What We Believe

The following are the core beliefs of Centralia Christian Church based on the foundational truths taught in the Bible.   All of our teaching and ministry is rooted in and flows out of these biblical doctrines.

God is self-existent, and by nature He is eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, and omnipresent. God exists in three persons: the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit. The Godhead is in agreement with the role of each. These three are co-equal and are one God, and therefore, God is by nature a relational God who enjoys loving fellowship within the Godhead, and who extends a loving relationship to us through faith in Jesus Christ and in unity with the Holy Spirit.

Supportive Scripture: Genesis 1:1, 26-27; 3:22; Deuteronomy 6:4; Job 38, 39, & 40; Psalm 90:2, 139:1-4, 7-10; Isaiah 40:13-17,45:18; Matthew 19:26, 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14; I Peter 1:2.

Jesus Christ did not have a biological human father. God is His Father, and Jesus was born of a virgin mother by the power of the Holy Spirit, yet still, all three exist as one God. The Fatherhood of God is eternal; therefore, Father and Son have always existed in a love relationship. God revealed Himself as Father in both Old and New Testaments. God adopts believers in Jesus Christ into a relationship with Him as their Father. Through Christ, believers have the privilege of being heirs to God's glory. As Father God actively prunes and disciplines believers so they may grow in character, wisdom, and knowledge of Him and bear the fruit of Christlikeness.

Supportive Scripture: John 15:1-4; Deuteronomy 32:6; Isaiah 9:6, 63:16; John 20:17; Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 4:6.

Jesus Christ is the Son of God and He is God. He is coequal with the Father and Holy Spirit. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on the cross. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven's glory and will return again someday to claim His church.

Supportive Scripture: Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:22-23; John 1:1-5; 8:58; 14:10-30; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 1:3-4; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Colossians 1:15-23; 1 Timothy 6:14-15; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 4:14-15; Revelation 1:8.

The Holy Spirit is coequal with the Father and the Son as God. He is present in the world to make all people aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He inspired and guided the Prophets and Apostles with the revelation of Scripture. He also dwells in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides Christians with power to grow in Christlikeness, to understanding of spiritual truth, and serve the church. As Christians, we seek to live under the Holy Spirit's control daily.

Supportive Scripture: Genesis 1:1-2; Psalm 51:10-12; John 14:16-17, 16:7-13, 17; Acts 1:8; Romans 5:5; 1 Corinthians 2:12; 3:16; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 1:13, 5:18; 2 Peter 1:19-21.

The Bible is God's Word to us.  It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit.  It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living.  Because it is inspired by God, it is the truth without any mixture or error.  The Bible is infallible, inerrant, and absolute truth.  Where it speaks, we listen and obey.

Supportive Scripture: Psalms 12:6, 119:105, 160; Proverbs 30:5; 2 Timothy 1:13, 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21.

Salvation is God's free gift to us, but we must accept it.  We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works.  Only by trusting in Jesus Christ and God's offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin's penalty.  When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith we are saved.  Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ as Lord of their life.  This is evidenced by repentance, confession, baptism by immersion, and a life committed to His service.

Supportive Scripture: John 1:12, 14:6; Romans 5:1, 6:23; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5.

People are made in the image of God, to be like Him in character.  Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called "sin." This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in life.  To put this simply, this attitude we have can be described as our "sin nature".  Yet, we are not separated from God because of the existence of sin nature, but rather, because we give into it and choose to sin.

Supportive Scripture: Genesis 1:27; Genesis 3; Psalms 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6; Isaiah 59:1-2; Romans 3:23.

The Church is the body and bride of Christ and also serves as the household of faith.  It is a living temple where God dwells in each of His people.  We believe that everyone that has been saved by Christ is a member of the greater Christian Church.  We believe that the Church exists throughout the world, and is witnessed and experienced in local autonomous gatherings of believers.

Supportive Scripture: Ephesians 4:16; Romans 12:4-5; Ephesians 5:24-32; Galatians. 6:10; 1 Peter 2:4-5; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Acts 14:23; Matthew 16:16-18; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 1:20-23; 4:3-10; Colossians 3:14-15.