Garden Beliefs

At Garden Church, we hold to historic Christian orthodoxy as articulated in the Apostles’ and Nicene creeds. We also have a developed a statement of beliefs reflecting our convictions in our modern context.

  • I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

    I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell.

    The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

    I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

  • We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

    And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and was made human. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried. The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will never end.

    And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life. He proceeds from the Father and the Son, and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. He spoke through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and to life in the world to come. Amen.

The Bible

We believe in the inspiration of the 39 Old Testament and 27 New Testament books [traditional canon] of Scripture; that both the Old Testament and the New Testament are the infallible Word of God in all matters of life and doctrine; that the Bible is completely relevant today for every area of the human experience because it is living and active; that the Bible is the final authority for faith and lifestyle. It is to be believed, practiced, trusted, and hoped in. The Bible is the final authority on all matters to which it speaks. (1 Cor. 2:13, 2 Tim. 3:16; Heb. 4:12; 2 Pet. 1:21)

The Triune God

We believe that there is One true God, the eternally self-existing “I AM”, who has revealed himself to us in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe that the persons of the Trinity are co-eternal, co-equal, and yet with unique function. (Ex. 3:14; Deut. 6:4; Isa. 43:10, 11; Matt. 28; Jn. 8:58; 2 Cor. 13:14)

Jesus Christ

We believe Jesus Christ is the incarnation of the Second Person of the Trinity. He is a distinct person from the Father and the Holy Spirit, yet of the same substance, two natures in One person (divine and human). We believe that Jesus Christ is God of God, the Son of God, who was incarnated as a human, was born of a virgin, was crucified, was buried, was resurrected, and is seated at the right hand of God on high. (Mt. 1:20; Mk. 16:19; Jn. 1:1, 14; 3:16; 20:1-2; 1 Cor. 15:3-5; Hebrews 2:17; Gal. 4:4 Phil. 2:8; 1 Pet. 3:22)

The Holy Spirit

We believe the Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity. He is a distinct person from the Father and the Son, God of God, sent by the Father to equip the Body of Christ with grace for work. In all he does, he glorifies Christ. He convicts the world of sin, regenerates sinners, and in him they are baptized into union with Christ and adopted into the family of God. The Holy Spirit is received at salvation and assists us in our weaknesses by enabling us to live victorious, bold, Christ-like lives through ongoing filling. (Jn. 14:16-26; Rom. 8:9, 26; Eph. 4:30, 5:18; 1 Cor. 12:7-11; Heb. 10:29)

Sin and the Fall of Humanity

We believe that humankind was created in the image of God but voluntarily sinned when tempted by Satan and fell short of God’s righteousness. Sin is willful transgression of the law of God and is death. At the fall, humankind incurred spiritual death (which is spiritual separation from God) and physical death. All human beings are in union with Adam and are sinners by nature and by choice. Sin has alienated humankind from God and subjected it to his wrath. (Ge. 1:26, 27; 2:17; 3:6; Rom. 5:12-19)

Salvation and the Work of Christ

Humankind’s hope of redemption is only possible through the life, ministry, death on the cross and the resurrection of Jesus. The redemption offered to humankind through the work of Christ must be received by repentance toward God and faith in Christ. Those who receive God’s offer of grace by faith are born again, justified, regenerated, adopted into the family of God, made heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, on-going filling with the Holy Spirit, and are partakers of eternal life to come. (John 3:3; Acts 4:12; Eph. 1:7; Rom. 5:10; 8:14-17; 10:9-10; Titus 3:5-6)

The Church & God’s Kingdom

We believe that the Church is the Body of Jesus Christ, who is its Head. The Church is composed of all those who have been justified by God’s grace through faith alone in Christ alone. The Church is manifest in local churches. The Church is being built up and made into the Bride of Christ, fully matured and presentable at Jesus’s Second Coming. We believe the Church is a pillar of truth to the world because of the abiding story and presence of Jesus and the ongoing work and power of the Holy Spirit. The Church is an instrument of the Kingdom of God. We believe Jesus established his Kingdom through his life, ministry, death and resurrection and commissioned His Church to partner with Him in the renewal of all things. We live in the tension of the Kingdom ‘now and not yet;’ and we live expectantly, praying and partnering with God in seeing his Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven. (Mt 6:9-13, Mt. 16:18, 1 Cor. 12:13, Rom. 5:1, 5; Eph. 1:22-23, 4:11-17, 5:27; 1 Pet 2:9, Rev. 2-3)

Christ’s Return and The New Heaven + New Earth

We believe in the personal, bodily, and glorious return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now of his coming, which time is unknown, upon Christ's return, Christ will bring judgment, separate the wheat from the chaff, renew the earth, and reign as King forever. We believe that God is creating a New Heavens and a New Earth where humans will dwell forever with God. The imminent coming of Christ should inspire godly living and commitment to the mission of the Gospel. (Isa. 65:17, Mt. 24:30, Acts 1:11, 1 Cor. 15:50-54, 1 Thess. 4:16-17, Rev. 19:11-22:21)

