what we believe

The Trinity 

It is the testimony of both the Old and New Testaments and of the Christian Church that God is both One and Triune. The biblical revelation testifies that there is only one God and that He is eternally existent in three persons —Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

The Scripture 

We affirm that the Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, is alone the only infallible, inspired Word of God, and that its authority is ultimate, final and eternal. It cannot be added to, subtracted from, or superseded in any regard. The Bible is the source of all doctrine, instruction, correction, and reproof. It contains all that is needed for guidance in godliness and practical Christian conduct. 

The Atonement and The Church 

Christ’s vicarious death on the cross paid the penalty for the sins of the whole world, but its benefits are only applicable to those who receive Jesus as their personal Savior. Healing—body, soul, and spirit—and all of God’s provisions for His saints are provided for in the atonement, but these must be appropriated. 

The goal of the Church is to make disciples of all nations and to present the saints complete in Christ.  Church policy is a balance between congregation and eldership authority, emphasizing the final authority of the Church leadership. It is essential to the life of the Church that scriptural patterns of discipline are practiced and that oversight for Church discipline, individual and corporate, is exercised by the leadership of the Church.   

Salvation 

The word of God declares clearly that salvation is a free gift of God, based on the merits of the death of his Son, and is appropriated by faith. Salvation is affected by personal repentance, belief in the Lord Jesus (justification), and personal acceptance of Him into one’s life as Lord and Savior (regeneration). The new life in Christ includes the privileges of adoption and inheritance in the kingdom of God’s beloved Son. Salvation is an act of free will in response to God’s personal love for mankind. It is predestined only in the sense that God, through His omniscience, foreknew those who would not choose Him. It is secure in the eternal, unchanging commitment of God who does not lie and is forever the same. Salvation should produce an active lifestyle of loving obedience and service to Jesus Christ our Savior. 

The Christian Life 

We believe that the scriptures portray the life of the saint in this world to be one of balance between what is imputed to us as Christians and what is imparted to us according to our faith and maturity. Hence, God’s provision for His children is total, and the promises are final and forever. The shortcomings of the individual and of the Church are because of the still progressing sanctification of the saints. The Christian life is filled with trials, tests, and warfare against a spiritual enemy.  For those abiding in Christ until their deaths or His return, the promises of eternal blessing in the presence of God are assured. To remain faithful through all circumstances of life requires dependence upon the Holy Spirit and a willingness to die to personal desires. 

Baptism & The Lord’s Supper 

The Word of God gives the church two perpetual ordinances of the Lord    Jesus Christ. The first, baptism, is the outward sign of what God has already done in the individual’s life and is a testimony to all that the person now belongs to Jesus. It is identification with Jesus and is affected in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  The Lord’s Supper is a commemoration of Jesus’s death and is done in remembrance of Him until He comes again; it is a sign of our participation in Him. Both institutions are restricted to those who are believers. 

Eschatology  

We affirm the bodily, personal, second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the saints, the millennium, and final judgment. The final judgment will determine the eternal status of both the saints and the unbelievers, determined by their relationship to Jesus Christ. We affirm with the Bible the final state of the new heavens and the new earth. 

Statement of Marriage 

We believe the term “marriage” has only one meaning, which is marriage sanctioned by God which joins one man, biologically assigned a man by birth, and one woman, biologically assigned a woman by birth, in a single exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture (Genesis 2:20-24; Mark 10:6-9). We believe that any form of sexual immorality according to the Scriptures (including adultery, fornication, homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography, and attempting to change one’s biological sex or otherwise acting upon any disagreement with one’s biological sex) is sinful and offensive to God. Therefore, it would be a breach of the doctrine of our church for pastors of The Heights Church to conduct the marriage or blessing of a union between same sex, same-gender, transgender or incestuous couples. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman.