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The City Church
Statement of Beliefs

Bible

We believe the Bible to be inspired, God breathed. It is our primary source of daily living and relationship with our Heavenly Father.

“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.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17

God

We believe that God is our Heavenly Father and that He created everything in our universe, seen and unseen. He calls us to know Him and serve Him.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1
“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”” Genesis 1:26

Jesus Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ is the divine Son of God. He was born of the will of God His Father, to a virgin. His divine and eternal natures are not compromised by His taking upon Himself flesh. He is perfect and as such is the right and only gift for our sin.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men.” John 1:1-4

The Holy Spirit

We believe the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, fully God, eternal, and active in the world today. He was at work in creation, was present with the Father and the Son, and continues to accomplish God’s will in the church and in the world.

The Holy Spirit convicts of sin, righteousness, and judgment; regenerates (new birth); indwells believers; and empowers them for godly living and service. He is our helper, counselor, and guide, leading us into truth and spiritual maturity.

The Holy Spirit seals believers as God’s own, guarantees our inheritance, and blends together the body of Christ through unity and love. He produces in us the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

He baptizes the church into one body, filling believers for service, and equipping them with gifts for the common good.

Gifts and empowerment for ministry

The Holy Spirit distributes spiritual gifts to each believer for the common good, so the body of Christ may be built up, equipped, and sent into the world to testify to Jesus Christ.

Gifts include, but are not limited to, words of wisdom, words of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, gifts of miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, tongues, and interpretation of tongues, as described in Scripture. All gifts are to be exercised in love, order, and discernment, for the edification of the church.

We affirm that the Bible is the authoritative standard by which all spiritual gifts and experiences are measured and tested (see the scriptures cited below). Prophecy and other gifts are to be weighed and judged in community with mature believers and aligned with Scripture.

Miracles, signs, and wonders

We believe God still works miracles and sovereignly intervenes in human history to display His glory, demonstrate the gospel, and call people to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

Miracles and signs are not sought as novelty or spectacle but are given to confirm the message of salvation, to strengthen faith, and to bring glory to God. They are manifestations of the Spirit’s power that accompany the proclamation of the gospel and righteous living.

We pursue humility, obedience, and discernment in all manifestations of the Spirit, recognizing that genuine signs and wonders will always point to Jesus Christ and align with Scripture.

The exercise of spiritual gifts, including miraculous gifts, should be pursued in accordance with orderly worship, pastoral oversight, and biblical boundaries, to protect unity, love, and the wellbeing of the church.

Biblical foundation (selected references)

  • John 14:16-17, 26; 16:7-14
  • Acts 1:8; 2:1-4; 2:38-39; 4:31
  • Romans 12:6-8
  • 1 Corinthians 12-14 (gifts of the Spirit, love, prophecy, tongues, interpretation, order in worship, and testing of prophecy)
  • Galatians 5:22-23 (fruit of the Spirit as evidence of Spirit-led living)
  • Ephesians 4:11-13 (equipping the church for service)
  • Mark 16:17-18 (signs that accompany believers)
  • James 5:14-15 (prayer for the sick)
  • 2 Chronicles 20:20 (faith and hearing the word)

Practical expression for the life of the church

We encourage prayer for the Holy Spirit’s filling and empowerment daily, individually and corporately.

We seek to cultivate spiritual maturity, humility, and love, ensuring that all expressions of the Spirit are governed by Scripture, tested by mature leadership, and exercised in an orderly, truthful, and uplifting manner.

We commit to discernment and accountability in recognizing and practicing spiritual gifts, ensuring they build up the body, glorify God, and do not bring confusion or harm.

The Purpose of the Church

The Church are people called out of the world to be in relationship with God and serve His salvation purposes for all of the peoples of the earth. Created in His image and recreated in Jesus Christ, they progressively grow in His righteousness and demonstrate this into all of their relationships.

“so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Ephesians 3:10-11

The Promise of God Birthing the Gospel

In the beginning God the Father made a promise to overcome the disobedience of Adam and Eve, by raising up out of the womb of Eve one who would conquer sin, death and Satan. God preserved and managed that promise down through the corridor of human and biblical history. The good news is that this promise awaits only the complete movement of the message across the whole of the earth.

“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:15

Christian Living

New birth brings with it new living. The whole of scripture anticipates that, in spite of the flesh that still lives within us, we can and will be progressively conformed to the image of the Son, Jesus Christ. Paul describes this as the fruit of the Spirit. Jesus describes this in the Sermon on the Mount.

“For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.” Romans 6:5-7

Christ’s Return

We believe that Jesus will bodily return to the earth. He will come to redeem His own to Himself. He will judge all those who rejected God’s offer of salvation in the Son, and commit them to an eternal separation from God.

“For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:20-22

The World to Come

We believe that God will ultimately restore all things to the reasons for which He made this world in the first place.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”” Revelations 21:1-3