Hell

We believe that those who reject God’s offer of grace and forgiveness and whose names are not found in the book of Life will be raised and judged in the resurrection of the wicked and given over to the “lake of fire” along with the devil and his angels for all eternity. (Mt. 25:46, Mark 9:43-48, Rev. 19:20, 20:11-15, 21:8)

The Ministry of the Holy Spirit

We believe that the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Church at Pentecost in power, baptizing believers into the Body of Christ and releasing the gifts of the Spirit to them. The Spirit brings the permanent indwelling presence of God to us for spiritual worship, personal sanctification, building up the Church, gifting us for ministry, and driving back the kingdom of Satan by the evangelization of the world through proclaiming the word of Jesus and doing the works of Jesus. We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Jesus Christ and that He is our abiding Helper, Teacher, and Guide. We believe in the filling or the empowering of the Holy Spirit, often a conscious experience, for ministry today. We believe in the present ministry of the Spirit and in the exercise of all of the biblical gifts of the Spirit. The purpose of the gifts is to equip the Church to carry out its mission until Christ returns, as well as to be a foretaste of the life to come. Believers should seek God in prayer for the gifts of the Spirit to operate in their own lives and ministries and should not only agree to them theoretically but practice them outwardly as the Spirit leads. (Rom. 1:11; 1 Cor. 1:5, 7; 12:1, 31; 1 Cor. 14:12; 2 Tim. 1:6-7; Heb. 6:5)

Marriage

We believe God has ordained marriage as a covenant relationship between one biological man, one biological woman, and Himself. God’s purpose in this is that marriage be a symbol of two different things coming together to reflect something new. Fundamental to marriage, is God’s design for how both men and women reflect God’s image into the world, together. Human marriage, defined by Jesus as the lifelong covenantal union of two sexually-different-yet-equal persons, is a temporary signpost pointing to far a greater cosmic reality—the ultimate union of heaven and earth. (Gen. 2:24, Matt. 19:4, Eph. 5:25, 1 Pet. 3:7)

Gender

We believe that from the beginning God created two separate and distinct biological sexes: male and female. Moreover, we believe that Scripture does not permit any difference between biological sex and gender identity or expression. Humankind has been created by God and any attempt to misconstrue the difference between male/female and/or biological sex/gender identity is an attempt to self-create and is a result of sin and the fall. (Gen. 1:26-27, Matt. 19:4, Mark 10:6-7, Psalm 139:14)

Image of God + Race

We believe that God created every person equally in his own image. As divine image-bearers, all people have value and dignity before God and deserve honor, respect, and protection. Everyone has been created by God and for God. Racism, which is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism by an individual, community, or institution against a person or people on the basis of their membership in a particular racial or ethnic group, is evil and is the result of sin. We believe that Scripture is the final authority for addressing racism. (Gen. 1, Mk 12:31, Acts 17:26, Rom. 2:11, Rev. 7:9-10, 2 Tim. 3:16-17)

Right to Life

We believe that all human life is valuable and sacred, and that human life and full personhood begins at conception and continues until natural death. As stewards of life, we are endowed by God with the responsibility to protect the worth and dignity of human beings from the moment of conception until the moment of death. Therefore, we oppose taking innocent life in all forms, including abortion and euthanasia. At the same time, we recognize decisions along these lines can be difficult beyond understanding; there are no simplistic solutions and so we seek to support persons in discerning God’s purposes and direction in these matters. (Gen. 1:26-27, Job 31:15, Ps. 22:10, Ps. 127:3-5, Ps. 139:13-16, Jer. 1:5, Acts 17:25)

Women in Leadership

We believe that women and men are created equal in the image of God. We believe that full equality between men and women does not mean women and men are completely the same. This distinction in gender represents an essential characteristic of personhood and reflects an essential part of being created in God’s image. We believe both men and women are necessary for the health and ministry of the church. We believe Godly men and women should be empowered to lead within the church as God raises up leaders on the basis of grace, calling, spiritual gifts, character and obedience. We believe women and men should lead, preach, pastor and minister within the church. We believe women and men can and should serve in pastoral leadership, including the role of an elder within the local church. (Gen. 1:27-28; Matt. 19:4; Mark 10:6, I Corinthians 12:7, Romans 11:29)

Unity

We believe in unity among the essentials and liberty among non-essentials. We embrace diversity of opinions and theology, finding it more edifying and Christ-like to build bridges when it comes to peripheral doctrinal matters (i.e., eschatological interpretations, Calvinism/Arminianism, etc.) versus drawing lines of division. Because of this, our volunteers and leaders are comprised of diverse theological backgrounds and are exhorted to be respectful and inquiring toward one another in the spirit of Christian unity. (Ps. 133:1, Acts 15:1-21, Eph. 4:3, Phi. 2:2, 2 Cor. 13:11)