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What We Believe

God

There is one God, who exists eternally in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God is the source of all creation (Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-2) and He sustains the universe (Colossians 1:17). God the Father loves the world (John 3:16), desires that all mankind be saved (2 Peter 3:9), and desires that all Christians have fellowship with Him as His children (1 John 1:3).

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is God in human form (John 1:14), born of the virgin Mary (Matthew 1:18-25). He lived a perfect and sinless life (2 Corinthians 5:21), and willingly surrendered to death by crucifixion to take away the sins of the world (John 10:15). He rose bodily on the third day (Mark 16:6) and ascended to Heaven to sit at the right hand of God (Acts 1:11) 

Holy Spirit

The third person of God is the Holy Spirit who helps us in our weakness and intercedes for us in prayer (Romans 8:26-27). God’s Spirit convicts us of sin (John 16:8-9), empowers us to be holy (2 Corinthians 3:17-18), and equips us with Spiritual gifts for Christian living (1 Corinthians 12:4-7). The Holy Spirit is a seal, a deposit guaranteeing His promise of our salvation (Ephesians 1:13-14).

Bible

We affirm that the Bible itself, as the inspired and inerrant word of God, speaks with final authority concerning truth, morality, and the proper conduct of humanity, and is the sole and final source of all we believe (2 Timothy 3:14-17; 2 Peter 1:16-21).

Humans

Human beings, both male and female, were created by God in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Therefore, all humans have dignity and worth (Psalms 139:13-14), and deserve to be treated with respect and care from conception to death.

Human Sexuality

God created humans specifically as male and female exclusively, each in His image, to complement and fulfill each other (Genesis 1:27). Each person’s biological sex at birth is an intrinsic, unchangeable aspect of his or her nature and identity. Marriage was designed by God to be the joining of one man and one woman (Genesis 1,2; Mark 10:6-9). Marriage is the exclusive relationship designed by God for the expression of sexual intimacy. Any intimate expression of sexuality outside of Biblical marriage is sin.

Sin

Sin is the failure to follow God’s commands and desires for human beings. All have sinned (Romans 3:23) and are therefore deserving of God’s eternal punishment, separation from God in Hell, and in need of salvation through God’s grace and Jesus Christ alone (Romans 6:23).

Salvation

Sinful human beings can be saved through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. His atoning sacrifice for all enables humans to avoid punishment for sin (1 John 2:2). Salvation is a gift from God's grace (Ephesians 2:10) and may be received by those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God (John 3:16), repent of their sins (Acts 3:19), are willing to confess Jesus Christ as Lord (Romans 10:9-10), are baptized by immersion in water for the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21), and continue to be a faithful follower of Jesus Christ (Revelation 2:10). 

Church

The Church is the body of Christ on earth (1 Corinthians 12:27) whose primary task is to fulfill Christ’s Greatest Commandments (Mark 12:30-31, love God with your heart, mind, soul, and strength; and your neighbor as yourself) and Christ’s Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching them to obey). As the body of Christ, we celebrate the Lord’s Supper each week (Acts 20:7) in memory of Christ’s death and resurrection (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).  All Christians are welcome to share in this special time of communion.

Return of Christ

Christ has promised to return and retrieve His Church to Himself (John 14:1-3). When He comes down from Heaven, the dead in Christ will rise first, and those alive in Christ will meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18). He will act as the Judge of all mankind (Acts 17:31) and He will “separate the people one from another” (Matthew 25:31-32), the saved to eternity in Heaven, and the lost to eternity in Hell (Matthew 25:46).

Church Polity

The Eldership serves as the Shiner Church of Christ's final authority on the Bible’s meaning and application for purposes of Church doctrine, practice, policy, and discipline. They may consult with others, such as members of the congregation, leaders from other churches, and Bible college professors, but final interpretative authority rests with the SCC eldership.

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