1. We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father [and the Son], who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen. (Nicene Creed 325 A.D.)
2. We believe the Bible is the inspired word of God given to us by Him. It is to teach us the redemptive story of mankind through the action of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, on the cross. The Bible was written by man through divine inspiration from God. It was collected and canonized through rigorous testing over time. It is more than a book; it is the way God communicates to us how we should live and act in culture. It gives us a plumb line by which to examine our lives to see if we are living out who we are called to be. We are committed as Vintage Church to always use the Bible for everything we do. We are committed to becoming lovers of God’s word. (All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy3:16-17)
3. We believe we are called to both be and make disciples of Jesus Christ. This is the foundation of God’s kingdom and church. Therefore, we commit to excellence in both teaching and preaching as we engage the Holy Scriptures to better understand what it means to be a follower of Christ Jesus. As each of us becomes a disciple of Jesus, we expect the fruit of that endeavor to be conversions in your life of people who do not know Jesus. We commit to make you a disciple of Jesus Christ both in word and deed. We are constantly seeking out new ways to learn and discover who God is and how we are to interact with him. We are doing this so that we can effectively share our faith with our friends and families so that they may begin to experience a relationship with Jesus Christ. ( Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20)
4. We believe in the Imago Dei. All humans are created in the Image of God (Imago Dei). Therefore, all humans are sacred and equal. Life is sacred. We celebrate diversity both ethnically, generationally, and socioeconomically. We will always honor, love, and respect people despite their circumstances, both past and present. We know that God loves us unconditionally, and we, in turn, will treat all people the same way. We do not require people to change so that Christ will love them; we love people so Christ can change them. Therefore, we will love the ones God sends us with the ferocity of heaven. We understand that the love we show each other is a representation of what God did for us by sending Jesus to die for us. We commit to keep each other accountable in these evil days so that through our community of relationships we might better experience God. We will stand against all injustice both on a local and world scale. We believe that the inevitability of the Imago Dei is the restoration of mankind at the coming of our lord, Jesus Christ. (This is the written account of Adam’s family line. When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God. Genesis 5:1)
5. We believe in the Missio Dei. We exist to submit ourselves to the mission of God (Missio Dei). Our God is a sending God. Mission is thereby seen as a movement from God to the world; the church is viewed as an instrument for that mission. There is a church because there is mission, not vice versa. We believe that God’s mission for mankind is the redemption of sin through the propitiation of our sins through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Everything that we do and are is a furthering of this truth in people’s lives. We will go where God tells us to go without fear or reservation because we believe that Christ is the Savior of the World. (But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9)
6. We believe we are to be like Jesus. We want to impact those around us both in our individual lives and in the cultural life of our church. We believe the church is the living breathing body of Christ in our world. Jesus Christ is a restorer of people and culture. His action on the cross set right creation if we choose to believe. Therefore, we will be the force in culture the church was called to be, carrying restoration everywhere we go to everyone we meet. We believe that this restoration occurs when we put God in the dark broken places of our world. We are involved in our community, and we are shaping our neighborhood all for the glory of Christ and his gospel. We will show the world who Jesus is. We will do this by loving people without abandon and always going the extra mile to meet basic needs in people’s lives so that they are ready to receive Jesus. ( And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:11-13)
7. We believe that through the assembling of saints, God’s Holy Spirit is able to manifest himself in powerful ways. We are the temple of God. Each one of us becomes a stone in his temple. Our lives and relationships intermingled create a home for God to reside. We long to experience God in whatever way he chooses to work in our lives. We will not hinder what he has for us. We know that the experience of fire falling on his “temple” is still available to us today, and so we believe that as we are faithful to what he intended through scripture for his church, he will be faithful to manifest himself in our services and daily life. ( “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” John 17:22-26)( As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 peter 2:4-5)( “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:7-8)