OUR BELIEFS

We Believe God Loves You!

We believe that he intensely desires every person to search for him. We believe people can indeed seek out and find God because he is not far from anyone. And at the same time, he is also relentlessly pursuing you. We believe God wants to connect you to the story of redemption he has been writing for the world.

At Two Rivers, we follow this simple philosophy:

  • In essential beliefs, we have unity(Ephesians 4:4-6).
  • In non-essential beliefs, we have liberty (Romans 14:1,4,12,22).
  • In all our beliefs, we show love (1 Corinthians 13:2).

The idea bound up in these few words is that there exist essential teachings within Scripture that the church must be united on if the people are to experience the life of God in the family of God.

Additionally, the church has divided over the years time and time again over smaller disputes, for which there should be liberty within the church family to come as far as each member is able, honoring the continual process of belief that we each experience over a lifetime of walking with Jesus. The essentials are the anchors that hold us. The non-essentials are vital, and extremely important, but the most loving, dignifying way to hold these teachings in the Christian Church is by liberty.

Finally, in everything, we are a family bound together by love. Right belief, expressed pridefully, is not love. Wrong belief, permitted freely, is also not love. Right belief, championed by love, is what Jesus embodied. We, the Body of Christ, should be a living expression of the same.

There are four essential beliefs that we consider foundational to Two Rivers Church, listed below.  We are unswervingly committed to these four things, and they are why we exist.  They are listed here so you know where we stand.  Regardless of where you stand or where you are on your journey, we invite you to come and investigate.

1) THE BIBLE IS THE WORD OF GOD.

God’s Word is the only completely reliable and truthful authority and we accept the Bible as our manual for living. Our first question when faced with a decision is, “What does the Bible say?” We practice daily Bible reading and Bible study. The Bible is the basis for all we believe.

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right.” 2 Timothy 3:16

“We also thank God continually because, when you received the Word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it, not as the word of men, but actually as it is, the Word of God, which is at work in you who believe.” 1 Thessalonians 2:13

2) JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD.

Jesus Christ, second Person of the Trinity, lived a sinless life on earth and voluntarily paid for our sin by dying on the cross as our substitute. This accomplished salvation for all who receive grace by trusting in Him alone. He rose from the dead and is the only mediator between God and us. He baptizes believers in the Holy Spirit and will return to earth to consummate history.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

“For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ There is salvation in no one else! There is no other name in all of heaven for people to call on to save them.” Acts 4:11-12

3) YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN.

God created humans to have fellowship with Him, but they defied God by sinfully going their own way. As a result, we need God’s saving grace to end our alienation from Him. Salvation comes only through God’s grace – not human effort – and must be received personally by repentance and faith. At the end, everyone will experience bodily resurrection and the judgment. Only believers will enjoy eternal fellowship with God.

“When anyone becomes a Christian he becomes a new person inside. The old passes away, a new life has begun.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

Jesus: “If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find true life.” Matthew 16:25

4) BELIEVERS CAN BE SPIRIT-FILLED AND SPIRIT-LED.

We believe God’s power is available through His Spirit.  Every believer can be filled with the Holy Spirit by simply asking. We seek to practice a daily dependence on God’s Spirit to enable us to do what is right.

“…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you…” Acts 1:8

“…be filled with the Holy Spirit” Ephesians 5:18

“If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:13

A STATEMENT ON FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The two most frequent theological questions posed to our church tend to revolve around these two topics. Therefore, we are stating a shared theology on both—not because there is a biblical emphasis on either that matches the topics covered thus far, but simply out of pastoral response to the questions being asked both within our church and broader culture.

Women in Leadership

The question of how men and women relate and engage in church leadership offices (particularly pastor and elder) has been a subject of significant debate at various points in church history. There are many considerations within the broader subject of men and women in leadership that are dealt with in the Bible. Here we have included a summary of things we see taught across the arc of Scripture that directly bear on our church’s position and practice.

