Our Statement of Faith
As of 2024, Immanuel is now part of the Global Methodist Church (GMC). This means we are in general alignment with the doctrines and beliefs of this new emerging denomination. We currently stand under the authority of the GMC Book of Doctrines and Discipline which we believe to be compatible with the higher authority of Scripture (see our page dedicated to Global Methodist beliefs). The doctrines and beliefs of the GMC form a sort of outer guardrail for our faith and practice at Immanuel. However, there is still some diversity among GMC churches, so we want to be more specific about certain areas to help define the unique position of our church. This statement of faith forms a sort of inner guardrail, that will work in harmony with the GMC, to help our church stay on course in the years ahead. This Statement of Faith is part of the official bylaws of Immanuel and can only be changed by a majority vote of a session of the Church Conference (which includes all full or voting members of the congregation).
Introduction
This statement does not exhaust the extent of our faith. The Holy Bible (both Old and New Testaments) itself is the sole and final source of all that we believe for Christian faith and practice. We also believe in all the tenets of the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds as a part of the orthodox faith of disciples of Christ around the world. We identify the unique mission of Immanuel Church as follows: Making Disciples of Jesus Christ by sharing faith and serving others. We also believe that our statement of faith accurately represents the teachings of the Bible and is therefore a guide to all members, staff, and volunteers. In all conflicts regarding interpretation of the statement of faith, the Senior Pastor and Church Council, on behalf of Immanuel Church, will have the final authority. The following statement describes in more detail our core beliefs and unique Wesleyan / Methodist theological convictions.
Our Foundational Beliefs
a) We believe in one God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Matthew 3:16-17)
b) We believe God is the creator of all things. (Genesis 1:1)
c) We believe Jesus is God’s Son and the Savior of the world. (John 3:16)
d) We believe the Holy Spirit lives within every follower of Jesus and equips each follower for ministry. (John 16:5-15)
e) We believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and the final authority for all matters of faith and practice. (II Timothy 3:16)
f) We believe every person has sinned and needs the salvation Jesus provides. (Romans 3:23)
g) We believe Jesus died, was raised to life after three days, and will return to rescue us. (I Corinthians 15:3-4)
h) We believe salvation comes by grace through faith in Jesus. (Romans 5:8-11; Eph. 2:8-10)
i) We believe faith is expressed through hearing God’s plan for salvation, believing Jesus is God’s Son, confessing our need for salvation through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, repenting of our sin, being washed in the waters of baptism, and living an obedient life. (Acts 2:38; Romans 6:1-7; 2 Peter 3:9)
j) We believe the church is the body and bride of Jesus on earth. (Acts 2:14-47)
k) We believe it is God’s plan for elders (ordained clergy) and lay leaders to shepherd the church together. (I Timothy 3:1-7)
l) We believe God calls and equips both men and women for all levels of leadership in the body of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-3; Romans 16:7)
m) We believe death seals the eternal destiny of each person. The saved will inherit eternal life and the unsaved will experience eternal separation from God. (Rom. 8:10-11; Matt. 25:46; 2 Cor 5:10:)
n) We believe the Bible teaches that marriage is to be a life-long covenantal relationship between one man and one woman. (Matthew 19:6)
o) We believe in the “Four All’s” of the Wesleyan / Methodist tradition -
All need to be saved. (Due to humanity’s fallen sinful nature, all people require salvation)
All may be saved. (All are welcome and enabled to respond to God’s grace through faith)
All may know they are saved. (Divine assurance of our adoption as children of God)
All may be saved to the “uttermost.” (Full Sanctification to holiness of heart and life)
The Wesleyan Way of Salvation
a) The gift of grace is available to all persons. Our Father in Heaven is not willing that any should be lost (Matthew 18:14), but that all may come to “the knowledge of truth” (1 Tim. 2:4). With St. Paul, we affirm the proclamation found in Romans 10:9, “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
b) Grace is the manifestation of God’s love toward fallen creation, to be freely received and freely given. This undeserved gift works to liberate humanity from both the guilt and power of sin, and to enable us to live as children of God, freed for joyful obedience. In the classic Wesleyan expression, grace works in numerous ways throughout our lives depending the stage of our relationship with God, beginning with the general providence and love of God toward all.
c) God’s prevenient or preventing grace refers to “the first dawning of grace in the soul,” mitigating the effects of original sin, even before we are aware of our need for God. It prevents the full consequences of humanity’s alienation from God and awakens conscience, giving an initial sense of God and the first inclinations toward new life. Received prior to our ability to respond, preventing grace enables genuine response to the continuing work of God’s grace.
d) God’s convincing grace leads us to what the Bible terms “repentance,” awakening in us a desire to “flee the wrath to come” and enabling us to begin to “fear God and work righteousness.”
