What We Believe

We believe the Bible is God’s revelation of Himself and that in it we find the way of salvation.

Specifically, we believe that:

· The Bible is a Revelation; therefore, it can be understood sufficiently to find out how to be saved and how to live our lives. Using the normal laws of language, the truths can be understood. This does not mean we understand it all, but through the illumination of the Holy Spirit we can understand what we must. As we read it more and study it, comparing Scripture with Scripture, the meanings become clearer. 2 Timothy 3:16-17

· The Bible is written in such a way that translation into other languages is possible and the message is carried over if the translation is well done. In fact, it is amazing how it can be translated into any language. For example, in reading the 23rd Psalm in English it has lost little of its amazing message even though it was written millenniums ago in an altogether different language and culture. 2 Peter 1:19-21

· There are two covenants in the Bible. The whole Bible is written for us, but we are living under the new covenant (New Testament) which has different rules of conduct than the Old Testament. The Old Testament was written before Jesus Christ came to earth, the New Testament after. The New Testament lifts one to a higher plane of life where, by the power of the Holy Spirit, even our attitudes are to be according to God’s will, not only our actions. Matthew 5:27-28

· The Bible is a book about salvation, the central being is Jesus Christ and the central events are the atonement effected by His sacrifice and death on the cross. John 3:16

Confessions of Faith

We also have what we call “confessions of faith”, but these are not creeds as is often the case in denominations. They are expressions of what was believed by the church before us when they were facing ideas that were a threat to the true faith. While we refer to them, agree to them and respect them, the Bible has the last word!

· Schleitheim Confession - Beginning of the Anabaptist movement - This was one of the earliest Anabaptist documents that helped the believers to know where they stood on the practical issues they faced.

· Dortrecht Confession - Bringing the Anabaptist groups together - Various Anabaptist groups began during the protestant revolution, and this is the document that they could agree together was a Scriptural position to the issues they were facing.

· Garden City Confession - Response to Liberalism - The late 1800 and early 1900 were a time of great change away from the traditional Biblical interpretation. Evolution and questioning the miracles of the Bible, along with questioning the Bible's authority over their lives were common. This was a document stating the church's position on these issues.

· Conservative Mennonite Distinctives - This is not a comprehensive list of our beliefs. It just mentions some areas of our belief and life which may be different than some other groups. We believe they are based on the Bible.