What We Believe
Our mission statement: to Love God, Love People, and Make Disciples of Jesus; that Christ alone might be glorified in our community and around the world.
The gospel is the good news of God’s grace invading the darkness of this world. It is the grand narrative of creation, fall, redemption, and consummation ordained by God and orchestrated through the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. Christ’s crucifixion is the heart of the gospel. His resurrection is the power of the gospel. His ascension is the glory of the gospel.
1 Corinthians 15:1–11
We believe the Bible, consisting of the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, to be the inspired, authoritative and inerrant Word of God. It is the final rule for faith and practice. God gave us his revelation through men by the power of the Holy Spirit to write down what he declared.
Isaiah 40:8, Matthew 5:17–18, 1 Thessalonians 2:13, 2 Timothy 3:15–17, 2 Peter 1:16–21
We believe in the eternal Triune God; three persons co-existing as one God. This is, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe that God is the creator of the universe and all that is in it, that He is the King over His Creation, and desires both loyalty and love from all people. He is without change, just, holy, all knowing, all present, all powerful, the supreme judge over all, yet full of mercy, and compassion.
Genesis 1, Colossians 1:14–16, Isaiah 45:7–9
We believe that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God (co-equal, yet submissive to the Father) who was manifested in flesh as a fulfillment of all Old Testament promises for a Messiah. We believe that Jesus is God’s only Son and is a member of the Trinity. He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died on the cross to make atonement for our sins, rose bodily from the dead, and ascended to the Father’s right hand.
We believe that His death on the cross was substitutionary, in that He died in the place of all those who would believe in Him through faith. We believe that Jesus intercedes for believers as their High Priest and that He will soon return as the reigning King.
John 1:1–18, Luke 2:1–20, Hebrews 4:14–16, 1 Peter 3:18, Hebrews 10:1–18, 1 Corinthians 15, Ephesians 1:20–22, Revelation 19–20
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person in the Godhead who convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment and that he is the supernatural agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption. He is also continually filling believers with himself as they surrender to this and leading those who seek his direction. He also fills his people for the bold proclamation of the gospel.
John 16:8–11
We believe there is only one true God, who eternally exists as a Trinity of equally divine persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each member of the Trinity thinks, acts, feels, speaks, and relates, because each is a person and not an impersonal force. Each member of the Trinity is equally God, sharing all the divine attributes.
Genesis 1:26–28, Matthew 3:13–17
We believe that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone. We believe that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Ephesians 2:8–10, Romans 10:13
We believe that God not only saves us by grace, but that He also keeps us by grace and therefore we are eternally secure in the love of God, regardless of our performance. We also believe that those who are in an authentic relationship (truly saved, regenerated, Spirit filled) with God will persevere in faith as proof of their standing in Christ.
Ephesians 1:13–14, Philippians 1:6, Romans 8:28–39, John 10:24–30, John 6:35–40, John 5:24
We believe that sin has fractured all things, leaving the world in desperate need of salvation. We believe that because Adam sinned all are born into sin and are sinners in need of the good news of Jesus.
Romans 5:12–21, Psalm 51:5, Romans 5:8
We believe that all humanity is created in the image of God and possesses intrinsic dignity and worth. We value every life and desire to see all people that we meet come to know Jesus as Lord.
Genesis 1:26–28
We believe that God made men and women distinct and in His image. We believe that the Lord loves both male and female equally. But we believe that the Bible has given men and women different roles to play in the redemptive story and Christian life. We believe that the church, homes, and relationships flourish when we recognize and submit to those God given roles.
Genesis 1:27, Genesis 2:22–25, 1 Peter 3:7
We teach that marriage was given by God and defined by God. Marriage has no meaning other than that which the Lord has provided (Genesis 2:18–24). We teach that marriage is subject to the curse of the Fall but that believers, living in obedience to the Scripture and under the control of the Holy Spirit, can begin to experience peaceful, productive, and fulfilled marriage as intended by God (Genesis 3:16, 1 Peter 3:7).
