What We Believe
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There is a difference between Essential Theology and Non-Essential Theology. In other words, not all things have the same spiritual "weight" in the Bible. That is not to say that beliefs that "weigh less" than others in the Bible are unimportant, it just means that they are not central (essential) to a saving and transforming relationship with Jesus. It means that there is room for different interpretations and expressions of Non-Essential things within the large and diverse body of Christ.
At Journey, we affirm that the doctrine/theology of the Trinity, the full humanity and full deity of Christ, the atoning work of Christ on the cross and His bodily resurrection, the filling of the Holy Spirit, the Bible as the inspired word of God and salvation by grace through faith are Essential. In other words, they are central to our faith.
On other doctrines we follow the wise words of 17th Century theologian Rupertus Meldenius, "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity."
KNOWABLE TRUTH
We believe in the accuracy, truth, authority and power of the Holy Scriptures as the Word of God. God divinely inspired human authors to write the sixty-six books of the Bible. He communicated through these writers the values, principles, and ideals which please Him and are in our best interests. We believe the Bible is entirely accurate, complete, and reliable.
ONE GOD
We believe in a personal God who has revealed Himself as One and who has existed eternally. God exists in three persons–Father, Son and Holy Spirit–each distinct, yet all of One essence. At the beginning of time, God created the entire universe and all its creatures. He continues to exercise His supreme power to sustain His creation. Throughout history, He has expressed His desire to be our God and to have a personal, eternal relationship with us.
UNIQUENESS OF CHRIST
We believe that Jesus is the eternal divine Son of God. He chose voluntarily to be made in human likeness and was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin and lived in flesh. Although He lived a sinless life, He allowed Himself to be executed by crucifixion. However, as prophesied, He rose from the dead three days after His execution, and ascended to the Father according to the Scriptures.
INDWELLING POWER
The third person of God is Holy Spirit. We believe that life on earth is to be lived in the power of Holy Spirit, who dwells in every Christ-follower. His indwelling presence gives spiritual life to believers and distinguishes them as children of God. Holy Spirit enables Christ- followers to live distinctive lives in the life and power of Christ, making famous the Father in heaven.
ABOUT MAN
God created mankind to live in relationship with Him. However, the first man and woman were deceived by Satan. They rebelled and chose to be wrongfully independent from God. We all fail to please God and are open to Satan’s deception. Our failure to please God, unless a relationship is re-established with Him, results in condemnation under God’s judgment and would cause us to spend eternity in hell. Furthermore, there is nothing we can do on our own to re-establish our relationship with God.
FINDING OUR WAY BACK TO GOD
Our relationship with God can be restored only through Jesus. Because God loves us so much, Jesus was always the plan for us to find our way back to him. Jesus became God in flesh and lived among us in sinless perfection, a goal we could never attain on our own. In the ultimate act of grace, Jesus died a brutal death on a cross and was separated from the Father in three hours of agony. He was buried, but rose victoriously to life three days later. While on earth, Jesus taught that any who repent and believe in him will find salvation and be restored into community with God. In the words of the Apostle Paul, it’s by grace, through faith that we can find our way back to God.
THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE HOLY
Created by and for God, we seek to passionately pursue an intimate relationship with God in response to His great love for us. Our inability to re-establish our relationship with God leaves us dependent on God’s mercy. God graciously provided the means to reconcile this relationship through faith in Jesus Christ. Our relationship is re-established when we make a commitment to accept Jesus as God’s son and our Savior and Lord. To know God is the ultimate treasure of the soul.
GOD'S PEOPLE
We believe that those who have placed their faith in Christ are knit together in one Body, the Church, a distinctive community of faith expressed in local clusters, engaging culture on every front with God’s hope and love … a Church for which Christ will personally return.
WHOLE LIFE WORSHIP
More than outward forms, theologically informed worship must encompass our entire existence, whereby in all circumstances our words and actions bring glory to God.
COMMUNITY OF FAITH
The worldwide Body of Christ function best in localized communities of believers. Thus we seek to plant churches that amplify His fame, strengthen the lives of people and repair communities so that all people can know the healing power and grace of the Savior.