e) God’s justifying grace works by faith to bring reconciliation to God through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Justifying grace provides pardon for sin and ordinarily results in assurance, “God’s Spirit witnessing with our spirit that we are children of God.”
f) God’s sanctifying grace begins with God’s work of regeneration, sometimes referred to as “being born again.” It is God’s work in us as we continually turn to Him and seek to be perfected in His love. Sanctification is the process by which the Holy Spirit works to replace sin with the fruit of the Spirit. With John Wesley, we believe that a life of holiness and ultimately “entire sanctification” should be the goal of each individual’s journey with God as a disciple of Christ.
g) Our ultimate hope and promise in Christ is glorification, where our souls and bodies are perfectly restored through God’s grace, and we are fully free from the presence of sin.
Additional Religious Beliefs
We believe in the sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion
We believe that baptism and holy communion are commanded by Christ and ordained as a means of grace when received by faith. They are tokens of our profession and signs of God's gracious ministry toward us. By them, God works to make us alive, to strengthen and confirm our faith.
Baptism - Using water as a holy symbol, whether by sprinkling, immersion, or pouring, Trinitarian baptism is a symbol of the new covenant of grace and signifies acceptance of the benefits of the atonement of Jesus Christ. By means of this sacrament, believers declare their faith in Jesus Christ the Savior and are initiated into the fellowship of Christ’s holy church. Since children are born into this world with natures inclined to sin, and yet the prevenient grace of God provides for their redemption during that time before the age of accountability, parents are encouraged to testify to their faith in God's provision by presenting their infant children, according to their conscience, for either dedication or baptism. When any person, baptized as an infant, comes to personal faith in Christ he or she is encouraged to confirm that baptism by public testimony (profession of faith) and a personal renewal of their baptism.
Holy Communion - also known as the Lord's Supper and the Eucharist, is a sacrament of our redemption by Christ's sacrificial death for our sins and of our hope in His soon return, as well as a sign of the living presence of Christ, and the love Christians have for one another. When received with a proper spirit and by faith, it is a means through which God communicates grace to the communicant. All who come in repentance and faith seeking Christ are received at the Lord's Table and not Immanuel Church members only.
Marriage and Human Sexuality
As part of the Judeo-Christian faith tradition, we believe that the term “marriage” has only one legitimate meaning, and that is a union sanctioned by God, which joins one man and one woman in a single, covenantal union as delineated by Scripture. Marriage ceremonies performed in any facility or space owned, leased, or rented by Immanuel Church will be only those ceremonies sanctioned by God, joining one man with one woman as their genders were determined by anatomy at birth (and which are not subject to change). Clergy serving Immanuel Church are also prohibited from officiating (or participating in a leadership role) for any off-site marriage or civil union ceremonies which do not conform with this provision of these Bylaws. Whenever there is a conflict between Immanuel Church’s position and any new legal standard for marriage, Immanuel Church’s statement of faith, doctrines, and biblical positions will govern. (Gen. 2:24; Eph. 5:22-23; Mark 10:6-9; I Cor. 7:1-9)
We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of marriage as defined above. As a matter of faith, we believe that any other type of sexual activity, identity, or expression that lies outside of this definition of marriage are contradictory to God’s natural design and purpose for sexual activity. (Gen. 2:24; Gen. 19:5; Lev. 18:1-30; Rom. 1: 26-29; 1 Cor. 5:1; 6:9-10; 1 Thess. 4:1-8; Heb. 13:4)
We believe that God creates each person as either male or female. These two distinct, unchangeable genders together reflect the image and nature of God, and the rejection of one's biological gender is a rejection of the image of God within that person. (Genesis 1:26-27)
Loving Others
We believe that we should demonstrate love for others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward those who are not believers, those who oppose us, and those who engage in sinful actions. We are to deal graciously, humbly, gently, and patiently with those who oppose us. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of revenge, or the threat or use of violence as a means of resolving personal conflict or obtaining personal justice. Although God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love and pray for any person who engages in such actions. (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 5:44-48; Luke 6:31; John 13:34-35; Rom. 12:9-10; 17-21; 13:8-10; Phil. 2:2-4; 2 Tim. 2:24-26; Titus 3:2; I Peter 3:8-9; 1 John 3:17-18)
Protection of Children
We believe that children are a blessing from the Lord and must be absolutely protected within Immanuel Church from any form of abuse or molestation at any age or stage of development. Immanuel Church has zero tolerance for any person, whether clergy, staff, volunteer, member, or visitor, who abuses or molests a child. (Ps. 127:3-5; Matt. 18:6, 19:14; Mark 10:14)*
* In support of this core value please see our Immanuel Child Abuse Prevention policy.
