The central message of the Bible is the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is the amazing news that God became a man, lived the perfect life we could not live, died the horrible death we deserved to die and was raised to life from the grave, conquering sin and death and paving the way to eternal life for all who place their faith and hope in the finished work of Jesus Christ. The eternal and abundant life that Jesus promised us doesn’t begin one day when we die, but the moment we place our faith in Him as our Lord and Savior King. Therefore, nothing could be more central, and nothing could be more relevant to our everyday life and identity than the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus is risen, and His resurrection changes everything! 1 Peter 1:10-12, 1 Peter 1:22-25

The things we have been given are a display of God’s grace toward us.  That means we are not owners, rather, stewards.  We make it our aim to be a church that responds to this grace by being generous stewards of our time, talent and treasure. Generosity strengthens our devotion to Christ and frees us to live open handedly with the gifts God gives us. Matthew 22:39, Acts 20:35, Matthew 10:8, 2 Corinthians 8

The Bible, being God’s inspired and authoritative Word, is God’s witness of Himself to humanity. It is therefore free from falsehood and error. We confess that when all the facts are known, and when the Bible is properly interpreted, the original autographs of the Bible will be shown to be completely true in all that they affirm. We believe that the word of God is inspired by the Spirit of God, and we seek to have our hair blown back by the breath of God each time we open our Bibles. 2 Timothy 3:16-17, John 17:17, Matthew 5:18, Isaiah 40:8, John 10:35

Jesus told his disciples that it was better that He leaves so the Holy Spirit would come. (John 16:7) Isn’t that a wild thought? It was better for Jesus to go, that the Spirit come. At Risen, we believe that the Church is the body of Christ sent into the world to shine forth the glory of God. God, by His Word and Spirit, creates the Church, calling sinful humanity into the fellowship of Christ’s body (1 Cor. 12:12-31). By the same Word and Spirit, He guides and preserves that newly redeemed humanity. The Church is made up of those who have become genuine followers of Jesus Christ and have personally appropriated the gospel. The Church exists to worship and glorify God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The ministry of the Church is an extension of the ministry of Jesus in the power of the Spirit to bring glory to God by making disciples (Matt. 28:18-20). We do this through worship, prayer, teaching of the Word, observance of the ordinances, fellowship, the exercise of our gifts and talents, and the proclamation of the gospel both in our community and throughout the world. John 16:7, Acts 1:8, Luke 11:13, Acts 2:38, John 6:63, Ephesians 4:30

Jesus used very strong words to convey the value of gathering together consistently. For us, community isn’t just something we do, it’s who we are. It’s not just something we need, it’s something we offer. While our identity in Christ is personally intimate, our relationship with Jesus is designed to flourish in community with one another. We believe that gospel community in the local church is the primary means through which the Holy Spirit makes disciples, accomplishes the Great Commission, transforms our hearts and receives the greatest glory. Therefore, we are tenacious in our heartfelt commitment to joyfully pursue one another and intentionally invite the outsider into this community we cherish in Christ. Matthew 18:20, Hebrews 10:24-25, Acts 2:42-47, Galatians 6:2, Romans 12:3-13, 1 Corinthians 12:25-27, Colossians 3:13, John 13:33-34, Ephesians 4:2-6

Jesus commanded that we be a people on mission. We do not need to ask what our purpose is, only how we are strategically positioned and gifted to fulfill that purpose. God’s mission is to reconcile all things to himself through Jesus. That includes the good, bad, saved, lost, churched, unchurched, de-churched, hate-the-church, Pharisees, saints and sinners. Jesus didn’t give options on what kind of people He wants us to engage. We have as much responsibility to love the outsiders as we do the insiders and we are committed to lean toward those far from God with the compassion of Christ. Matthew 24:14, Matthew 19:19, 1 Corinthians 9:23