golden valley church
passionately pursuing God's Presence
DOCTRINE and BELIEFS
Statement of Faith
We hold to the "Catch the Fire"* and the Evangelical Alliance** Statements of Faith
CATCH THE FIRE STATEMENT OF FAITH*
1. We believe there is one God who lives forever in three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19).
2. We believe that the Bible is God’s Word to the world, speaking to us with authority and without error (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
3. We believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ the Son, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His miracles, His death for us on the cross, His bodily resurrection, His ascension to the Father, and His personal, physical return to rule the earth in power and love (John 1:14-18; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18).
4. We believe that all mankind are lost in sin and need to turn from it and trust personally in the Saviour, Jesus Christ. All need to be born anew by the Holy Spirit’s power into God’s family (Ephesians 2:1-10; John 3:5-7).
5. We believe the Holy Spirit lives in us as believers and brings love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control into our lives. He works in and through us with His charismatic gifts (Galatians 5:22-23; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11).
6. We believe in the resurrection of every person; to eternal life for the believer and eternal judgement for the lost (Matthew 25:31-46).
7. We believe in unity for all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ and seek community together: we want to become more like Him in every way, who is the head of His body, the Church. We are called to love Him and one another and are enabled to do this only as His life flows through us (1 Corinthians 12:12-13; Matthew 22:37-40).
8. We believe the Scriptures teach that marriage is the covenanting together of one man and one woman in a union to the exclusion of all others. This union is established by an authorized ceremony under God. Marriage is a unique reflection of God’s faithful love for all humankind. The relationship of husband and wife, as family, reflects the covenanting self-giving love between Christ and His Bride, the Church. The pledge of mutual faithfulness is not tentative or conditional. The permanent nature of the marriage bond gives security and promotes the development of a trusting relationship. The Church has a responsibility to care for, nurture and prayerfully support the marriage relationship and the children of the union (Genesis 1:27; Genesis 2:18; Genesis 2:24; 1 Corinthians 7:4-5; Ephesians 5:25).
EVANGELICAL ALLIANCE STATEMENT OF FAITH**
We believe in:
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One God, eternally existent in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit
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The love, grace and sovereignty of God in creating, sustaining, ruling, redeeming and judging the world.
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The divine inspiration and supreme authority of the Old and New Testament Scriptures, the Bible, which are the written Word of God – fully trustworthy for faith and conduct.
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The dignity of all people, made male and female in God’s image to love, be holy and care for creation, yet corrupted by sin, which incurs divine wrath and judgement.
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The incarnation of God’s eternal Son, the Lord Jesus Christ – born of the virgin Mary; truly divine and truly human, yet without sin.
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The atoning sacrifice of Christ on the cross: dying in our place, paying the price of sin and defeating evil, so reconciling us with God.
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The bodily resurrection of Christ, the first fruits of our resurrection; his ascension to the Father, and his reign and mediation as the only Saviour of the world.
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The salvation of lost and sinful man through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ by faith apart from works, and regeneration by the Holy Spirit.
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The Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the believer is enabled to live a holy life, to witness and work for the Lord Jesus Christ.
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The church, the body of Christ both local and universal, the priesthood of all believers — given life by the Holy Spirit and endowed with the Spirit’s gifts to worship God and proclaim the gospel, promoting justice and love.
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The personal and visible return of Jesus Christ to fulfil the purposes of God, who will raise all people to judgement, bring eternal life to the redeemed and eternal condemnation to the lost, and establish a new heaven and new earth..
God the Father
We believe that Jesus came from heaven to reveal, and to bring us into relationship with, God the Father. We believe that Church is meant to be the Father's home and family.
The Father's arms and heart are always open to us.
Jesus revealed Him as the God Who runs to meet the returning prodigal, Who cares about the details of our lives, Who heals and restores our brokenness, Who loves us with an everlasting love, Who recognises we are all on a journey of faith and Who lovingly walks with us and waits for us, even when we our lives are not yet where we would like them to be, Who welcomes us into His family when we place our faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.
Our prayer is that you would meet Him here, in Golden Valley Church.
