What We Believe

The following are the core beliefs of Forest Park Church of Christ based on the foundational truths taught in the bible. All of our teaching and ministry is rooted in and flows out of these biblical doctrines.

There is one eternally existing God who has three distinct persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. He is the creator of all that exists, both visible and invisible, and is, therefore, worthy of all glory and praise.  God is perfect in love, power, holiness, goodness, knowledge, wisdom,  justice, and mercy. He is unchangeable and, therefore, is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. (Genesis 1:1 and 26-27 3:22, Psalm 90:2, Matthew 28:19, John 14:26, I Peter 1:2, II Corinthians 13:14)

That He is truly God and truly man, existing for all eternity and having been conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a life without sin, was crucified on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins, rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven where He now reigns as our High Priest and Mediator. (Matthew 1:22-23, Isaiah 9:6, John 1:1-5, 8:58, 10:30-38, 12:45, 14:10-30, 17:5,24, Hebrews 1:3, 4:14-15, 7:3, I Corinthians 15:3-4, Romans 1:3-4)

His ministry is to glorify Jesus Christ and, during this age, to convict men of sin, indwell, guide, instruct, comfort, and empower the believer for godly living and service. We further believe that all Baptized believers have been promised the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Although we cannot dictate the Holy Spirit as to when and where He acts, the promise of His presence may be claimed at the point of conversion (Acts 2:38). The Holy Spirit then gives gifts of ministry to each one for the good of the body (I Corinthians 12:4-7). We do not believe that sign gifts exist to prove someone is saved, nor should they be practiced to draw attention to the individual.

Both the Old and New Testaments are the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men, and the divine and final authority for all Christian faith and life. (II Timothy 3:16, II Peter 1:20-21, II Timothy 1:13, Psalm 12:6, 119:105 and 160, Proverbs 30:5.)

God has revealed himself to us through his son, Jesus Christ, who is the visible image of the invisible God, the holy scriptures, and through all of creation itself.

Humans, both male and female, were created in God's image for His glory. The first humans, Adam and Eve, were created without sin and appointed as caretakers of the rest of God's creations.

Stewardship is giving back to God in the areas of money, abilities, and time. God is the giver of all good and perfect gifts and therefore the owner of all things before and after they have been given to us. He promises to reward with His blessings those who faithfully give back to Him. His blessings are given in accordance with man’s faithfulness and generosity. (James 1:17, Luke 6:38, Romans 12:8, II Corinthians 9:7, Malachi 3:8-10)

The Devil is real. He desires to “kill, steal, and destroy” the Church and that he is ruler over the present world system. (Job 1:6ff, Matthew 4:1, John 10:10, II Corinthians 11:14, II Thessalonians 2:8-9, Hebrews 2:14, Ephesians 6:12, I Peter 5:8, I John 3:8)

When Adam and Eve chose not to obey God, they ceased to be what they were made to be and became distorted images of God. This caused them to fall out of fellowship with God, and fractured all of creation ever since that time.

Jesus Christ came to reconcile us with God. He lived a life without sin and willingly died on the cross to pay the penalty for our transgressions. God raised him from the dead and now, by grace, offers as a free gift eternal life to all who follow Christ, by faith, as their Lord and Savior. That is why salvation can be found in Christ alone. Salvation is through the grace of Jesus only and paid for by His blood. (Ephesians 1:7) No amount of work on man’s part can earn it. (Ephesians 2:8,9) People are called to believe and accept Jesus as the only Savior for sin. (Acts 15:7) People are expected to confess belief in Christ. (Matthew 10:32) People obediently follow Christ’s instruction in water baptism (immersion) for the forgiveness of sins. (Acts 8:35-38) Jesus then instructed to go and make disciples. (Matthew 28:19-20) Baptism was practiced in the Church from its beginning. (Acts 2:38-41)

The Church is meant to be the visible body of Christ, sent into the world to glorify God and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. Only those who have come to faith through Jesus Christ are a part of that church locally and universally (Colossians 1:18). We believe the Lord is the head of the church, and every local church has the right, under Christ, to govern its own affairs.

Jesus Christ is returning one day to judge both the living and the dead and to usher in the fullness of God's kingdom on earth.  All the dead will be resurrected – the believer to everlasting joy with the Lord – the unbeliever to everlasting punishment. Heaven and Hell are both very real. (II Thessalonians 1:9, II Peter 2:4-9 and 3:7, Jude 13, Revelation 20:15)