May 5th, 2024 Membership Class

5/5/2024 | If you've been coming to Living Word for awhile and would like to take the next step of Membership here, we'd love to have you join us for this class on Sunday, May 5th (after 2nd service).

We'll feed you a great lunch, provide childcare if needed, and have a great discussion-based class. We'll discuss the history of our Church, explain what we believe and how we're structured.

We're excited about having you!
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What We Believe

1. We believe that God is the creator and the ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three person: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit [often referred to as the Trinity]. So three co-equal with God and are one God.

2. We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. He was born of a virgin and lived a perfect, sinless human life. He offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days, ascended into heaven, and will return again someday to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

3. We believe that the Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and Son. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of Salvation. He provides the believer with power for living, understanding spiritual truth, wisdom and guidance for doing what is right. As Christians, we seek to live under his guidance daily.

4. We believe that the Bible is God’s Word to us. It was written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit, often called inspiration. It is the supreme source of truth for all Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired by God, it is the truth without any mixture of error.

5. We believe that humans are made in the spiritual image of God, to be like Him in character. People are the supreme objects of God’s creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called “sin”. This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in life.

6. We believe Salvation is God’s free gift to us, but we must accept it. We can never make up for our sins by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting Jesus Christ as God’s offer for forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin’s penalty. When we turn from our self-willed life and turn to Jesus in faith, we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.

7. We believe Eternity is the soul of every human being was created to live forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or eternally with God through salvation and forgiveness. Hell is eternal separation from God. Heaven is eternal union with God. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence. One’s eternal destination is determined by their response to Jesus Christ.

8. We believe water baptism is an ordinance Jesus asked all His followers to do as an example of their allegiance to Him. The concept of it is often times misconstrued, as one isn’t “forgiven of sin” through baptism, but simply revealing the fact that they have found forgiveness in Christ through the repentance of their sins. In fact, the only thing needed to be “qualified” for water baptism is you’ve received forgiveness of sin through faith in Jesus.

9. We believe children are a gift from God, and that the church and parents should partner together in each child’s spiritual growth. Instead of infant baptisms, we offer parents the opportunity to dedicate their children to the Lord: publicly stating that you are going to raise that child in the ways of God using the Bible as your only source of spiritual direction, and helping them understand who Jesus is, the radical sacrifice He made for them on the cross, and the crazy amount of joy found in serving him.

10. We believe Christians should commit to regular and consistent involvement in the local church through membership. We believe the hope of the world is through the local church. When a local body of believers commits to live out the great commission of Jesus Christ together they can change their community. We see the next step in participating in the mission of the church, is to take ownership of the church through membership.
What We Believe about Marriage, Sexuality, and Gender Identity

We are a gospel-centered Church, which means that the Bible is the foundation for everything we believe. And so with every issue, including marriage, sexuality, and gender identity, we hold to the same positions that Christians have held since the beginning of Church history;

1. Marriage is a sacred covenant, a union between one man and one woman only. Marriage is an earthly reflection of Christ and his bride, the Church. (Ephesians 5:22-33) Furthermore, marriage has multiple purposes; procreation, mutual gratification, and worship. And these purposes can only be fulfilled in traditional opposite-sex marriage. 

2. Sexuality- many of us have experienced brokenness in the area of our sexuality. Thankfully, Jesus provides restoration and redemption in this area as well as any other area of brokenness. In that redemptive work, Jesus calls us to holiness, just as he did for the woman at the well- who had been married five times and was living with a man who was not her husband. (John 4:4-26) While He does not condemn us, He loves us too much to leave us in our brokenness. So in His grace He calls us out of our mess into holiness. As a Church, we welcome anyone and everyone in their current state of brokenness but through growth and discipleship, we trust The Holy Spirit to do his redemptive work. 

3. Gender- God clearly created us as male or female. (Genesis 1:27) That fact does not change that a small minority struggle with gender dysphoria- when someone is unsure about the gender they were born. Social media, social acceptance and affirmation of the issue, the prevalence of sexual abuse, and many other challenges have exacerbated this issue to the level where we’ve seen a 1,500% increase in cases of gender dysphoria. But the growing prevalence of an issue does not change the truth. As a Church, we will affirm the God-given design for ALL areas of life. We cannot affirm the lies of the world. But at the same time we will love all as they come and as stated above, we will allow the Holy Spirit to do the work He must do in the lives of people who come through our doors.
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Description

5/5/2024
If you've been coming to Living Word for awhile and would like to take the next step of Membership here, we'd love to have you join us for this class on Sunday, May 5th (after 2nd service).

We'll feed you a great lunch, provide childcare if needed, and have a great discussion-based class. We'll discuss the history of our Church, explain what we believe and how we're structured.

We're excited about having you!