We teach that the marriages of believers are to illustrate the loving relationship of Christ and His church, with the husband loving his wife as Christ loves the church and the wife responding to her husband’s loving leadership as the church responds to Christ (Ephesians 5:18–33).
We teach that as believers’ marriages are to illustrate Christ’s relationship with His church, believers should choose to marry those who share their faith and regenerate life (2 Corinthians 6:14).
We teach that the term “marriage” has only one meaning and that is marriage sanctioned by God which joins one man and one woman in a single, covenant, exclusive union, as laid out in scripture (Genesis 2:23–24).
We believe that the universal church is made up of all those across any denominational, national, or racial lines who have been joined to Christ through faith. A local church is made up of those believers gathered in a particular region and overseen by their pastors/elders. They come together to learn from God’s Word, to commemorate Christ’s work in their lives by celebrating baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and to devote their hearts, minds, and souls to the worship of Him.
Outside the corporate gathering, they seek to live missional and they desire to be conformed to the likeness of Christ. The church thrives when they are pursuing Christ together in an intimate community and inviting the un-churched into that same community.
Ephesians 2:20–22, Acts 2:42–47, Acts 20:28
We are an elder led church by men who are affirmed by our covenant members to lead in the spiritual direction and overall vision of the church body. These elders are men who meet the Biblical standards for this position (1 Timothy 3, Titus 1).
We have deacons who are men appointed for the task of service in the church. These men have been appointed based on their ability to serve above and beyond.
Baptism and communion (the Lord’s Supper) are the two ordinances prescribed by our Lord Jesus Christ as visible symbols of invisible grace. They are discernible and tangible representations of both the invisible realities of the gospel and the Spirit’s application of this gospel to our lives. With both ordinances, believers have an opportunity to “remember” God’s goodness and grace, especially as revealed in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Both baptism and communion picture Christ’s death and resurrection and our participation in His death and resurrection through union to Him in faith. As we enter the waters or watch another do so, we are reminded that Christ was crucified and raised from the dead and that we, too, have died to the old self in order to live for Christ (Matthew 28:18–20, Acts 2:37–41, Acts 22:16, Acts 8:12, Galatians 3:27, Romans 6:3–4).
Baptism does not save.
Though grace is mysteriously mediated through the ordinance, it is not saving grace but rather sanctifying grace. We are more conformed to the image of Christ as we obey Him in the call to be baptized.
Ephesians 2:8, 1 Peter 3:21
Baptism is not “necessary” for salvation.
Without in any way diminishing the duty and delight of baptism for a believer, we must also warn against thinking which suggests that salvation is dependent upon baptism. The gospel is one of salvation by grace alone, through faith alone.
Ephesians 2:8–9, Romans 10:9, Acts 16:30–31, John 3:16, John 6:47, John 14:6
Though other denominations and theological traditions baptize by pouring or sprinkling, Villa Rica Community Church practices baptism by immersion. We do so in light of the following considerations:
The Greek word βαπτίζω (baptizo) literally means to plunge, submerge or immerse.
Our English word baptism is a transliteration of the Greek baptizo. Baptizo was used in Greek literature to describe the act of immersing something in water or another liquid. It later became a technical term that referred specifically to the Christian ordinance of baptism.
Matthew 3:13–17, Mark 1:9–11, John 3:23, Acts 8:36
The representation of union in Christ’s death and resurrection is best expressed through immersion.
Whether buried below or above ground, the symbolism of burial is still that of being placed under something. Likewise, resurrection is accomplished by coming out of something (whether grave or tomb). Immersion best symbolizes this reality by actually placing the believer under the water and bringing them out.
Romans 6:4
We do not reject anyone’s salvation because of their mode of baptism. We believe that baptism by immersion is the model that the New Testament gives, but we are not breaking fellowship with other Christians over the issue. Salvation is not dependent on whether you have been baptized or not. We do believe that the rejection of baptism is blatant disobedience for the confessing regenerated believer. We would have a hard time understanding why a professing saved Christian would not want to be baptized.
Acts 10:47, Acts 8:36
We’d love to talk. Come see us on a Sunday, or call the church office at (770) 459-5820.
