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The
Statement Of Faith (Short Form) was adopted on May 12, 1996 by the Ray
Of Hope Council in
representation of the Congregation and the Pastors.
All
persons of any belief system are welcome at
Ray Of Hope Church Of Our Lord Jesus
Christ.
Persons who attend Ray Of
Hope are not
obligated to personally believe any article of Faith.
Each person is responsible
for what they choose to believe, and their own consequential eternal
destiny.
(see John 5:24)
However, the Pastoral
and Teaching Ministry of Ray Of Hope Church Of Our Lord Jesus
Christ adheres in unity to these Articles Of Faith and bases
all Doctrines, Dogmas, Teachings and Practices of Ray Of Hope Church
Of Our Lord Jesus Christ on these Articles Of Faith.

~ STATEMENT OF FAITH "Short Form" ~

+ We believe in One God Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all
that is seen and unseen.
+ We believe in one Lord, our Sovereign, Jesus the only Christ, the
only Son of God, Anointed Messiah, Eternal High Priest, Savior of the
world, eternally begotten of God, God from God, Light from Light, true
God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being with God, and
through Jesus all things were made.

+ We believe God loved the world so much that God gave Jesus, God's own
Son, to save humanity from sin, and to reconcile the world to God,

so that whoever believes in Jesus has eternal salvation, eternal
safety, and is a member of the eternal community of God.
+ Therefore, it was for us and our salvation he came down from heaven,
was conceived by the Holy Spirit

and was born of the Virgin Mary and became truly human, like us in all
ways except He never sinned.

In this way the Word became Flesh and dwelt among us. For our sake, in
our place, as a sacrifice for our sin of the world, he was crucified
under Pontius Pilate;

suffered death as the Lamb of God, and was buried. On the third day he
rose again eternally conquering death and reigning forever as the
Resurrection and the Life in accordance with the Scriptures; he
ascended into heaven,

and is positioned at the right hand of God. He will come again in glory,

and to judge the living and the dead, and his Sovereign Realm, His
Eternal Community, his kingdom will have no end.
+ We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who
proceeds from God and the Son, who with God and the Son is worshipped
and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets, and who empowers
and gives life to the Church.
+ We believe in one holy universal/catholic Christian and apostolic
Church.
+ We acknowledge one baptism into Christ,

for the sign of repentance, faith in Christ, and forgiveness of sins.
+ We look for the resurrection of the Church, the saints in Christ, and
the life of the eternal world to come under God's reign, where there
will be liberty, justice and equity for all with God, in Christ, and
through the Holy Spirit.

Additionally:
+ We the Faith Community of Ray Of Hope Church Of Our Lord
Jesus Christ, believe Christianity is the revelation of God
in Christ Jesus, and the religion of God in Christ set forth in the
Scriptures.

Christ Jesus is foretold in the Hebrew Testament (formerly known as the
"Old Testament") and, presented in the Christian Testament (formerly
known as the "New Testament"). Christ Jesus is proclaimed by the
Christian Church in every age and every land.
+ The foundation of Ray Of Hope Church Of Our Lord Jesus
Christ is Jesus Christ. We are not creating a new Church, or
a new religion. The foundation is laid by God, and we take our place as
spiritual stones being built into the Church triumphant.
+ We believe that the Bible is the divinely inspired written Word Of
God.

The Bible is the final authority for believers in all matters of faith
and Doctrines. All teachings and practices must be in harmony
with the
Word Of God.
+ We believe that all people, with the exception of Jesus the Son of
God, have sinned and are therefore in need of the new birth in Christ
Jesus before they can enter the Eternal Community of Jesus.
+ We believe that Salvation is avaliable to all who call on the Name of
Jesus Christ, and are re-born into the Life of Christ.
+ We believe the Church is made of all people from every time and every
place who believe in Christ Jesus. Believers constitute the priesthood
of Jesus, the holy nation, the royal generation.

+ In Ray Of Hope Church Of Our Lord Jesus Christ we
believe in remaining faithful to the Apostle's teaching, the Community
of believers, the breaking of the bread, and prayers.
+ We believe the local Church is called to evangelize the local people
by social action and ministry.
+ Ray Of Hope Church Of Our Lord Jesus Christ is
Christ-centered in all of its teacings, and therefore does not ascribe
to the dogmas, teachings, or practices of any denomination, or
para-church organization of the Christian Church. Rather, we maintain
an autonomous freedom to draw from the two millennia of immense riches
known in all denominations of Christianity. Ray Of Hope Church
Of Our Lord Jesus Christ is an "independent" local Church.
This does not mean we stand alone, as though on pride or arrogance,
rather we seek to share an interdependence with other assemblies and
fellowships of believers who endeavor equally as hard as we do to bring
the Gospel to all people.

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