OUR MISSION
Our mission is to lead people* into the Presence* of God, devotion to His Word*, authentic fellowship with others*, and discovering their ministry.*
* People: multi-generational, multi-racial, and multi-ethnic from all walks of life, backgrounds, and denominations.
* Presence: Christ exalting worship that encompasses liturgy, sacraments, sacred space, authenticity, and excellence.
* Word: that is, the Old and New Testaments as the only perfect rule for all matters of faith, doctrine, and conduct.
* Others: fellowship is more than friendship, so we develop and engage in compelling Christian community.
* Ministry: the equipping of the saints to serve within the church, and live missionally outside the church.
WE AFFIRM
The Centrality of the Word of God
The Necessity of the New Birth
A Commitment to the Whole Mission of the Church
The Church as a Fellowship of Believers
A Conscious Dependence on the Holy Spirit
The Reality of Freedom in Christ
Watch our sermon series on these affirmations:
OUR BELIEFS
THE BIBLE
We believe that the Bible is God's message to all people and the only perfect authority for faith, doctrine and conduct. We also believe that the Word of God is "spirit and life" and requires of us a spiritual and living response.
HOLY SPIRIT
We believe in a conscious dependence on the Holy Spirit, who, with the Father and Son, calls the church into being, empowers its ministry, guides its mission, and supplies the resources needed by the Church community to follow Jesus.
THE CHURCH
We believe in the Church as the community of believers, characterized by mutual participation in and sharing new life in Christ. Membership in the Redeemer family is by confession of faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It is open to all who believe. Uniformity in theological/creedal details is not expected. What is required is that one be "born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." (1 Peter 1:3)
BAPTISM
Simply put, baptism is a public act that celebrates your decision to trust Jesus Christ with your life. Baptism is an act of obedience, and a step of acknowledgment that is representative of the fact that Jesus died on the cross, was buried and walked out of the grave, alive, so that you can also have abundant life. In baptism, we publically claim God and God publically claims us. If you've made a decision to follow Jesus Christ and you've never been baptized, baptism is the next step in your spiritual journey.
FREEDOM IN CHRIST
We believe in the reality of freedom in Christ. We recognize that differences of opinion exist concerning theological issues, worship styles, and sacramental practices. But we believe that these differences are overcome through sharing a common life in Jesus. We believe that each person is unique and so is their experience in Christ. In Jesus Christ we have freedom, constrained by His Lordship and His Holy Word.
The Evangelical Covenant Church is a communion of congregations gathered by God, united in Christ and empowered by the Holy Spirit to obey the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. It affirms its companionship in faith with other church bodies and all those who fear God and keep God's commandments.
The Evangelical Covenant Church adheres to the affirmations of the Protestant Reformation regarding the Bible. It confesses that Holy Scripture, the Old and New Testaments, is the Word of God and the only perfect rule for faith, doctrine and conduct. It affirms the historic confessions of the Christian Church, particularly the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds, while emphasizing the sovereignty of the Word of God over all creedal interpretations.
In continuity with the renewal movements of historic Pietism, the Evangelical Covenant Church especially cherishes the dual emphasis on new birth and new life in Christ, believing that personal faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord is the foundation for its mission of evangelism and Christian nurture. Its common experience of God's grace and love in Jesus Christ continues to sustain the Evangelical Covenant Church as an interdependent body of believers that recognizes but transcends theological differences.
The Evangelical Covenant Church has its roots in historical Christianity, the Protestant Reformation, the biblical instruction of the Lutheran Church of Sweden, and the great spiritual awakenings of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. These influences, together with more recent North American renewal movements, continue to shape its development and distinctive spirit. The Evangelical Covenant Church is committed to reaching across boundaries of race, ethnicity, culture, gender, age and status in the cultivation of communities of life and service.