Beliefs

Welcome!

You have a story. And it’s probably one that has its fair share of both brokenness and beauty.

God has a story, too. A story of how God has related to His people since the very beginning, amidst their fair share of brokenness and beauty.

We believe that the two are connected, and that God’s story (the Bible) gives meaning to ours.

  • So if you’re looking to dig deep or ask some big questions—you’re in the right place, we do that.
  • If you’re looking for a solid foundation—you’re in the right place, we’re firmly rooted in Scripture, grace, and the Christian Creeds.
  • And if you’re looking for a bit more meaning—you’re in the right place, come try out our First Lutheran family of faith.

We’re very confident that you’ll find a meaningful connection to the greatest story ever told from the greatest story teller of them all—our Good and Gracious God.

WHAT WE BELIEVE (grounded in Ephesians 1:3-14)

About God We see in the Bible a great word picture of our God who reveals himself in three unique ways, that we call the Trinity. To get a handle on how God relates to us, look at parents. Usually, they have three critical relationships: with their own parents, with their spouses, and with their children. Same people, yet they relate differently in each circumstance. So it is with God who relates to us as the Creator (the Author of Life), the Savior (the One who conquers death), and the Sanctifier (the Spirit who inspires us in our walk of faith). Same God, different ways of relating to us and the world, all for the same purpose – to “make known to us the mystery of God’s will” (Ephesians 1:9).

About the Bible We believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. We celebrate how God has spoken through the patriarchs, the prophets, and the people of the promise to reveal God’s plan for the world: “to unite all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth” (Ephesians 1:10). From God’s promise to bless Abraham and Sarah, to lead Moses and the Israelites, to walk with all people “through the valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23), and to “seal us with the promised Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 1:13), the story of the Bible is the story of how God has called us all to proclaim – through our words and deeds – the good news of God’s love in Christ Jesus for all the world.

About the Sacraments Simply put, Sacraments are physical signs of God’s grace. Lutheran Christians celebrate two sacraments: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper (Holy Communion). We believe that there are three key ingredients that make a spiritual act a sacrament.

  1. Jesus commanded all people to do it.
  2. A physical element is key to the ceremony.
  3. A promise of grace is attached to the sacred act.

Of all the sacred things we could-and-should do, these two (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper) manifest all three ingredients mentioned above. Baptism reminds us that we have been reborn spiritually as children of God. The Lord’s Supper, eating and drinking Jesus’s body and blood, is a feast of grace that will satisfy every hungry and thirsty soul.