What We Believe
That there is only one true God, who has revealed Himself in the Holy Scriptures as the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
That this God created the world and everything in it in six days.
That Adam and Eve, the first man and first woman, fell into sin by disobeying the command of God not to eat from the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden.
That since the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, all people are born with original sin and are altogether incapable of pleasing God by their own merits, works, or behavior.
That God promised a Savior to Adam and Eve and, through them, to all people.
That this Savior is Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, through whom alone we receive forgiveness of sin, life, and salvation.
That people who do not have faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior will not spend eternity in heaven, but will experience eternal condemnation in hell.
That Jesus died for the sins of the whole world.
That only those who trust in His atoning death on the cross are saved eternally.
That we are saved by God's grace alone, without any merit or worthiness of our own.
That we are saved through faith in Christ alone, not by our own efforts, works, or endeavors.
That the doctrine of justification by grace through faith in Christ is the doctrine on which the Church stands or falls.
That Christians are called to proclaim to a lost and dying world the doctrine of justification, the good news that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not counting mankind's sins against them.
That the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testaments are the written Word of God and the only rule and norm of faith and of practice.
That the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible, written Word of God in all its parts.
That the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (also called the Lutheran Confessions) are a true and unadulterated statement and exposition of the Word of God; the three ecumenical creeds (the Apostle's, Nicene, and Athanasian), the Unaltered Augsburg Confession, the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, the Smalcald Articles, the Large Catechism of Luther, the Small Catechism of Luther, and the Formula of Concord.
That all the miraculous accounts recorded in Holy Scripture actually occurred.
That Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.
That Jesus healed the lame, the deaf, and the blind, and raised the dead back to life.
That Jesus was crucified, died, and was buried.
That Jesus rose bodily from the grave and ascended into heaven.
That in, with, and under the bread and the wine of Holy Communion, we receive Christ's true body and blood for the forgiveness of sins and the assurance of eternal salvation.
That all baptized Christians are members of the priesthood of all believers.
That church fellowship with other church bodies has as its basis complete agreement in doctrine and practice.
That the Scriptures teach that while women are not to hold the pastoral office, they are, like men, to use all of their God-given gifts in service to the Lord and His Church.
That Holy Communion, Holy Baptism, and the Word of God are the means through which God conveys to sinful human beings His grace-His undeserved love and forgiveness-and through which the Holy Spirit calls individuals to faith in Christ.