The doctrinal foundation of Prairie Chapel Church
We believe that all persons are created in the image of God, that we are recipients of God's grace and subject to the transformational power of the Holy Spirit received through faith in Jesus Christ. Our salvation is found in and is dependent on our relationship with God.
While many Christians hold varying perspectives on the Christian experience, scriptural interpretations, and come from hosts of different theological backgrounds, we affirm that there are five essential beliefs that hold us together as the body of Christ:
These essentials of faith bind us together and are essential for salvation. All differing views beyond the essentials that may be reflected in a diverse Christian community are believed to be non-essential, and therefore are not subject to argument or cause for division.
We confess the Bible is the inspired and infallible Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth in all matters. It is the sole and final source of all that we believe and is the foundational truth that informs our faith, doctrine, practice, policy, discipline, and salvation of all who would believe in Jesus Christ.
We confess our firm belief in the triune God — God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. This confession embraces the biblical and experienced witness of God in creation, the redemptive love of God manifested in Jesus Christ, and the ongoing work and presence of God in and through the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer and in the world. We hold the parts of the triune God not as separate, but as one, having the same power and purpose, yet revealed in different manifestations.
We confess our belief in God the Father — creator of Heaven and Earth. This confession embraces the biblical witness of God's activity in creation and his redemptive plan for humanity and all of nature. God created mankind to be at one with him and one with one another. We acknowledge God's gracious self-involvement throughout the dramas of history and accept his invitation to participate in his reign on earth.
We confess our belief in God the Son by which salvation is obtained through faith in him, according to the gracious acts of Jesus Christ. At the heart of the gospel is God's incarnation in Jesus of Nazareth. Scripture witnesses to the redeeming love of God in Jesus' life and teachings, his atoning death, his resurrection, his triumph over the powers of sin and death, and the promise of his return.
By his death on the cross of Calvary, Jesus gave his life as an atonement for the sins of all of mankind and has provided for us a way to be restored to a right relationship with God through faith in him. In his resurrection from the grave, Jesus rose with the final victory over sin and death and is now seated at the right hand of God in heaven. It is by his gracious acts that salvation is given, and by faith received, giving us hope for eternal life.
We confess our belief in God the Holy Spirit. This confession is by and through the witness of scripture and human experience that God's redemptive love is realized in human life by the activity of the Holy Spirit, both in personal experience and in the community of believers. Through faith in Jesus Christ we are forgiven, reconciled to God, and granted the presence of the Holy Spirit, which is the very presence and character of God living within the heart of the believer. The transformational power of God is active through the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit as the presence of God witnesses to our very souls, leading us to greater love and devotion, creating us in the very image of Christ.
We confess that Jesus Christ established his Church, in which he is the head, to be a physical presence on Earth that extends his grace, proclaims the gospel, participates in the sacraments, and offers the gift of salvation to all of mankind. Jesus' Church is the universal body of believers. The primary theological task of the church as illuminated by scripture is the salvation of souls.
As individual communities of faith, we aspire to provide every opportunity for people to come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior and to grow in their faith through the activities of the Church. As part of the Church, we are called to worship together in Spirit and in truth, engage in Christian fellowship, to be informed and educated in biblical teaching, live out sacrificial lives of generosity, and engage in Christ's works of healing and restoration through the missions and ministries of the Church.
Salvation is new life, or the regeneration of the soul, made available by the saving grace of Jesus Christ. Through faith and repentance, salvation is received; saving one from sin and the consequences of sin (which is death) and restoring the fallen man in right relationship with God. The act of salvation is inspired through the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in which spiritual life is brought to perfection.
The redeeming act of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross has made salvation available for all who would repent of their sin and call on the name of Jesus Christ by faith. Salvation is a completing act which begins upon our faithful response to God's gracious calling. God saves us from sin, and the powers of sin upon our profession of faith. Once justified we begin our journey of faith in which God continually calls us to greater depths of love and commitment to his Word.
As we respond in faith to the gracious calling of God to enter a saving relationship with him, we receive forgiveness for our sin and are restored into a right relationship with God. It is in our relationship with God that we find assurance of eternal life. Being justified by faith makes assurance possible and realized in the heart of the believer by the presence of the Holy Spirit. It is our profound belief that assurance is found through a personal relationship with God.
We affirm that Jesus has ordained two sacraments that are given freely to all who would seek to be in a relationship with God and his Church. Within the act of receiving the sacraments, God's grace is given which restores the soul in unity with God, his Church and all of humanity. Jesus calls all who believe in him to be baptized and to participate in the Lord's Supper which is Holy Communion.
Baptism marks the beginning of our journey of faith and is our initiation into the Kingdom of God. Our baptism is a pledge of faith in Jesus and through it we receive the gift of his redeeming love that transforms us into new creatures in Christ. The sacrament of baptism is a gift of love given to us and once received is sufficient for us in our life in Christ.
All modes of baptism are acceptable — sprinkling, pouring, and submersion. Infant baptisms require parental figures to enter into a covenant agreement with the church body. One baptism is required and granted.
Holy Communion is the sacrament given by Christ to his followers as a way for us to share in the death, resurrection, and second coming of our Lord. As we partake of the bread and the juice, we receive Christ spiritually into us, bringing us into communion with him. The gift of God's grace present at the table is available for anyone who would with a repentant heart receive it. God's table is open to everyone (including children) who has need of His redeeming Grace.
As informed by scripture, we believe marriage to be between one man and one woman.
We affirm as members of the universal church the historical creeds of the early church that direct the Church's teaching and protect foundational beliefs from false teachings. We affirm the Nicaea, Chalcedon, and the Apostles' Creed as historic and foundational expressions of primary Christian beliefs as illuminated by scripture.
As a Protestant Church we affirm the Heidelberg Catechism of the Reformed tradition. Considering our distinctive Wesleyan heritage, we affirm the traditional teachings of John Wesley in matters of salvation, social holiness, and the fullness of Christian life.
Prairie Chapel receives into membership all persons who have professed their faith in Jesus Christ and have been baptized. Church membership also requires the prospective member to be informed of and believe in the doctrines, practices, and theological position of Prairie Chapel, as well as a firm adherence to the mission and vision God has given this body of believers.
Learn More About Us →