Vision Statement

 Statement of Faith

THE APOSTLES CREED

I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Christ Jesus, His only Son, our Lord,
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried;
He descended into death. On the third day He rose again;
He ascended into heaven, He is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy church, the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.

1.   The Scriptures

We believe that the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God and that men of God were moved by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture. The Bible is therefore without error in its original manuscripts. God has supernaturally preserved the Bible and it is the sole and final authority for faith and life providing encouragement, guidance, comfort and instruction for training in righteousness.
(2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21).

2.   The Godhead (Trinity)

We believe in one true God eternally existing in three distinct persons (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) each of Whom is fully and equally God; possessing all of the divine nature and attributes, and totally worthy of our worship and service.
(Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; John 1:14, 10:30; 2 Corinthians 13:14).

3.   God the Father

We believe that God the Father is the first person of the Trinity and is the eternal, unchanging, all-powerful, all-knowing, all-wise, all-loving, completely just and perfectly holy, sovereign Ruler and Sustainer of the universe. He is the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the Father of all true believers.
(Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 40:21-28, 43:10-13; 46:8-11; John 1:12-13; 5:19-21; 17:1-5; Romans 8:14-16; Ephesians 4:6).

4.   God the Son

We believe that Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity and is the only begotten eternal Son of God Who became flesh to reveal God to man, to fulfill prophecy, and to become the Savior of the lost world. In becoming man Jesus did not cease in any way to be God so that He is fully God and fully man inseparably united in one person forever. Jesus was miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary; lived a sinless life; died on the cross as the all-sufficient atoning sacrifice for all of the sins of all men of all time; was buried; bodily rose from the dead; physically ascended into heaven in His glorified, resurrected body; is seated at the right hand of the Father performing His ministry of intercession; will return in the air to claim His bride - the church; and will come again to earth in bodily form, personally, visibly, to conclude human history and consummate God's eternal plan by executing judgment and ushering in the eternal state.
(Matthew 24:44; Mark 10:45; Luke 1:30-55; John 1:1, 14, 18, 29, 3:16, 20:20; Acts 1:11, 2:22-24; Romans 3:24-26, 8:34; Philippians 2:5-8, 3:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 2 Thessalonians 2:7-8; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 1:3, 9:28, 10:5-14; 1 Peter 2:24, 3:18; 1 John 2:1; Revelation 19:11-21, 21:22).

5.   God the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. On the day of Pentecost, He descended upon the gathered believers and evidenced His presence to the church with tongues of fire. He is the primary agent for the conviction of sin and the regeneration. Simultaneously with salvation, the Holy Spirit imparts new life, baptizes the believer into the body of Christ (His Church), and permanently indwells the believer. The Holy Spirit fills (directs and controls) those believers who are yielded to Him, enables believers to bear fruit and empowers believers to live a life free from sin's dominion. We also believe that the Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to believers for the purpose of edifying the church in accordance with the teachings of scripture.
(John 16:7-15; Romans 8:5-13, 15:28-29; 1 Corinthians 6:19, 12:13; Galatians 5:16-17, 22-23; Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:30).

6.   Man

We believe that man was created in the image of God by direct act of God and did not come into being as the result of evolution. Man was created to glorify God, worship and serve Him, and have fellowship with Him. Man fell through sin by disobeying God, thus incurring both physical and spiritual death, which alienated him from God. Man's nature was thus corrupted and he is utterly lost, dead in trespasses and sins, and totally incapable of saving himself and coming back into a right relationship with God by his own merit or effort.
(Genesis 1:26, 2:17, 3:17-24; Isaiah 59:1-2; Luke 18:26-27, Romans 3:9-19, 23, 5:6-8; Ephesians 2:1-3).

7.   Satan

We believe that Satan is the instigator of evil and a real spirit being, not simply the personification of evil. He is a fallen angel who, under the sovereign permission of God, has been given temporary rulership of the earth. He was utterly defeated at the cross, but the execution of his judgment has been postponed by God until the Day of Judgment when he will be cast into the eternal lake of fire. In the meantime, he deceives the world and seeks to establish his counterfeit kingdom on earth to discredit and blaspheme God and to tempt, accuse, attack and destroy believers. He can be resisted by the believer through faith and reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit.
(Genesis 3:1-5; Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Job 1:6-12; 1 John 5:19; 2 Corinthians 11:14; 1 Timothy 3:6; 1 Peter 5:8-9; James 4:7; Revelation 12:9, 20:1-3, 7-10).

