Our Beliefs

At CBC, we believe that the Creator God has revealed himself to humanity through his Son, Jesus Christ, and that our understanding of God comes through the Bible, his inspired message. This means that we focus exclusively on the Bible to determine what God is like, and what he wants from us. Our sermons, lessons and devotions emphasize the centrality of Scripture as the means of entering into a personal relationship with God and growing more like him. Our understanding of the Bible’s core teaching has led us to the following beliefs…

Along with millions of Christians throughout the ages, we believe that God exists as a Triune Being with one nature shared by three co-eternal and co-equal yet distinct Persons, the Father, the Son and the Spirit. We believe that God created the universe and everything in it; he is the Uncreated Creator.

We also believe that humanity is fallen and depraved, meaning that all of us are born with a sinful nature. We are each isolated from God and without his intervention, we would stay that way for eternity. All of the misery and suffering in the world is a direct or indirect result of human rebellion against God, and we have aligned ourselves with the supernatural forces who have arrayed themselves against him.

But God loves humanity, and He intervened in the world to restore us to Himself. Thus, the Father sent the Son into the world to reclaim us as his own by facing the consequences of our sin. The Son took on human nature by being born sinless to the Virgin Mary. He grew up and presented himself to the Jewish people as their King, but he was rejected and executed. However, this was God’s plan all along, to offer his Son as a sacrificial substitute for the sins of humanity. Thus Jesus Christ was physically and truly killed, but he physically and truly rose again to life, initiating a new era in God’s plan for the ages.

We believe that because of the Son’s sacrificial death, anyone who puts their faith in him will be rescued from the power and penalty of sin. God the Father gives them the righteousness of Jesus Christ and instills in them a new nature. The Spirit of God comes to live in them and transform their character to be like his.

As part of this process, God intends for believers to participate in a local church, which is a regular gathering of believers to worship him. Our services are organized around teaching the Scriptures and praising God with songs. We also periodically hold Communion and Baptisms, which represent the two ordinances that Jesus instructed his people to keep. We consider these ceremonies to be symbolic commemorations of Jesus’ death and its implications for us.

We believe every believer has access to God through Jesus Christ, so that there is no need for a priest or other human mediator. Each of us is responsible to God for our own actions, based on the Holy Spirit’s guidance and our consciences.

Finally, we maintain the confident expectation that the Son of God will return literally and physically to rule the Earth one day. We are citizens of his kingdom, which will have no end. Until that time, we live as aliens and strangers in the world, enjoying the good things God provides, but never mistaking it for home.

This is a basic summary of our beliefs, as listed in the Calvary Baptist Constitution Article III. Those who are interested are invited to visit the church to read a more complete description of our beliefs and practices in our Constitution, or to talk to the pastors and deacons about our particular take on an issue

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