The Bible
The sole basis of our belief is the Bible, composed of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament. We believe that Scripture in its entirety originated with God, and that it was given through the instrumentality of chosen men. Scripture thus at one and the same time speaks with the authority of God and reflects the backgrounds, styles, and vocabularies of the human authors. We hold that the Scriptures are infallible and in-errant in the original manuscripts. They are the unique, full and final authority on all matters of faith and practice, and there are no other writings similarly inspired by God.
“All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16)
God
We believe that there is one true, holy God, eternally existing in three persons; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each of whom possesses equally all the attributes of deity and the characteristics of personality. In the beginning God created out of nothing the world and the things therein, thus manifesting the glory of His power, wisdom, and goodness. By His sovereign power He continues to sustain His creation. By His providence He is operating throughout history to fulfill His redemptive purposes.
“…there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him.” (1 Corinthians 8:6)
Salvation
The central purpose of God’s revelation in Scripture is to call all people into fellowship with Himself. Originally created to have fellowship with God, man defied God, choosing to go his independent way, and was thus alienated from God and suffered the corruption of his nature, rendering him unable to please God. The fall took place at the beginning of human history, and all individuals since have suffered these consequences and are thus in need of the saving grace of God. Salvation is then completely a work of God’s free grace, not the result (in whole or in part) of human works or goodness. Furthermore, it must be personally appropriated by repentance and faith. When God has begun a saving work in the heart of any person, He gives assurance in His Word that He will continue performing it until the day of its full consummation.
“So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.” (Romans 5:18)
“The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is the eternal second Person of the Triune God who was united forever with a true human nature by a miraculous conception and virgin birth. He lived a life of perfect obedience to the Father and voluntarily atoned for the sins of all by dying on the cross as their substitute, thus satisfying divine justice and accomplishing salvation for all who trust in Him alone. He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He lived and died. He ascended into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of the Father, where He, the only mediator between God and man, continually makes intercession for His own. He shall come again to earth, personally and visibly, prior to setting up His millennial kingdom in order to consummate history and the eternal plan of God.
“For in Him (Jesus) all the fullness of deity dwells in bodily form.” (Colossians 2:9)
“Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:1-3)
Holy Spirit
The essential accompaniment of a genuine saving relationship with Jesus Christ is a life of holiness and obedience, attained by believers as they submit to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Triune God. He was sent into the world by the Father and the Son to apply to mankind the saving work of Christ. He enlightens the minds of sinners, awakens in them recognition of their need of a Savior and regenerates them. At the point of salvation He permanently dwells in every believer to become the source of assurance, strength, and wisdom. He also uniquely endows each believer with gifts in order to build up the body of Christ (the church). The Holy Spirit guides believers in understanding and applying the Scripture. His power and control are appropriated by faith, making it possible for the believer to lead a life of Christlike character and to bear fruit to the glory of the Father.
“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you.” (John 14:16-17)
“And He, (Holy Spirit) when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.” (John 16:8-11)
Human Destiny
Death seals the eternal destiny of each person. For all mankind, there will be a resurrection of the body into the spiritual world, and a judgment that will determine the degree of rewards for the believer and the degree of punishment for the unbeliever. Unbelievers, those who have not received Christ as Lord and Savior, will be separated from God forever. God’s judgment will reveal His justice in consigning them to perpetuate in eternal retribution their own rejection of God. Believers, those who have received Christ as Lord and Savior, will be received into eternal communion with God and will be rewarded for works done in this life. The works done by believers done in this life are not for the purpose of gaining salvation, but in response to the salvation they have received by grace through faith.
“And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15)
“He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:12-13)
Church
The corollary of union with Jesus Christ is that all believers become members of His Body, the church. There is one true church universal, comprised of all those who acknowledged Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Scripture commands believers to gather together to devote themselves to worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of baptism (by immersion) and communion (as the two ordinances established by Jesus Christ), fellowship, service to the Body through the development and use of talents and gifts, and outreach to the world. Wherever God’s people meet regularly in obedience to this command, there is the local expression of the church. Under the watch and care of elders, and other supportive leadership, its members are to work together in love and unity, intent on the same ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ.
“And He gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure which belongs to the fullness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-13)
Faith & Practice
Scripture is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice. Pinnacle Community Church recognizes that it cannot bind the conscience of individual members in areas where Scripture is either silent or may present several perspectives on non-essentials. Rather, each believer is to be led in those areas by the Lord, to whom he or she alone is ultimately responsible. We believe this Statement of Beliefs to be an accurate summary of what Scripture teaches. All members shall refrain from advocating doctrines that are not included in the Statement of Beliefs in such a way as to cause dissension.