8.   Salvation

We believe that the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross provides the sole basis for forgiveness of sins and salvation, which is the free gift of God's grace. Salvation is effected by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit and cannot be secured by man's works or personal merit. Salvation is only appropriated by a person placing his faith in the finished work of Christ. Repentance is a turning toward God and away from sin and is a part of but not separate from believing faith. The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and those who receive Jesus Christ by faith are born again, have their sins forgiven, become children of God, are a new creation in Christ, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit unto the day of redemption, being kept by the power of God.
(John 1:12-13, 3:1-7, 14-16, 10:27-29, 14:6; Acts 26:20; Romans 1:16, 8:14-17, 31-39, 10:9-10; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 1:7, 13-14, 2:8-10; 1 Peter 1:3-5).

9.   The Church

We believe that the church is the body of Christ of which Jesus is the Head and whose members are those who have truly received Christ by faith. The local church is a tangible expression of the body of Christ in a particular location. Since all members of the body of Christ are united in Christ by the same Spirit, they should live in love, harmony and unity, striving to protect the unity of the faith. The purpose of the church is to make Christ known to lost men, to make disciples and glorify God on earth.
(Matthew 28:18-20; John 17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 1:20-23, 4:1-6, 12-16; Colossians 1:24-29).

10.  Ordinances of the Church

We believe there are three ordinances of the church: Baptism in Water, Holy Communion and Holy Matrimony.

Baptism in Water
Baptism by immersion is commanded in the Scriptures. All who repent and believe on Christ as Savior and Lord are to be baptized. Thus they declare to the world that they have died with Christ and that they also have been raised with Him to walk in newness of life.
(Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 10:47-48; Romans 6:4).

Holy Communion
The Lord’s Supper, consisting of the elements — bread and the fruit of the vine — is a memorial of His suffering and death; His inauguration of the New Covenant; and a prophecy of His Second Coming; and is enjoined on all believers until His return.
(I Corinthians 11:26, Luke 22:20, I Corinthians 15:22-26).

Holy Matrimony
Marriage is a union ordained by God. It was instituted by God in the early chapters of Genesis, designed as a union between one man (male at birth) and one woman (female at birth) to become one flesh and remain in that union until death. The Old Testament prophets compared marriage to a relationship between God and His people, examples of this relationship are in the historical narratives and the wisdom literature. Each of these books discusses the unique unity of this relationship. Jesus explained the original intention and core elements of marriage, and several New Testament Epistles give explicit instruction on this union. Marriage is a typology of Christ and His church. As such, Church of the Highlands views marriage as a profound spiritual institution established by God.
(Genesis 2:8-24, Matthew 19:3-9, Ephesians 5:31-33).

11. The Christian Life

We believe that every Christian should live for Christ and not for himself and should, by the power of the indwelling Spirit, allow Christ to manifest His life through him to God's glory. By ever increasing obedience to the Word of God, each believer should mature and progressively become more like Jesus. In the power of the Spirit, each believer should live a holy life; not fulfill the lusts of the flesh; exercise his spiritual gifts to build up the body of Christ; witness for Christ; be personally involved in making disciples to fulfill the great commission; perform good works and bear fruit to the glory of God.
(Matthew 28:18-20; John 15:8, 16; Acts 1:8; Romans 6:11-13; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15; Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 2:10, 4:11-12, 4:22-24; Colossians 1:10; 1 Peter 1:15-16, 2:11, 4:10-11).

12.  The Final Judgment

We believe there will be a final judgment in which the wicked dead will be raised and judged according to their deeds. Whoever is not found written in the Book of Life, together with the devil and his angels, the beast and the false prophet, will be consigned to everlasting punishment in the lake of fire which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.(Matthew 24:42-46; Mark 9:43-48; Revelation 20:11-15; 21:8).

13. The Blessed Hope

We believe the resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in Christ, and their translation together with those who are alive and remain at the coming of Lord, is the imminent and blessed hope of the Church.
(1 Thessalonians 4:15-17; Romans 8:23; Titus 2:11-13; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52).