what we believe.

THE BIBLE

The Holy Scriptures
We believe in the verbal, plenary inspiration of the Scriptures and that they contain all the words of God that we need to completely trust and obey Him. The Scriptures are inerrant in their original writings, contained in 66 books, and are infallible in their instruction, eternal in duration, the final authority and the standard for faith and practice and sufficient for counsel in every issue of life. We believe that the very words of Scripture in the original Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic are inspired by God. Therefore, we believe that the Bible versions which translate God’s Word most literally into modern English should be preferred.

THE HOLY TRINITY

One God, Three Persons
We believe in the one living and true God, eternally existing in perfect unity as three equally and fully divine Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each member of the Godhead, while executing distinct but complementary roles in redemptive history, has precisely the same nature, attributes, and being, and is equally worthy of the same glory and honor and obedience.

The Father
We believe that in the beginning, God demonstrated His power, wisdom, and goodness by creating the world and everything in it. Through His divine power and providence, God continues to sustain His creation, operating within history to fulfill His redemptive purpose. We believe in God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and of us all, the Lord of Heaven, revealed to us through His Son.

The Son
We believe that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son, moved by love in accordance with the will of the Father, took on human flesh. Conceived through the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit, He was born of the virgin Mary. He, being fully God and fully man, lived a sinless life and sacrificially shed His blood and died on the cross in our place, accomplishing redemption for all who place their faith in Him. He arose visibly and bodily from the dead three days later and ascended into heaven, where, at the Father’s right hand, He is now Head of His Body the Church, the only Savior and Mediator between God and people, and will return to earth in power and glory to consummate His redemptive mission.

The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit, in all that He does, glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ during this age. The Holy Spirit indwells in each believer at the point of salvation. He convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He draws the unredeemed to repentance and faith, and at salvation imparts new spiritual life to the believer, bringing that person into union with Christ and the Body of Christ. The Holy Spirit sanctifies, seals, fills, guides, instructs, comforts, equips, empowers, permanently indwells at salvation, and bestows spiritual gifts to the believer for Christ-like living and service.

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit bestows gifts upon each individual as He wills. We believe all gifts are for today and have a dual purpose; to edify the church and to reach the lost with the Gospel. No gift is greater than another gift and not everyone has the same gift. We do not believe in an initial sign gift as evidence of the Holy Spirit but rather the evidence of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is supernatural love and boldness.

SALVATION AND SANCTIFICATION

Humanity’s Fall and Need for Salvation
We believe that God created humankind—male and female—in His own image and likeness, free of sin, to glorify Himself and enjoy His fellowship. Tempted by Satan, humans freely chose to disobey God, bringing sin, death, and condemnation to all humankind. All human beings, therefore, are totally depraved by nature and by choice. Alienated from God without defense or excuse, and subject to God’s righteous wrath, all of humankind is in desperate need of the Savior.

Salvation
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, as the substitutionary atonement in our place, and that salvation is found in none other than Jesus Christ. This is God’s act of grace in which He gives us mercy instead of punishment. Jesus Christ’s death on the cross was the sole and complete payment for sins, fully satisfying God’s righteous wrath, for each person that turns from sin in repentance and places their faith in Christ alone by grace alone. At salvation each person is made a new creation by the Holy Spirit, declared righteous before God, and secured as an adopted child of God forever. Genuine faith continues in obedience and love for Jesus Christ with a life eager to glorify God and persevere to the end.

Sanctification
We believe that salvation is immediate upon placing faith in Christ alone and that as a person grows, they experience a renewal of their mind, values, and behaviors as they further submit and trust in the Lord. We believe that upon seeing Jesus face to face in heaven, the believer will be made completely perfect. The fruit of the Spirit, (as found in Galatians 5:22-23) is evidence of the Spirit’s indwelling in the life of a believer. It does not mean a believer will not struggle with sin but rather that they are no longer obligated to live as a slave to sin but rather as one who is free in Christ. As a person further identifies with Christ, as the Holy Spirit continues to lead and guide a person, they will experience more and more the freedom of a life in Christ. A believer should pursue holiness and a life that is pleasing to the Lord and gives glory to God through their Christian witness. A Christ follower should be set apart from immorality and sin in their thinking, values, and behavior.

ESCHATOLOGY

The Return of Christ
We believe in and expectantly await the glorious, visible, personal, return of the Lord Jesus Christ. The blessed hope of His return has vital bearing on the personal life, service, and mission of the believer.

The Bodily Resurrection of the Dead
We believe in the bodily resurrection of both the saved and the lost. The lost will be raised to judgment and experience eternal wrath in Hell. The saved will be raised to eternal joy in the New Heaven and New Earth in the manifested presence of God.

Eschatological Views
We understand there are various interpretations of eschatological events. Therefore, we hold the interpretation of end time events with an open hand and do not adhere to one particular view as a church but rather to what we know is true, which is; Jesus is coming back, and we must live with an eternal priority.