“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, entreat you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing forbearance to one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:1-3)
The sole basis of our belief is the Bible, composed of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament. We believe that Scripture in its entirety originated with God, and that it was given through the instrumentality of chosen men. Scripture thus at one and the same time speaks with the authority of God and reflects the backgrounds, styles, and vocabularies of the human authors. We hold that the Scriptures are infallible and in-errant in the original manuscripts. They are the unique, full and final authority on all matters of faith and practice, and there are no other writings similarly inspired by God.
“All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16)
God
We believe that there is one true, holy God, eternally existing in three persons; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each of whom possesses equally all the attributes of deity and the characteristics of personality. In the beginning God created out of nothing the world and the things therein, thus manifesting the glory of His power, wisdom, and goodness. By His sovereign power He continues to sustain His creation. By His providence He is operating throughout history to fulfill His redemptive purposes.
“…there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him.” (1 Corinthians 8:6)
Salvation
The central purpose of God’s revelation in Scripture is to call all people into fellowship with Himself. Originally created to have fellowship with God, man defied God, choosing to go his independent way, and was thus alienated from God and suffered the corruption of his nature, rendering him unable to please God. The fall took place at the beginning of human history, and all individuals since have suffered these consequences and are thus in need of the saving grace of God. Salvation is then completely a work of God’s free grace, not the result (in whole or in part) of human works or goodness. Furthermore, it must be personally appropriated by repentance and faith. When God has begun a saving work in the heart of any person, He gives assurance in His Word that He will continue performing it until the day of its full consummation.
“So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.” (Romans 5:18)
“The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is the eternal second Person of the Triune God who was united forever with a true human nature by a miraculous conception and virgin birth. He lived a life of perfect obedience to the Father and voluntarily atoned for the sins of all by dying on the cross as their substitute, thus satisfying divine justice and accomplishing salvation for all who trust in Him alone. He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He lived and died. He ascended into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of the Father, where He, the only mediator between God and man, continually makes intercession for His own. He shall come again to earth, personally and visibly, prior to setting up His millennial kingdom in order to consummate history and the eternal plan of God.
“For in Him (Jesus) all the fullness of deity dwells in bodily form.” (Colossians 2:9)
“Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:1-3)
Holy Spirit
The essential accompaniment of a genuine saving relationship with Jesus Christ is a life of holiness and obedience, attained by believers as they submit to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Triune God. He was sent into the world by the Father and the Son to apply to mankind the saving work of Christ. He enlightens the minds of sinners, awakens in them recognition of their need of a Savior and regenerates them. At the point of salvation He permanently dwells in every believer to become the source of assurance, strength, and wisdom. He also uniquely endows each believer with gifts in order to build up the body of Christ (the church). The Holy Spirit guides believers in understanding and applying the Scripture. His power and control are appropriated by faith, making it possible for the believer to lead a life of Christlike character and to bear fruit to the glory of the Father.
“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you.” (John 14:16-17)
“And He, (Holy Spirit) when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.” (John 16:8-11)
Human Destiny
Death seals the eternal destiny of each person. For all mankind, there will be a resurrection of the body into the spiritual world, and a judgment that will determine the degree of rewards for the believer and the degree of punishment for the unbeliever. Unbelievers, those who have not received Christ as Lord and Savior, will be separated from God forever. God’s judgment will reveal His justice in consigning them to perpetuate in eternal retribution their own rejection of God. Believers, those who have received Christ as Lord and Savior, will be received into eternal communion with God and will be rewarded for works done in this life. The works done by believers done in this life are not for the purpose of gaining salvation, but in response to the salvation they have received by grace through faith.
“And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15)
“He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:12-13)
Church
The corollary of union with Jesus Christ is that all believers become members of His Body, the church. There is one true church universal, comprised of all those who acknowledged Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Scripture commands believers to gather together to devote themselves to worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of baptism (by immersion) and communion (as the two ordinances established by Jesus Christ), fellowship, service to the Body through the development and use of talents and gifts, and outreach to the world. Wherever God’s people meet regularly in obedience to this command, there is the local expression of the church. Under the watch and care of elders, and other supportive leadership, its members are to work together in love and unity, intent on the same ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ.
“And He gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure which belongs to the fullness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-13)
Faith & Practice
Scripture is the final authority in all matters of faith and practice. Pinnacle Community Church recognizes that it cannot bind the conscience of individual members in areas where Scripture is either silent or may present several perspectives on non-essentials. Rather, each believer is to be led in those areas by the Lord, to whom he or she alone is ultimately responsible. We believe this Statement of Beliefs to be an accurate summary of what Scripture teaches. All members shall refrain from advocating doctrines that are not included in the Statement of Beliefs in such a way as to cause dissension.
“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, entreat you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing forbearance to one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:1-3)
