The following statements represent our understanding of historic Biblical truth. They form the foundation of what we do and teach at New Life Fellowship Church and are the essential Christian beliefs that define our mission and ministry.
The Bible: We believe the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments were written by human authors under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit so that their words accurately represent the Word of God (2 Peter 1:19-21). In the Bible, God reveals Himself to us and teaches us to live in a way that glorifies Him (John 20:31).
2 Timothy 3:16–17 - All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
God: We believe that there is one God who has always existed in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19). The three persons of the Trinity share the same divine nature and are equally deserving of worship and praise. God sustains and rules over all things in His perfect power, wisdom, and love (Hebrews 1:2-3).
2 Corinthians 13:14 - The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Creation: We believe that God created all things from nothing, and continues to sustain them through His power and will (Colossians 1:16-17). According to God’s original design, all of creation was good and without sin. Humanity was uniquely created in the image of God and given authority to care for the rest of creation. As image-bearers of God, all people have intrinsic dignity and value and are worthy of respect and compassion (Genesis 1:26-27).
Genesis 1:1 - In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
Sin: We believe that sin entered the world when Adam and Eve succumbed to the temptation of Satan (Genesis 3:6-7). This sin fractured God’s good designs and introduced futility, discord, and death. All humanity has been born into the effects of that original sin (Romans 5:12). Apart from Christ, our corrupt nature is opposed to God and leads us inevitably into further sin.
Romans 8:7 - For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot.
The Gospel: We believe that Jesus is the Son of God who took on flesh to live as a human (John 1:14). He lived a life of perfect obedience and holiness, making Him a perfect sacrifice. On the cross, He died to pay the penalty for the sins of His people. He rose again after three days, demonstrating His victory over sin and death. Those who trust in Him are saved from the penalty of their sins and enter into the Kingdom of God (Colossians 1:13-14).
1 Corinthians 15:3–4 - For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.
Salvation: We believe that those who place their faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord are saved from their sins by grace and not their own works (Romans 10:9). When they repent of their sins, believers experience forgiveness for their sins and are declared holy and accepted by God, on account of Christ’s righteousness. Believers are given a new nature that is no longer in bondage to sin (Galatians 2:20).
Romans 3:23–24 - For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
Universal Church: We believe that the universal Church is made up of all those who have trusted in Jesus as Savior and follow him as Lord. The Church is meant to glorify God and continue the ministry of Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit, particularly by making disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). God intends for that ministry and discipleship to be experienced in the context of a local congregation.
1 Corinthians 12:27 - Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
Local Church: We believe that God’s intention for his people is that they would be committed, participating members of a local congregation. He did not design the Christian life to be lived in isolation. Instead, God uses meaningful Christian communities to change lives. Membership in a local church provides the context for this community to flourish. The local church is a body of believers that gathers regularly for prayer and worship, preaches and teaches the Bible, practices spiritual disciplines, observes the ordinances of communion and water baptism, and encourages each other to mature as disciples of Christ (Acts 2:42-47).
Hebrews 10:24–25 - And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Communion: We believe that the regular observance of communion is in obedience to Jesus' command to proclaim his death until he returns (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). The bread and the cup we share in the communion are used as symbols, representing Christ's body and blood, in remembrance of his enduring sacrifice. We partake in communion with care and preparation: repenting of sin, healing broken relationships, and trusting Christ to preserve us until He returns (1 Corinthians 11:27-32).
1 Corinthians 10:16-17 - Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.
Water Baptism: We believe that water baptism is intended for believers who have already placed their faith in Jesus. We practice baptism by immersion, which symbolizes a believer’s union with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection.
Romans 6:4 - We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Baptism of the Holy Spirit: We believe that every believer can receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit by asking our heavenly Father (Luke 11:13), in response to His word (Ephesians 5:18). We believe that Christians can receive these infillings, commonly referred to as the baptism of the Holy Spirit, to receive spiritual power for the purpose of Christ-exalting ministry and deeper intimacy with the Father.
Acts 1:8 - You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Spiritual Gifts: We believe that all the spiritual gifts experienced in the New Testament continue to be active today (1 Corinthians 12:4-11) and that believers in Christ receive these gifts for the purpose of building up the body of Christ. These gifts should be prayerfully desired and cultivated, and give evidence of the power of the gospel.
1 Corinthians 14:1 - Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.
Worship: We believe worship draws us into God’s presence, connecting our hearts with His. When we are near the Father, we become more like Him (2 Corinthians 3:18). God commands us to worship Him for our benefit and transformation.
Psalm 95:6 - Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!
Prayer: We believe we can communicate with God through prayer. We are commanded to pray fervently, persistently, and in faith, according to the will of God. We believe that God hears and answers prayer.
1 John 5:14-15 - This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.
Giving: We believe we are stewards of God's resources that He has entrusted to us. We believe we are to cheerfully and generously give of our time, talent, and treasure as the Lord directs, and for His glory.
2 Corinthians 9:11 - You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
Marriage: We believe that the Bible defines marriage that is instituted by God as the union of one man and one woman in a covenantal relationship. We believe that sexual intimacy is the mutually respectful expression of love within marriage.
Matthew 19:4-6 - Haven’t you read,” he (Jesus) replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,' and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
The Future: We believe that Jesus will return to finish the work He began during His earthly ministry (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). He will defeat the devil once and for all and restore all things that are and have been under the curse of sin and death. He will judge the living and the dead, assigning people to their eternal destinies (Matthew 25:31-46).
Revelation 11:15 - Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”