At CrossWay, our faith in Jesus as our Savior is the most important thing. However, we are reformed Christians. Reformed is a term to describe Christians who believe that God is Sovereign (in control) over all the aspects of our life. Here are a few more core beliefs.
| People often use different acronyms to describe five main points of reformed theology. We prefer to use the acronym F.A.I.T.H.! Click here to read an article to learn more about these topics. | ||
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Fallen Humanity: All of humanity and our entire world are affected by sin. Internally, personally, all people sense they are “not right”—not at peace, not whole, not everything they could be. Externally, we’re all surrounded by evidence that the world is not right. It’s filled with crime and hunger and bloodshed. Adopted by God: With a heart full of love, someone brings that child home to cherish and raise, to make him or her a part of the family. That’s just what God does for the lost, fallen, and wandering people of this world. Adopted children do not do anything to merit their adoption. Likewise, we do not (indeed, cannot) take the initiative in being chosen by God. We are dependant on God’s electing love. Intentional Atonement: The good news of the gospel is that Jesus did for us what we are unable to do for ourselves. Because we are fallen—tainted with sin—we cannot offer ourselves as a pure, blameless sacrifice needed to atone (pay the price) for our sin. But because Jesus was without sin, he could be such a sacrifice. And he was. His death on the cross paid the price for “the sin of the world” |
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| Transformed by the Holy Spirit: God loves us and draws us to himself. The Holy Spirit opens our sin-darkened eyes and sin-stopped ears, enabling us to see and hear the good news that we have been saved from sin (John 9:35-41). The Holy Spirit replaces our rebellious, stony hearts with warm, receptive hearts (Ezek. 36:26). He opens our hearts to receive the things of God (Acts 16:14). He gives us the gift of faith, enabling us to believe (Eph. 2:8-10). The Holy Spirit renews us so that we desire God and God’s will (John 3:1-8). Do you desire God and the things of God? That’s the Holy Spirit at work in your life. Salvation is God’s gracious work—outside and inside. Held by God: The joyous conclusion of all this is that we are held eternally secure in the good hands of God. Because we are in God’s grip, we cannot lose our salvation. The Bible teaches that our eternal security does not depend on our hanging on to God, but on God hanging on to us. |
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| Baptism: CrossWay Church celebrates infant and believer's baptism. | ||
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We baptize babies whose parents are members of our church and wish to baptize their children. We do not believe that baptizing infants saves them. Rather, we view it as a sign or symbol of God's covenant. This covenant began with Abraham and has included believers and their children since. In our tradition, we believe that each child has to put their faith in Christ to be saved. They make a public profession of faith once this has occurred. Click here to learn more about infant baptism. We also celebrate believer's baptism for adults (or children), who have put their faith in Christ and publically professed their faith in Christ, but were not to baptized as infants. |
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