Gospel Life Church

Theological Distinctives

Reformed

At the core of our beliefs is the understanding that God reigns supreme over all things. The Bible affirms that God is the architect of all creation; he steers the entire cosmos and rescues and safeguards people for his honor. This principle of God's sovereignty permeates every facet of Christian life and doctrine. We perceive God's glory as the ultimate aim of all existence, both in this life and eternity and as the driving force behind all his endeavors.

We believe that salvation comes through God's grace. Although man is made in God's image, he has inherited Adam's sin since the fall of Adam and Eve. Humans are dead in sin, separated from the life and knowledge of God, and unable to know or love God on their own. It is only through God's merciful intervention and provision that we can be saved. Therefore, we believe that all humans are totally depraved. Without Christ, there would be no hope for us.

God has freely and unconditionally chosen to redeem multitudes of sinners through Christ and His substitutionary atonement on the cross. Jesus Christ lived a holy life and, as a substitute, died in our place on the cross by bearing our sins and suffering under God's wrath, satisfying God's justice, and securing eternal salvation for His people.

Evangelical

Not everyone who identifies as evangelical necessarily subscribes to the Reformed theology. However, it is important to note that anyone who considers themselves to be Reformed in the historical sense of the term is inherently evangelical. The term 'evangelical' was initially introduced by the Reformers as they sought to recover the gospel or the evangel. We share a common evangelical tradition with our Protestant brothers and sisters. We identify ourselves as Evangelical, which differs both in faith and practice from Pentecostal, Orthodox, and Roman Catholic churches. We are committed to the inerrancy and sufficiency of the 66 books found in the Holy Scriptures, which we believe is the sole authority over the life and doctrine of each local church.

Gospel-Centered

The Gospel informs our whole life in Christ, from start to finish; our identity is grounded in His work, and our unity with one another is unmistakably demarcated by His love. We are rooted in the biblical gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. God saved us through the gospel; he continues to transform us by the same gospel, and he means for the gospel to set the priorities of all we are both in confession and in practice.

1 Corinthians 15:3-4; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23; 15:1-2; Colossians 1:23

Baptist

As a Baptist church, we believe that all believers should profess saving faith in the Person and Work of our Lord Jesus Christ before being baptized in the waters by immersion as an outward sign of inner belief. This includes having a membership of regenerated believers, maintaining the priesthood of all believers, and celebrating the two ordinances of Believers' Baptism and the Lord's Supper.

Leadership

Gospel Life Church is an elder-led congregational church that is led by a biblically qualified plurality of elders who are chosen and appointed by the congregation. The elders, also known as pastors, provide the spiritual oversight of the congregation through the regular systematic teaching of God's Word, praying and caring for God's flock, and equipping the congregation for the works of ministry. The elders lead the church but are ultimately held accountable to God and the congregation. Thus, we practice congregational authority under the spiritual leadership of the elders.

Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Peter 5:1-4; Hebrews 13:7, 17; Acts 15:2-6, 22; 1 Timothy 5:19-20; Matthew 18:17

Complementarian

We believe that both men and women are created in God's image and are, therefore, equal before God as persons, possessing the same moral dignity and value and having equal access to God through faith in Christ. God has ordained the principle of male headship in both the home and the local church. The Bible teaches that in marriage, husbands are responsible for leading and caring for their wives lovingly, just as Christ loved the church and even died for it. Similarly, wives are called to lovingly submit to the leadership of their husbands, as if they were submitting to the Lord. In the church, God has blessed all believers to serve in some capacity, but governing and teaching roles are restricted to men.

Genesis 1:26-27; 2:18; Galatians 3:28; Ephesians 5:22-33; Colossians 3:18-19; 1 Peter 3:1-7; 1 Corinthians 11:2-16; 1 Timothy 2:11-15; 3:1-7

The Scriptures

We believe the Bible is the true, written Word of God. It consists of the 39 books in the Old Testament and the 27 books in the New Testament. It declares God's true revelation of Himself through His plan to reconcile all things to Himself in His Son Jesus. It is the ultimate objective standard of truth, and everything we need to know to live for God's glory is found within its pages.

Exodus 31:18; Psalm 119:160; Proverbs 30:5; Matthew 4:4; John 17:17;2 Timothy 3:14–17; 2 Peter 1:20–21

God

We believe in one God existing eternally and necessarily in three persons, being of one essence, equal in all their attributes, yet relating differently in their relationships to each other and to creation. Each person in the Godhead functions distinctively in the work of redemption.

God's knowledge is simultaneous, not successive. He knows all at one glance, in one indivisible act of intuition and cognition. He sees all objects of knowledge at once, in their totality and exhaustively.

Genesis 1:26; Deuteronomy 6:4–5; Psalm 45:6–7; Isaiah 46:10; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1–3; 2 Corinthians 13:14

III

Creation

We believe that God created the universe, and everything in it, out of nothing, by the Word of His power. Having no deficiency in Himself, nor moved by any incompleteness in His joyful self-sufficiency, God was pleased in creation to display His glory for the everlasting joy of the redeemed.

Genesis 1:1–2:3; Psalm 33:6; John 1:3; Colossians 1:16–17; Hebrews 11:3; Revelation 4:11

Jesus Christ

We believe in Jesus Christ, God's one and only Son. He is the perfect representation of the Father. He is God and has always existed as God. All things were created through Him and for Him.

He died on the cross as a substitute for God's people, suffering God's holy wrath against sin, and three days later rose from the dead. He then ascended into heaven where He stands on behalf of all those who place their trust in His sacrifice for sins and His resurrection.

Isaiah 7:14; John 1:1, 14, 18; Romans 3:24–26; 1 Corinthians 15:3–4; Philippians 2:5–11; Hebrews 1:1–4

Humanity & Sin

We believe that the human race is the pinnacle of God's creation. God created man, both male and female, in His image to bring glory to Himself. Man was created without sin, having the ability to do good or evil.

No longer was man able to do any good spiritually, but only evil, having been enslaved in his will and nature to sin. Because of God's righteousness and the radical sinfulness of man, all people are under the wrath of a just God, desperately in need of a Savior.

Genesis 1:27–31; 3:1–24; John 3:36; Romans 3:23; 5:12–15; Ephesians 2:1–3

Salvation

We believe that salvation is wholly of grace, through the mediatorial work of Jesus Christ. By the shedding of His blood in His death He fully satisfied the just demands of a holy and righteous God regarding sin.

Having risen from the dead He is now enthroned in heaven, uniting in His wonderful person the most tender sympathies with divine perfection, He is in every way qualified to be a suitable, compassionate, and all-sufficient Savior.

John 3:16; Romans 3:21–26; 5:8; 8:1; Ephesians 2:8–10; Titus 3:4–7; 1 Peter 2:24

VII

The Holy Spirit

We believe the Holy Spirit is a divine person, equal with God the Father and God the Son. He convicts of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He is the Agent in the new birth. He seals, endues, guides, teaches, witnesses, sanctifies, and helps the believer.

Genesis 1:1–3; John 3:5–6; 14:16–17, 26; 16:8–11; Romans 8:14, 16, 26–27; Ephesians 1:13–14

VIII

The Church

We believe that the true church comprises all who have been justified by God's grace through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head.

The Lord Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and the Lord's Supper, which visibly and tangibly express the gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish the believer.

Matthew 16:18; 28:19–20; Acts 2:41–47; 1 Corinthians 11:23–29; 12:12–13; Ephesians 1:22–23; Hebrews 10:24–25

What we Believe