Beliefs determine the way you live. Here are some of ours…
Our Beliefs.
Some Bible passages are listed to support these faith statements. Consider making a Bible study of it, and look up the passages yourself.
We believe…
- God exists and created the universe and people for His glory (Genesis 1). There is only one God (1 Timothy 2:5), who exists in three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:16-17).
- The Scriptures (the Bible) are God’s written word, and the authority for human living (Psalm 19:7-11). They were inspired by the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16), and are without error in their original manuscripts. The Bible is the revelation of God’s truth and is infallible and authoritative in all matters of faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
- Men and women are made “very good” in the image of God (Genesis 1:27 and 1:31), yet fell from perfection and are also now terminally sick with sin (Romans 6:23). All are sinners (Romans 3:23) and are totally unable to save themselves before God (Ephesians 2:1, Romans 3:10-11). They need a total rescue.
- Jesus Christ is the only cure for our sickness of sin (Mark 2:17). He is the eternal Son of God, who took human form, really lived, really died for sinners, really rose from the dead, and really ascended into heaven (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Jesus was and is both God and man at the same time. He is the only way of salvation (1 Timothy 2:5, John 14:7).
- Salvation is by God alone as He sovereignly chooses those whom He saves (Romans 8:29-30). Human beings are saved, therefore, only by His grace, and not on any human individual merit, works, or foreseen faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). But good works are the evidence and outcome of a true and lively faith (Ephesians 2:10).
- God saves through families and households (Acts 2:39, 11:14), and has done so since the beginning of humankind (Genesis 7:1). But all must individually believe in Jesus Christ for salvation and come into the family of God.
- The Holy Spirit indwells believers and his chief work is to transform people into the likeness of Jesus Christ. The Spirit converts (Ezekiel 36:26, John 3:5-6), indwells (Romans 8:11), and transforms (2 Corinthians 3:18). Believers are to walk by the power of the Holy Spirit and not by human strength (Galatians 3:3, 5:16).
- The restoration of all things is God’s eternal plan (Revelation 21:5), that all of life and society be restored and evil be opposed; and the spiritual saving of human beings stands at the center of that cosmic plan (John 3:16). The whole person, both body and soul, is made for God’s glory (Matthew 22:37).
- Baptism and the Lord’s Supper were the two sacraments given by Jesus Christ for the church (Matthew 28:19, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26). Both are a sign and seal of the benefits of Christ’s work to human beings.
- Jesus Christ will return bodily and visibly, to judge all mankind, to restore all things, and to receive His people unto Himself (Revelation 22:12).
- All of our life must be lived for the glory of God, under the Lordship of Christ, and by love for God and neighbor (Matthew 22:37-39), humble and grateful for God’s forgiving love toward us (1 John 4:19).
Our Unity, the PCA . . .
In answer to Christ’s prayer for unity and our commitment to the Church, Fairview Church is not a solitary congregation, but one within a denomination, Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). The PCA is a Reformed denomination and has a strong commitment to God’s word, evangelism, missionary work at home and abroad, and to Christian education.
From its inception, the PCA has determined its purpose to be “faithful to the Scriptures, true to the reformed faith, and obedient to the Great Commission.”
As with all PCA churches, we submit to the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms as the summary of Christian doctrine for our churches, while they also stand underneath the Scriptures in authority.
For more information on the PCA, please check out our denomination’s website at www.pcanet.org.