What We Believe at RCC

GOD – He is the Father-God; the first person in the Godhead. He is Co-Equal and Co-Eternal with the Son and the Holy Spirit. He created the heavens and earth through the spoken word. He is the one, unique God who alone is immortal and who dwells in unapproachable light. (Gen. 1:1, Matt. 3:16-17, I Tim. 6:16)

JESUS – He is the Son of God; the second person of the Godhead. He is Co-Equal and Co-Eternal with God the Father and the Holy Spirit. He was born of a virgin; grew up as a carpenter’s son; entered the ministry around 30 years of age; spent around 3 years preaching, teaching, healing and raising the dead. At the age of 33, He was crucified on a Roman cross, buried in a borrowed tomb and resurrected on the third day. It’s in this truth that Jesus’ death gave us forgiveness of sins and reconciled us to a holy God. It is in the truth of the resurrection, that Jesus has given us power over sin and hope for a new life. He is the Messiah that the O.T. law, prophets and Psalms wrote about. He is the Savior of the world (especially those who put their trust in Him), the Sovereign of the universe and Lord of His church. We believe that He will return to this earth to retrieve His church to be with Him forever. (John 3:16, Eph. 1:7, Col 1:27, Phil 2:5-11, I Thess. 4:16-18).

THE HOLY SPIRIT – He is God, the Spirit; the third person of the Godhead. He is Co-Equal and Co-Eternal with The Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit, the invisible person of God convicts the world of sin, seals believers’ salvation, empowers the saved to live holy lives and enables the church to edify one another with specific gifts. Without the Holy Spirit we would not be able to discern truth, be comforted or pray effectively. One of the telling marks of a believer is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. As the Spirit resides in a believer, He gradually begins to makes changes in his/her heart that will resemble their Savior, Jesus Christ (John 14:16-17, 26; 16:7-10, Acts 1:8; 2:4, Rom. 8:9; 12:4-8, I Cor. 12:4-11, Gal 5:22-23).
 
THE BIBLE – We believe the Bible is the personal and direct revelation of God to mankind. It is the very Word of God from the heart of God. Every word of it is true, authoritative and transforming. The Bible’s content is uniquely inspired (from God), inerrant (authoritative) and infallible (without mistakes). It is the source of faith and practice for the Christian life. (II Tim. 3:16-17, II Peter 1:20-21, II Tim. 3:15)

THE CHURCH – The church consists of those redeemed individuals that make up the collective body of Christ on earth. Simply put, the church is an assembly, a body that meets primarily for the proclamation of the gospel, remembering the sacrifice of our Savior, sharing the Christian life with others and prayer. It all began with a dramatic and powerful demonstration of the Holy Spirit on a day called, Pentecost. Since that time, 2000 years ago, the church has been working faithfully to reach our world for Christ. This is Jesus’ church and we have His promise that He will build a prevailing church until He returns for His Bride. We believe that every believer needs to consistently attend a local church for worship, study of the word, fellowship and service. (Matt 16:18, Acts 2:42-47, Heb 10:25).

SIN – Every person on the planet is born with a sin nature and falls short of God’s glory of perfection. We live in a fallen and broken world and are in desperate need of a Savior. God knows of our spiritual malady and devised a plan to deliver mankind from their bondage to sin.  Mankind, on his own is completely incapable of saving himself from this very serious sickness.  We believe the first step in receiving God’s salvation is to sincerely confess that we’re sinners. The main problem in the world is not greed, AIDS, pornography, divorce, government, war, etc. The main problem in the world is ME! (John 1:13, Rom. 3:23; 6:23, Matt. 5:3, Psalm 51:5)

SALVATION – There is only one way that a person can be saved from sin, death and hell. Many are confused today and believe that they can merit their own salvation. In a earn-my-own-way society, it’s easy to see why many believe this. But, it simply isn’t true.  The Bible clearly and strongly teaches that salvation is only through Jesus. He is the way to the Father and His is the only name under heaven by which we can be saved. Man’s salvation has been and will always be through the unconditional love and grace of the Father, through His Son, Jesus. (Rom 6:23, Eph. 2:8-9, John 14:6, Acts 4:12, Titus 3:4-7).

THE FINAL DAYS – There will come a time when the world, as we know it,  will come to end. History has been heading in this direction since the beginning of time. God began with the creation of all things, but one day, it will end with the consummation of all things. While the Bible is somewhat ambiguous on the end time events, it has given us enough revelation to know some things for certain: Jesus will return for His bride, the church; He will judge the living and the dead, separating the believers from unbelievers; there will be a time of great tribulation and; He will destroy all evil, by casting Satan, the antichrist and unredeemed humanity into a lake of fire for their eternal destruction. The Saints, which include the O.T. believers, the church and the tribulation saints will enjoy an eternity in the perfect and glorious presence of the Lamb. No one knows when these things will take place, but we do know that our salvation is closer than when we first believed. (Rom. 13:11, Matt. 24, II Peter 3:7, 10-13, Rev. 20-22,)