Hope Fellowship Church leans heavily on the theological riches of the past. We proudly stand on the shoulders of those who came before us by embracing the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689) and supporting the Baptist Faith & Message (2000).
The 2LCF is not meant to replace the Bible; rather, it is a faithful summary of what we believe the Bible clearly teaches (“the whole counsel of God"). Having a robust confession keeps the way of salvation clear. It grounds the church in timeless truth, ensures our teaching remains tethered to the historic Christian faith, and calls us to a serious pursuit of growing in our gospel identities as followers of Christ.
We live in a beautiful but broken world. The Christian faith is the story of tragic ruin and glorious rescue. God made human beings to govern his world but we have marred his handiwork and spoiled ourselves. To undo our rebellion, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, the world’s true King, to save us. Jesus lived the life we should have lived, died the death we deserved to die, and in rising again shattered the power of the grave. As followers of Jesus, we live in a new world order: we are sinful people delighting in forgiveness, and proud people learning to be humble. We obey Jesus as King and we treasure his words above all other voices.
The Bible is the written Word of God, without error, and of infallible and divine authority in all matters of faith and life. (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
The personal Triune God of the Bible owns and controls all things according to His will. (Ephesians 1:11, 3:11; Acts 4:24-28)
God alone has existed from eternity past and in His wisdom decided to create the universe from nothing. (Genesis 1:1; Hebrews 11:3; Isaiah 44:24)
Humanity did not evolve but rather was created by the Triune God. We have been created with dignity in that we are made in God’s image and created in humility in that our purpose is to glorify God. (Genesis 1:26; Colossians 3:17)
The voluntary sin of Adam resulted in mankind’s total depravity. Total depravity does not mean that we are as sinful as we can be, but that we are fallen in our “total persons” (mind, emotions, will and body). Thus, all people are sinners and are not able to please God on their own merit or save themselves. (Romans 3:9; 8:7-8; Ephesians 2:1-3)
God in His goodness chose to provide a means of salvation through the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity. (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:17; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 1:1-2; Hebrews 7:23-27; Revelation 19:11-16)
Human effort or religious performance will never reconcile man to God. Salvation is received by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. (John 3:16; Romans 4-5; Ephesians 2:4-9; Titus 3:3-7)
Believers in Jesus Christ are called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and glorified through the indwelling presence and work of the Holy Spirit. (John 14-16; Acts 2; Romans 6:23; Romans 8:1-11, 26-30; 1 Thessalonians 1:4)
Jesus promised to return at the end of the age to judge the living and the dead and reign forever with His bride in the new heavens and the new earth. (Matthew 16:27; John 14:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:28; Revelation 21-22)