church serves as a sign of God's coming kingdom and the dwelling place of His Spirit.
Baptism and the Lord's Supper
Christ ordained two ordinances for His church: baptism and the Lord's Supper. Baptism signifies our union with Christ in His death and resurrection and our entrance into the covenant community. The Lord's Supper commemorates Christ's death and signifies our ongoing communion with Him. These ordinances are visible signs of God's promises and our commitment to Christ.
The Restoration of All Things
We believe in the personal, glorious return of Jesus Christ, when He will judge all people and establish His eternal kingdom. The unrighteous will face eternal, conscious punishment, while the righteous will enjoy eternal blessedness in God's presence in the new heaven and new earth. On that day, all sin and its effects will be forever banished, and God will be glorified as all in all.
Marriage, Gender and Sexuality
We believe God wonderfully creates each person as male or female, reflecting His image. Marriage is the union of one man and one woman in a lifelong, exclusive covenant relationship. Sexual intimacy is God's gift for marriage alone. We believe all forms of sexual immorality are sinful, while also affirming that God offers redemption and restoration to all who seek His mercy through Christ.
Adoption and Orphan Care
Following God's example of adopting us into His family, we are passionate about caring for vulnerable children through adoption, foster care, and orphan ministry. We believe this expresses the heart of God and fulfills the biblical mandate to practice "pure and undefiled religion" by caring for orphans in their distress.