What We Believe
What we believe matters. The theologian A.W. Tozer famously wrote, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” We are glad you chose to visit this page, because a community's core convictions shape its identity. What an individual or a local church believes is their most critical attribute—because right belief not only drives right behavior, but it aligns our hearts with absolute truth.
We believe God wants to be known and has revealed Himself to us through the pages of Scripture. The Bible is a written disclosure of the very nature, character, and purpose of God. It's a collective book of progressive revelation. From Genesis to Revelation, it reveals to us who God is, what He is like, what He commands and promises, and how He has and will fulfill His preordained plans for His creation. In short, God uses His written word to reveal everything we need to know about Him in order that we might know, love, obey, and worship Him in this life and the one to come.
The Elders of Hope Fellowship have worked very hard to base our beliefs and practices upon the Scriptures alone and not on current fads or even various church traditions. While we believe modern methods as well as ancient traditions can be great tools if they are grounded in Scripture, we have discovered that many are not. Just because the majority of the church has believed certain doctrines or engaged in particular practices for hundreds of years, or even if some modern methods appear to grow the church numerically, that doesn't necessarily mean those things are right. Scripture alone must have the final say.
OUR DOCTRINE
Hope Fellowship adheres to Protestant, Reformed beliefs. The word "Reformed", like many labels within Christianity, can have different meanings and distinctions depending on whom you ask. While most Reformed churches hold similar beliefs and practices, they aren't identical. For example, some baptize infants; others don't. Some are independent congregations while others are part of a hierarchical system of government.
When we say that Hope Fellowship holds to "Reformed Beliefs", we are speaking in particular about the Five Solas. These five statements of faith are Latin phrases that emerged during the Protestant Reformation to summarize the core theological beliefs that separated the Reformers from the Roman Catholic Church. The word sola means "alone" or "only" in Latin. Hope Fellowship subscribes to these foundational beliefs:
1. Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone): The Bible is the final, supreme authority for Christian faith and life. It stands above popes, church councils, and human tradition as the infallible standard of truth.
2. Sola Fide (Faith Alone): Justification—being declared righteous by God—is received entirely through faith in Jesus Christ. It cannot be earned through human works, personal merit, or religious rituals.
3. Sola Gratia (Grace Alone): Salvation is an entirely unearned gift of God’s sovereign favor. It is driven purely by His mercy, not as a reward for human effort, cooperation, or moral goodness.
4. Solus Christus (Christ Alone): Jesus Christ is the only mediator, Savior, and king between God and humanity. His finished work on the cross eliminates the need for any other human, saintly, or sacramental intercessors.
5. Soli Deo Gloria (To the Glory of God Alone): All of creation, life, and salvation exist solely to manifest the glory of the Triune God. No ultimate praise belongs to human beings, saints, or church institutions.
SCRIPTURE
We believe the Bible is God’s written revelation to us, complete and sufficient for all of life. Because the Scriptures are "God-breathed," they are fully authoritative in themselves. This authority does not come from any church, council, or creed; the Bible is authoritative simply because it is the Word of God. As God’s own voice, the Scriptures carry His absolute power and authority.
GOD'S SOVEREIGNTY
We believe in one true and eternal God, unchanging and unchangeable. We believe God is the Creator of all that exists in heaven and on earth. The God who is described in the Bible is unique; He is unlike anyone or anything else in the entire universe. God has all power, all knowledge, all wisdom, and is due all glory, honor, and praise. All that comes to pass does so at the decree of God. In the end, all things will result in the glory of God.
GOD'S DEITY
We believe the Bible teaches that there is but one being of God, yet there are three Persons who share this one being of God: the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Each Person is fully and completely God; each is described in Scripture as possessing the attributes of God. The Father, Son, and Spirit have eternally existed in the relationship described by the term “Trinity.”
GOD'S PLAN OF REDEMPTION
We believe that man was created in the image of God. Man rebelled against his Creator and fell into sin. As a result, man became spiritually dead, totally unwilling and indeed incapable of seeking after God. God, from eternity past, having foreordained all things, joined a certain people to Christ Jesus so that He might redeem them from their sin and, in so doing, bring glory to Himself. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, lived a morally perfect life and died a sacrificial death in the place of His elect people, providing complete forgiveness of sins by His death upon the cross of Calvary. No other work can provide for forgiveness of sins, and no addition can be made to the completed and finished work of Christ.
SALVATION
We believe that God, in His sovereign grace and mercy, regenerates sinful men by the power of the Holy Spirit, not by any action of their own, bringing them to new life. God grants them the gifts of faith and repentance, which they then exercise by turning from their sins and trusting in Christ. As a result of their faith in the perfect life and sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus Christ, God justifies, or makes the person righteous. God’s gift of faith and the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the elect will result in good works. These good works flow from true, saving faith; they are a necessary result of faith, but are not to be considered necessary to the gaining of justification, which is by God’s grace through faith alone, so that no man can boast.
THE CHURCH
We believe Jesus Christ established His Church, which is made up of all the elect of God. His Church, as an obedient bride, listens to His Word as found in the Bible. All who believe in Christ are placed in His body, the Church. The local expressions of the Church are very important, and each believer should be actively involved in such a fellowship.
THE RETURN OF CHRIST
We believe that Christ is coming again to judge every person who has ever lived. Until His return, believers are to live lives that glorify God through obedience to King Jesus. The Church is to be busy doing the work of evangelism and discipleship, proclaiming the pure, uncompromised Gospel of Christ by teaching the Word of God.
EVERYTHING ELSE
We believe that while there are truths that we can know for certain from Scripture and should be held to unwaveringly, there are beliefs and issues that may remain clouded until Christ's return. We call these issues "secondary doctrines," and there are far too many to list here. While we certainly have our own interpretations of such issues, we don't believe they are worth creating division within the body. We believe no single person or church has perfect doctrine, including Hope Fellowship, and it would be arrogant to make that claim. We are simply doing our best to correctly handle God's word while showing grace to those who may disagree on these secondary items.
Our church is open to anyone, and a person does not have to agree with us on every finer theological point to be welcomed into our body. If you’d like to know more about what we do believe and teach on "secondary doctrines", feel free to shoot us an email at office.hopefellowship@gmail.com.
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