Heaven and Hell
Man was created to exist forever. He will exist either eternally separated from God by sin or in union with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is Heaven. Heaven and Hell are actual places of eternal existence.

THE CHURCH, ORDINANCES AND OTHER IMPORTANT PRACTICES

The Church

First and foremost, the Church is God’s idea. It is built upon the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The doctrines and practices of the church are based upon His teachings and what we see clearly in scripture.

Baptism

Upon coming to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the new convert is commanded by the Word of God to be baptized, by immersion, in water in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. This act is a public testimony with symbolic imagery of someone who has chosen to die to themselves “been buried with Christ” washed clean of their sins and raised from spiritual death into new life In Christ.  A person who is baptized should be able to articulate their testimony of salvation in Christ alone - their recognition of their need for a savior from their sins, a repentance (or turning away) from those sins and a placing of their faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the cross, whereby they have received new life in Christ, made new by the Holy Spirit and have committed the rest of their lives to joy filled pursuit and obedience to Christ. Our position is that Baptism by immersion is first biblical and paints the truest picture of dying to sin and arising to Christ and new life.
For this reason, we do not baptize infants.  

Matthew 3:16; Acts 8:36-38; Acts 2:41

Regarding Baptizing Infants and Children
If the purpose of Baptism is to publicly identify a believer in Jesus Christ, you may well be asking yourself, “What was the significance of my Baptism as a baby?” In the New Testament, we find parents bringing their children to Jesus. He held them and prayed for them and told His disciples to welcome them. But He did not baptize them, and He did not tell anyone else to baptize them. Baptism is for those who have made a personal decision to trust Christ alone for their salvation.

If you were baptized as a child, it was the intent of your parents that you would one day be a follower of Christ. Your Baptism as an adult can be viewed as the fulfillment of your parents’ wishes. It in no way repudiates the Baptism you received as a child.

While recognizing the right for other churches to practice infant Baptism if it conforms to their theology, the congregation of BCC understands Scripture to teach that only professing believers qualify for Baptism.

1. Baptism is an act of obedience to the command of Christ, fulfilled by individuals who have submitted themselves to His sovereignty.

2. Baptism symbolizes the spiritual cleansing through divine forgiveness and the newness of life believers experience by virtue of their identification with Christ in His death and resurrection.

3. Baptism provides an opportunity for believers to make a formal profession of their faith before the church.

Although the old covenant practice of infant circumcision is sometimes given as a rationale for infant Baptism, the biblical definition of the functions of circumcision and Baptism shows that those two institutions fulfilled different purposes in their respective covenants. The equation is never made in the Bible between the circumcision of male infants in the old covenant, and the Baptism of born-again believers, much less of infants, in the new covenant. However, BCC encourages Christian parents to present their children for the ceremony of dedication, whereby God’s blessing is formally invoked upon the children, and the parents publicly commit themselves to raise the children in accordance with the teachings of Scripture.

Because the symbolism of Baptism requires a more mature level of cognitive and developmental readiness, we deal with children desiring to baptized on a case-by-case basis. If a child is interested in being baptized, we have a process to help the child and the parents understand to ensure they are truly ready. Proverbs 20:25 issues a significant caution against the danger of making a vow before adequate knowledge, forethought, and reflection have been given.

Communion
The Lord’s Supper is the united commemoration by believers of Christ’s death until He comes and should be preceded by a careful self-examination. We receive Christ by faith and the act of communion reminds us of the price He paid and should stir our heart to worship, thankfulness and a deeper dependance upon Jesus as the sole source of our salvation.

The Last Supper (the Passover meal Jesus shared with His disciples the night before He was crucified) is the Biblical foundation for the Communion meal celebrated by Christians all over the world today. With His twelve disciples gathered, Jesus "took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, 'This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.' In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you'" (Luke 22:19–20).

Who can receive Communion?

Communion is "the believer's meal" intended for followers of Christ, by which they acknowledge and remember Jesus’ death on the cross—the ultimate sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins.

• BCC extends an "open" Communion table, meaning the invitation to receive Communion during a service is open to any follower of Christ, regardless of membership at BCC, denominational affiliation, or spiritual tradition.

• Those curious about Christianity, who have not yet made a commitment of faith through Jesus Christ, are encouraged not participate until they have placed faith in Christ and instead use that portion of the service to instead pray and reflect on their personal faith journey.

Marriage

We believe that marriage was ordained by God to be between one man and one woman for life. Marriage is a covenant and should not be entered into lightly. Marriage is a great tool of sanctification in the life of a believer. We believe that before divorce would be considered as an option in any circumstance, that every effort to extend grace, repentance, understanding and reconciliation should be made. 

Identity

We believe God creates and assigns gender and no one can choose their own gender. Our gender is a gift from God and to question how God designed our physical bodies is to question His intent for our lives before birth. In addition, we believe that because of our gender, any sexual attraction to the same gender is out of order with the design that God made us from birth. Our gender and sexual identity is directly attached to the intent in which God made humankind to be fruitful and multiply.