What we believe

 Faith United Church of God beliefs

Unity and Holiness are at the heart of the movement of the Church of God (Anderson, IN). When the Church of God was founded in the late 1800’s, the desire was to see people live a holy life that was a reflection of their faith, unified under God rather than denominations.  We still believe in the value and expression of unity and holiness in the church today. 

Unity

At the foundation of the Church of God is the understanding that our affiliation is not to one church or denomination, but God. We believe in the unity of all believers over the membership to one church, which is why we do not have formal church membership. As one of our old hymns of the church declares, “we extend a hand of fellowship to every blood washed one.” 

As an expression of this unity, we practice open communion for all believers and do not have formal creeds, doctrine, or statements of faith that one must believe to belong. The Bible is our only creed. We respect theological distinctions between different faith traditions within the greater community of the Church. We believe the unity of believers in Christ is more important than one single denomination or faith tradition. While we may have differences with others, we will always strive to discover where we can worship together as we fulfill the great commission.

Holiness

We believe that the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives, transforming us into people who reflect God’s holiness in the world. Holiness is the way God’s Spirit works in our lives to produce the fruit of the spirit as listed in Galatians 5. Holy living is less about what we do not do and more about the ways we strive to live in love for God and our neighbor. While we may never be perfect, we daily seek God to work in our lives as we grow in our faith and to make us more like Jesus.

 

Theological Distinctions and Core Assumptions 

While we do not have a formal statement of faith, we do have theological distinctions and core assumptions about God and faith that guide our community life and worship. These will help you understand the foundation of belief we have at Faith United Church of God.

  • We believe in a loving God who created us in God’s image in order for us to have a full and fruitful relationship with God and our neighbors. (Genesis 1:27-28)

  • We believe that, unfortunately, all of us have sinned and have wandered away from a relationship with God and God’s love. (Romans 3:23)

  • We believe that because of sin there is a broken relationship between us and God; Jesus lived, died, and rose from the dead to re-establish that relationship with us and to give us life, now and forever, to the fullest. (1 John 4:9-10; 2 Corinthians 5:17-18)

  • We believe that relationship with God through Jesus brings us back into God’s family where we are joined together in a community of faith, love, and accountability with our adopted siblings of the faith. (1 John 4:11-12)

  • We believe that the Holy Spirit empowers our relationship with God and others, and helps us to fully live into the people God created us to be. (1 Peter 4:10-11)

  • We believe that we are called by God to be God’s ambassadors in the world and to help others experience God’s love and be reconciled back to God. (2 Corinthians 5:19-20)

  • We believe that the Holy Spirit has been poured out on all believers to share the Good News. We also believe that God calls all people of faith regardless of their gender, social standing, or background to serve the church in all areas of leadership. (Acts 2:17; Galatians 3:26-29)