 |
[Immanuel Kalamazoo]
WHAT WE BELIEVE
About God ... We believe there is only one true God, the Triune (Three-In-One) God: Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit. We believe He made everything there is and He has revealed Himself in three
ways:
- imperfectly, through nature
- perfectly in His Word, the Bible
- perfectly in God the Son, Jesus Christ, whose teachings and actions are recorded in the Bible.
About Sin ... We believe that all people are born with a tendency to be self-serving and self-centered, to
place their own desires ahead of God's will. God condemns this as "sin" and it shows itself
as actions that are contrary to the Ten Commandments and as hidden sins of thought and
attitude. We believe that all people have this stain of sin from the moment of conception
and all are therefore born enemies of God.
About Salvation ... We believe that Jesus Christ, God's Son, became a human being while still
remaining God, for the purpose of coming to earth and "walking in our shoes". He lived a
perfect sinless life, yet He accepted the punishment our sins earned for us, and became the
Victim so we could be free from guilt and blame and be changed from God's enemies into
His children. This substitution took place for all the world, and God promises that we
enjoy its benefits through believing (trusting) in what Jesus did for us. Nothing we
ourselves can do is able to take away our guilt, but the free gift of Jesus' sacrifice on our
behalf has done everything necessary for our salvation.
About the Church ... We believe that God wants those who believe in Jesus for their salvation to band
together for worship and to fulfill a common purpose-- to help more of the local
community and the world abroad to hear the Good News of what Jesus has done for all
men. To that end they worship together, pray together, and support missionaries and local
workers with their labor and their gifts, and seek to find ways to show the love of God in
their actions individually and as a group.
About Baptism ... We believe that God uses His word of promise about Jesus and His work for us in
connection with His name to bring the fruits of Jesus' sacrifice to people through faith.
Some come to faith through hearing about what Jesus has done; others who are too young
to understand the message can come to faith through the miracle of Baptism, in which God
claims the child as His own and works to make the child a believer in Him. We believe that
the amount of water used, and the manner in which it is applied, is not important, only His
promise and His name.
About the Lord's Supper ... We believe that when Jesus established a supper for His church, saying
"Take, eat, this bread is my body; take, drink, this wine is my blood," He meant us to take
Him seriously. We believe that the bread is, somehow, in a mystery, His Body, and that the
wine is His Blood. They remain bread and wine and yet are also Jesus' body and blood, by
which He works stronger faith in us and reminds us again of His forgiveness of our sins.
Through partaking in this act we proclaim:
- our unity of purpose with other Christians
- our need for forgiveness of our sins
- our certainty in the power of His promises.
About Church Membership ... We believe that people should join a church not because they like
the building or the kind of music, but because they feel a common purpose with the other
members and want to help join them in the mission of that church. We believe that every
Christian is saved only by God's grace and not by belonging to this church or that church;
but since a church's teachings have a great influence on the faith of its members, each
Christian ought to be very conscientious as to which church he adopts as his spiritual
family.
About Christian Living ... We believe that the Bible is the only rule for living the Christian life.
What God has commanded, we must do; what He has forbidden, we must avoid and resist.
Anything else is in the "gray area" where each Christian must weigh carefully the pros and
cons and consequences of behavior, seeking God's guidance, seeking the advice of fellow
Christians, and following his conscience accordingly. For example, the Bible does not
forbid the use of alcohol, so we cannot go beyond the Bible and forbid it. However, the
Bible does forbid getting drunk, so we expect our members to exercise self-control and
moderation in this area.
About Human Life ... We believe that human life is unique, created in the image of God (Genesis
1:26) and so is qualitatively different from mere animal life. This life begins at the moment
of conception (Psalm 139:13) and is therefore protected by the fifth commandment, "You
shall not kill." We therefore join the other congregations of the Lutheran Church--Missouri
Synod in affirming that humans of every age and condition are in need of God's saving love
through the Gospel, and deserve our love and protection in obedience to God. While we as
a church do not engage in political action, we proclaim clearly that abortion, suicide, and
euthanasia are contrary to the fifth commandment and we encourage our members to be
involved citizens working for justice and the preservation of human life.
Immanuel Lutheran Church
a member congregation of the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod
3000 West Main Street----Kalamazoo, MI 49006----(616) 345-8090
David H. Sidwell, Pastor
| |
