Our Beliefs

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Our Purpose

At C3, we lead people into new and growing relationships with Jesus Christ!

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WHAT DOES SALVATION MEAN?

Christian salvation is the sacrificial and loving solution that Jesus’ death and resurrection provides humankind which resolves the human separation and hunger caused by sin. Salvation answers the longing in the soul to restore our purpose and relationship with our creator. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Any person who comes to me will never go hungry, and those who believe in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35).

WHAT IS A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS?

A relationship with Jesus refers to those who have accepted Jesus’ resolution for sin and restoration with the creator. Just as a relationship grows with time, so does an intentional prioritized focus on one’s own relationship with Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and God the Father, three in one.

WHAT WE BELIEVE – c3 ESSENTIALS

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SCRIPTURE

The Bible is the inspired word of God, is reliable, and is the final authority for faith and practice.

GOD

There is one creator God, who exists eternally as three persons equal in power and glory.

JESUS

Jesus is fully human and fully God and the only way to eternal salvation.

THE HOLY SPIRIT

We believe the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, sanctifies, empowers, and gifts people for his work in this world.

SIN

Our sin revokes our relationship with God, others, and our life purpose.

SALVATION

Salvation is God’s gift of grace for those who repent and worship Jesus as Lord and savior.

THE GATHERING

The Church is the body of Christ who gathers weekly for praise, hearing a message from God’s word, and serving together.

JESUS TRIUMPHANT RETURN

We believe that Jesus Christ will come again (Titus 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; John 14:1-3) and reign eternally (Philippians 2:9-11).

HUMANITY

We believe that God created, and science confirms there are two binary human genders (Genesis 1:27; 5:2) equal in divine stature and distinguished as male and female.

SEXUALITY

We believe in the unique nature of human beings that defines human sexual intimacy between one man and one woman in marital union (Genesis 2:24). Followers of Jesus seek freedom from sexual sin (Acts 15:28-29; Romans 11:17) clearly defined in scripture (Acts 15:28-29; Romans 11:17). 

BELIEFS WE HOLD AS A CHURCH THAT ARE NON-ESSENTIAL FOR SALVATION.

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WATER BAPTISM

We believe water baptism is for ‘believers’—an action that follows a personal conversion. We practice believers’ baptism.

We are aware that many Bible-believing Christians experience water baptism differently. We respect their view and see this issue as one that Christians can disagree with each other on and not part ways.

If believers in our church choose not to be baptized our way, because of biblical conviction (not just convenience or tradition), then we respect their views and we enthusiastically welcome them as partners.

We practice baptism by immersion but do not see this as a major issue. What if there is a shortage of water? Christians can and do disagree on many aspects of baptism, we still recognize that baptism is an important step of obedience to Jesus Christ, to symbolize that he has saved us, and we testify we are his.

We do not believe baptism is necessary for salvation; for it is by grace alone through faith we are saved.

BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT

We believe that every Christian receives the Holy Spirit when they trust Christ as their Savior. The Holy Spirit resides in the saved believer to teach, lead, guide, direct, and empower. This filling grafts the person into the body of Christ at the time of conversion.

There can also be a different, non-technical use of the word “baptize.” God invites followers of Christ to seek daily renewal and empowerment by the Holy Spirit. One might pray “Lord, fill me with Your Holy Spirit today” or “Holy Spirit manifest your power through me today”.  We are encouraged to seek the Holy Spirit for Gods gifts and for us to bear his fruit.

Some segments of faith believe that the spiritual gift of tongues is THE evidence for either salvation or to prove one has the Holy Spirit living in them properly. We would not demand a physical manifestation of tongues to determine someone is filled by the Holy Spirit.

We believe the Holy Spirit distributes all the spiritual gifts today, there were not some gifts that ended at some time in the past. A person receives the Spirit of God with or without the manifestation of one singular gift. (See 1 Corinthians 12:13). In addition, no one gift is for everyone, neither does one have all or many of the manifested gifts. Gifts can manifest as needed based on the circumstance and the Holy Spirits will in the moment.

ESCHATOLOGY

We believe that Jesus Christ is coming again, and those who have believed on Him as their Savior will be gathered with Him at that time. We do not specify, in our core beliefs, the exact timing of such an event, or the different views that believers have of the specifics prior to or following that event. Our teaching will emphasize we need to live ready for Jesus’ return and for all of the eschatological events God plans (See Matthew 24; Revelation 6-20; 1 Thessalonians 4).

ETERNAL SECURITY

We believe eternal security exists for those who offer themselves in true repentance and regeneration. Any person who, in simple faith, places their trust in Jesus Christ receives the gift of eternal life. Because the gift is not earned it cannot be unearned. All sin is forgiven at repentance and salvation. We are freely given right standing with God. Every child of God is sealed by the Holy Spirit and safe and secure. A Christian can lose their fellowship, joy, power, and rewards in this life, but their relationship with God is eternal. (See John 5:24,6:47, 10:27-30, Romans 3:21-31, 8:28-39, Ephesians 2:1-10). A person can make a pretense of salvation or rely on others for their personal salvation without choosing regeneration.