  • We believe that women and men are created equal in the image of God.

  • We believe that full equality between women and men does not mean women and men are completely the same. There is goodness and beauty uniquely represented in each gender that profoundly reflects and glorifies God.

  • We believe God gives leadership in the church on the basis of grace, calling, spiritual gifts, obedience, and character.

  • We believe both women and men can and should lead, preach, pastor, and minister within the church. We believe women and men doing this together will result in a more robust ministry of love and grace than one gender can sustain alone.

  • We believe women and men can and should serve in pastoral leadership in the local church.

Two Rivers Church believes that men and women are equally gifted and qualified to lead and serve as co-laborers in the church. We do not simply permit, but expressly value, the presence of both men and women in these various facets of church leadership, including the role of elder. CLICK HERE FOR FURTHER STUDY

Sexuality

One of the great difficulties in defining a biblical understanding of sexuality in our modern context is the unseen, inner pain a person often carries behind the question. In recent history, the church has mishandled the topic of sexuality from a variety of angles. The church’s witness has centered on what forms of sexual expression Scripture is against instead of the dignifying, freeing sexual expression Scripture advocates for. Jesus majored in the latter; the church has emphasized the former. More personally, while the church has historically held to an understanding of sexuality distinct from the surrounding culture, the application of that belief in recent history has become alienating to those whose sexual expression does not line up with the church’s. The tragedy of that shift has been that many have been made to feel alienated by the Christian church because of sexual practice and/or sexual orientation.

We won’t and don’t promote any relationship above a relationship with Jesus, and therefore will choose grace, reconciliation, and communication even amongst differences. The Bible is clear about relationships being chiefly important to God. Two Rivers Church exists as a space where all people can meet with God, which won’t happen if everyone is not welcomed. We trust the Holy Spirit to bring conviction of sin, which requires us to do the job of welcoming anyone who wants to participate in our services.

Because of the complexity presented by recent history, we will succinctly define both our belief and how we express our belief, which carry equal importance.

Belief on Sexuality

We believe in the historically Christian view of marriage and sexual expression; namely, that marriage is a lifelong one-flesh covenant union between two sexually different persons (male and female) from different families, and that all sexual relationships and expressions outside of marriage are sin.

How We Express Our Belief

The expression of this belief is often the more important question to people in search of a spiritual home: Will I (or one of my loved ones) be welcomed at Two Rivers Church? And is there a barrier where that welcome is worn out?

Regardless of sexual practice and/or orientation, Two Rivers Church welcomes all to worship with us. Jesus is the head of the church, and Jesus was uncompromising in teaching and calling people to align with his beliefs, a pathway to “life to the full.” (John 10:10) Another group of rabbis, called the Pharisees, were equally convicted of the truth of their beliefs, and held many beliefs in common with Jesus. So why was it that those who felt alienated by the Pharisees also felt so welcome by Jesus? Because of how each expressed common beliefs: the Pharisees did so in pride, as their primary concern was being right, while Jesus did so in love, as His primary concern was compassion for the person and story behind the belief.

The church is called the Body of Christ. We are a communal expression of Jesus’ heart, so both our beliefs and our expression of those beliefs should mirror Jesus. When it comes to sexuality, we carry three important convictions that inform our expression:

  1. Our first responsibility is to be a living display of covenant love and sexuality. The church was not founded to critique the surrounding culture but to form a distinct counterculture where “life to the full” is on display as an invitation to all. However, in many ways (covenant love and sexuality being one obvious example) the church has mirrored the culture more than forming a counterculture. Therefore, our work is not to change anyone else’s mind or critique the world outside of our family, but to live with the sort of fidelity, service, and love within our own singleness and marriage covenants that we become a living witness to the fullest sort of life.

  2. We lead with a heart of love and compassion for people. The doors and the arms of our church family are open to anyone, regardless of belief. No one will ever be excluded from worshiping with us on Sundays for any misalignment of belief.

