What does Life.Church believe?
Our beliefs guide and inspire our mission to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ. Here’s what we believe as a church.
Our beliefs guide and inspire our mission to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ. Here’s what we believe as a church.
He has eternally existed as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The three are coequal and are one God.
He is coequal with the Father and Holy Spirit. Jesus lived a sinless human life and 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 to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven and will return again someday to earth to reign as King.
The Holy Spirit is coequal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make people aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He provides Christians with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He gives every believer spiritual gifts when they are saved. As Christians we seek to live under His control daily.
The Bible was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs about living. Because it is inspired by God, it is truth without error.
People are made in the spiritual image of God, to be like Him in character. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called “sin.” Sin separates us from God and causes many problems in our life.
We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin’s penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.
People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal life in heaven. Heaven and hell are real places of eternal existence.
Once we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, baptism is a way for us to publicly declare our new life in Christ. It is also a step of obedience based on God’s commands and allows us to follow the example of Jesus, who submitted himself to baptism to “fulfill all righteousness.”
Accept the one whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters … Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master servants stand or fall … So then each of us will give an account of ourselves to God … So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Romans 14:1, 4, 12, 22
“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others. 1 Corinthians 10:23-24
The Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) is a rapidly growing multi-ethnic denomination in the United States and Canada, with ministries on five continents of the world. Founded in 1885 by Swedish immigrants, the ECC values the Bible as the Word of God, the gift of God’s grace and ever-deepening spiritual life that comes through faith in Jesus Christ, the importance of extending God's love and compassion to a hurting world, and the strength that comes from unity within diversity.
What makes the ECC unique from other denominations is that while it strongly affirms the clear teaching of the Word of God, believers have the personal freedom to hold varying interpretations on theological issues that are not clearly presented in Scripture.
These values are the glue that helps us live out the mission of our church.
We will honor Christ and His church with integrity.
If we live with integrity nothing else matters. If we don’t live with integrity nothing else matters.
We will do anything short of sin to reach people who don’t know Christ.
To reach people no one is reaching, we’ll have to do things no one is doing.
We always bring our best.
Excellence honors God and inspires people.
We give up things we love for things we love even more.
It’s an honor to sacrifice for Christ and His church.
We are spiritual contributors not spiritual consumers.
The church does not exist for us. We are the church and we exist for the world.
We are faith-filled, big-thinking, bet-the-farm risk takers.
We’ll never insult God with small thinking and safe living.
We will lead the way with irrational generosity.
We truly believe it is more blessed to give than to receive.
We are all about the “capital C” Church.
The local church is the hope of the world, and we know we can accomplish infinitely more together than apart.
We will laugh hard, loud, and often.
Nothing is more fun than serving God with people you love.
We wholeheartedly reject the label mega-church.
We are a micro-church with a mega-vision.