GENERATIONAL SIN

Generational sin advocates that people suffer from some kind of judgment or curse because of the sin of the parents or some other ancestor, and that you need to renounce this sin to get freedom from it so you can walk with God rightly and be free from a curse.

We understand the nuance here but cannot affirm something that potentially undermines and misunderstands the work of Jesus Christ’s death on the cross. Jesus, through the work of salvation, sets us free from sin, death, condemnation, and its curse. When we trust Christ as Savior, we are set free. We are a new creation. We are under no condemnation. We have forgiveness for all our sins. This is our identity in Christ.

Therefore, our identity in Christ is under no such curse of sin because of our ancestors. Obviously, there are consequences of sin that hurt us regardless of ancestry. For example, if my parents were trapped in an addictive cycle that was riddled through the family, I could suffer biological consequence for their sin. We also know that one family might have addictive cycles of one kind over another that seem to repeat. If my family chooses immoral lifestyles, there are psychological impacts, and I will need to break free from those patterns. If my parents were divorced, I may have a skewed understanding of relationships. These examples of consequences can affect several generations. The point is that God is not imposing this judgment or curse for us to renounce or repent from. We are only responsible for our own sin and must rely on God’s grace and power to end the cycles of malediction.

The Generational Sin teaching is derived from several passages in the Old Testament that are misunderstood. The seminal passage in Exodus 20 clarifies that God visits the iniquity of the fathers on the children of those who hate him. Yet, God also clarifies in Ezekiel 18 that no one is punished for the sins of others.

Importantly, generational sin is absent from the New Testament teachings. If this is an important post resurrection part of the spiritual life, we would find it referenced in the New Testament writings. There is no single mention. Therefore, we believe this teaching is misconstrued and denies the work of Jesus Christ on the cross to set us free from all sin.

PROPHECY

We believe in gifts of the Holy Spirit (see also Baptism in Holy Spirit). God’s Word reveals God’s desire for the body of Christ to practice the Holy Spirit gift of prophecy with an attitude to preserve and protect the body of Christ from those who would lead people astray. (Jeremiah 23:24-32, James 3:13-18) Much of the prophetic word gift is used within the context of preaching or bringing the message of scripture from stage to the large group gathering. Private prophetic words can be given to C3 pastors for discernment and action.

WOMEN AS MINISTERS

We believe that women and men are equally created in God’s image and given equal authority and stewardship of God’s kingdom. We affirm a classic traditional egalitarian theology.

We hold to a classic orthodox position of women leading in the local body. We avoid latter reformation views on this issue. We do not believe gifts of the Holy Spirit or authority are dictated by gender. Therefore, gender is not the point of entry or exit for ministry. There are difficult passages for all positions on this issue and there is a need for great humility and sensitivity.

This means that at C3, women can vision cast, instruct, and lead from any physical platform and in any ministry affirmed by leadership. That is not limited to and includes board of director, lead pastor, pastor, and director which are all overseeing roles.

As Jesus followers, the Bible is our authority, and we wrestle with the passages that address the issue from both and all reasonable exegesis and argument.  (See 1 Timothy 2:8-15, 1 Corinthians 11:2-16; 14:34-35, Acts 2:17-21; 21:9, Romans 16:1-2, Galatians 3:28, Judges 4)

Our position is in alignment with our association in the Church of God, Anderson Indiana, whereas since 1876, this Wesleyan holiness movement, recognized women as co-equal partners and submissive one to another in the family home and in local church leadership.

SALVATION BY GRACE ALONE

We do not believe in salvation through works or morality or baptism or promises to obey. We believe in salvation by grace and through trust in Jesus. We become Christians by trusting Jesus Christ as Savior. We believe in Jesus to give us life and a relationship with God that begins now and lasts for eternity. The way to God is by grace, through faith and trust. The Bible teaches this continually, especially in books such as John, Romans, Galatians, and Ephesians.

We do not become Christians by promising to obey him. We should do that as a response to salvation. Every follower of Jesus will commit their entire life and all they are to Jesus. But we are saved, that is regenerated, by trusting a Savior who died for our sin and rose again. We transfer our trust from self (being good enough) to Jesus and start by simply believing in Jesus effective power to save us. (See John 1:12, 3:15-16, 5:24, Romans 3:21-31, Ephesians 2:8-9). We recognize that a mark of a true believer is obedience and Lordship of Jesus Christ.

SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE

We believe that the primary message of Christians to those who support abortion must not be one of condemnation and judgment, but the love and grace of Jesus Christ and the freedom he brings us. 

The Bible teaches that human life begins at conception and therefore abortion is an interruption of God’s plan and is sin. We realize that many people, both inside and outside the church, have been scarred by the guilt and shame of abortion and we offer the liberating, healing grace and complete forgiveness of Jesus. (See Psalm 139; Psalm 51; Luke 1-2.)

The Bible teaches that all human life is sacred and created by God in his image.  Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimension, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death.  We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life (Psalms 139).