We believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
begotten from the Father before all ages,
God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made;
of the same essence as the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven;
he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,
and was made human.
He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered and was buried.
The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.
He ascended to heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again with glory
to judge the living and the dead.
His kingdom will never end.
And we believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life.
He proceeds from the Father and the Son,
and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified.
He spoke through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.
We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,
and to life in the world to come. Amen.
Valley Trinity Church Statement of Faith
THE SCRIPTURES: We believe the Holy Scriptures (39 Old Testament and 27 New Testament books) to be the inspired word of God, the ultimate authority for faith and life, infallible, inerrant in the original writings, and God-breathed. (Matthew 5:17-18, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:20-21, John 16:12-13, 2 Peter 3:16)
THE TRINITY: We believe in one Triune God, eternally existing in three persons— Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—co-eternal in being, co-eternal in nature, co-equal in power and glory. (Genesis 1:1-2, John 1:1-3, Deuteronomy 6:4, Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19, 2 Corinthians 13:14)
THE PERSON AND WORK OF CHRIST: We believe the Lord Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. (John 1:1–3, John 1:14, Luke 1:35) We believe the Lord Jesus Christ redeemed and reconciled to himself His people and His creation through the blood of His cross, and this redemption is made certain by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Romans 3:24, Romans 6:5, 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, 12-19, Ephesians 1:7-10, Colossians 1:13-20, 1 Peter 1:3–5, 1 Peter 2:24) We believe the Lord Jesus Christ, having been given all authority in Heaven and on Earth, ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God. He is the Head of the church and our High Priest. (Acts 1:9-10, Romans 8:34, Colossians 1:18, 1 John 2:1-2, Hebrews 7:25, Hebrews 9:11-24) We believe Jesus is coming again to consummate his kingdom and to judge the living and the dead. (Acts 1:11, Romans 14:8-9, 2 Timothy 4:1, 1 Peter 4:5, Revelation 21 )
THE PERSON AND WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: We believe the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity who applies all that was accomplished by the Son in accordance with the will of the Father. He brings God’s people into the New Covenant, indwelling, empowering, gifting, and sealing them unto the day of final redemption. (John 16:8–11, Acts 1:8, 4:31, 5:3-4, Romans 8:9-11, 1Corinthians 12:12–14, 2 Corinthians 3:4-6, Ephesians 1:13, 4:30, 5:18)
THE FALLEN NATURE OF MAN: We believe men and women are created in the image and likeness of God, but through Adam’s sin mankind is also fallen. We have inherited a sinful nature and have become alienated from God. Man is thus separated from God and, left to himself, incapable to remedy his fallen condition. (Genesis 1:26-27, Romans 3:10-11, 22-23, Romans 5:12-14, Ephesians 2:1–3, Ephesians 2:12)
SALVATION: We believe God, being rich in mercy, did not leave His people in their fallen condition, but through the blood of Christ purchased for Himself a people. Redeeming them from their sinful state and conforming them into the image of Christ. (John 1:12-13, Romans 3:21-26, 5:8, 8:29-30, Ephesians 1:3-7, 2:4–10, 1 Peter 1:18–19, 2:9-10)
ASSURANCE OF BELIEVERS: We believe all the redeemed are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 6:37–40; John 10:27–30; Romans 8:1, 38- 39; 1 Peter 1:5) This assurance is based solely upon the gospel of Jesus Christ, which produces a desire to worship, obey, and follow God. (Romans 12:1-12, 13:13-14, Galatians 5:13, Titus 2:11–15, 1 John 1:6)
THE LIFE OF THE CHRISTIAN: We believe that believers ought to seek lifelong faithful obedience to their Lord (Luke 6:46, John 14:15). The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness, empowers us to obey, and moves us toward the telos of the Christian life: conformity to Christ (Romans 8:26, Galatian 5:22-23, Romans 8:29). We must consider ourselves dead to sin and make it our business to put to death indwelling sin our lives by the help of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:13). We believe that Christian community, submission to Godly accountability and authority, and love of neighbor are crucial to the Christian life.
THE CHURCH: We believe the church is the visible and invisible covenant community of God, and the house and family of God. The church is Christ’s body and bride, the temple of the Holy Spirit, God’s true people, God’s royal priesthood, the first fruits of the world to come, and the communion of the saints. (Ephesians 2:19, Romans 12:5, Ephesians 5:25, Revelation 19:7, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 1 Peter 2:4-5, 9- 10, Revelation 21:9-10, Romans 8:23, James 1:18, Jude 1:3) We believe the church is called to join the mission of God, empowered by the Holy Spirit, to create other worshipers of Him, and to see the kingdom of God restored on earth as it is in heaven. (Acts 1:8, John 4:23, Matthew 6:10) We believe God has given His church two sacraments, baptism and communion. The sacraments are the rites of the Christian church; they are the rites of the Christian people. They are the actions done by the church, at God’s command, with confidence in God’s promise. Baptism is administered with water while communion with bread and wine (or juice) by the community of believers. (Matthew 28:18-20, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)