  3. We must differentiate between agreement and acceptance. One of the truly fascinating aspects of the life of Jesus is that the very people whose lives least aligned with his ethical teachings were most drawn to him. His dinner company and close friends are made up of people out-of-alignment with his teaching (e.g. Jesus teaches that to even look at a woman lustfully is to commit adultery, then is consistently surrounded by prostitutes who profited on lust; Jesus teaches an ethic of radical generosity, then welcomes a tax collector, whose life was defined by greed, into his inner circle of 12 disciples; etc.). In modern cultural rhetoric, agreement and acceptance are often used synonymously: “If you don’t agree with my ethical choices (belief), you don’t accept me (expression).” However, in Jesus, we observe the opposite phenomenon: Those who felt most accepted in his presence were those most obviously living in disagreement with his teaching. Therefore, as a church we are committed to becoming a community linked to Jesus in both agreement and acceptance. We are unapologetically aligned with every word of his teaching. Equally, we are uncompromisingly insistent on becoming the sort of community where those out-of-alignment with his beliefs (including sexuality) feel welcome and accepted in our fellowship.

Other Cultural Issues

In today’s society, it often feels like the world is looking to the Church for a list of things you’re not allowed to do so they can claim Christianity isn’t for them. It is important to realize and teach that Jesus came so we would be free from the laws of the Old Testament and legalism in the Church. Because we know that the only perfect person to ever walk the earth was Jesus, we do not expect people to be perfect at Two Rivers Church. Being a part of our community and enjoying Sunday services together with us is an offering we make to all those who enter our building.

Identity

We won’t and don’t promote ANY identity category above our identity as children of God. We do understand that there are systems in place that marginalize people groups, the effects of which have been causing extreme pain and trauma for decades. We have to put our focus on the one identity that is above them all and the only one that unites all people: God created us all, and died for us all. No exceptions.

Addictive Behaviors

We won’t and don’t promote any alteration of sound mind. We encourage all members to be active in relationships that teach, challenge, and promote the Holy Spirit’s involvement in their everyday choices. This way, honest conversation, feedback, and accountability guide all decision-making, especially those surrounding addictive behaviors. With sound judgment and within reason, alcohol consumption, legal and safe drug use, and recreational gambling does not disqualify a person from membership in our community. The Bible clearly shows that using our freedom can lead others to stumble. In love, we must honor the weaker brothers and sisters by abstaining in the right circumstances.

Intimacy

We won’t and don’t promote sexual intimacy outside of marriage because sexual sin leads to heart-level connection and soul ties. If done outside of the highest level of commitment, deep injury is almost always a result- even if not immediately apparent. We provide counsel and accountability to those who are dating, engaged, and married toward healthy boundaries in intimate relationships.

Abortion

We won’t and don’t promote abortion, but count it as a privilege to walk alongside those who have decisions to make regarding pregnancy, adoption, family involvement, and pre/post-natal support. If you would like resources in these areas, please reach out to us at [email protected].

Spiritual Gifts

We believe that Jesus gives spiritual gifts to each person who asks. We make a distinction between the gifts of the Spirit and the baptism of the Spirit. Jesus asked that the disciples wait for the Baptism of the Spirit. The baptism of the Holy Spirit does not make a person better than anyone else, the baptism of the Spirit makes you better than yourself. Regarding spiritual gifts, different people will receive different gifts. We know that God has made each person unique, and believe that there is a part for everyone to play in making a difference in our church and community. For more information on learning about how God has uniquely designed you, please consider attending Next Steps.

We welcome conversations regarding our statement of faith, values, and culture but ultimately know that the church has been separated for centuries on these issues: because all believers will live for eternity in Heaven, we strive to be a church where people from many different backgrounds can come together, worship freely, and learn/process/wrestle out what we believe together, as our knowledge and collective experience with Jesus Christ, the Living God, grows.