About Calvary Chapel Blue Ridge
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Calvary Chapel Blue Ridge is a contemporary community church.
What We Believe
We believe there is only one true God, the Creator and sustainer of all things, who eternally exists in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. These three are one in essence and unity, yet distinct in person and function, and are commonly referred to as the Trinity, or the tri-unity of the Godhead. (Gen. 1:1, 26; Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19).
We believe that the Father is the first person of the Trinity, and He is the source of all God is and does. He is the designer of creation and the author of redemption. (Gen. 1:1, 3-27; John10:29; John 12:49; 1 Cor. 8:6).
We believe the Lord Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity. He is God, coexistent and coequal with the Father. To become man, He was conceived by a miracle of the Holy Spirit within the virgin Mary. Jesus lives as God and man, two distinct natures, yet perfect and united in one person. (1 John 5:20; Col. 2:9; John 8:56-58; Luke 22:70; 1 Cor. 8:6; Luke 1:26-44; John 1:1, 14; Phil. 2:5-11).
We believe the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, proceeding from the Father and Son, and equal in deity. He is the giver of life (the One through which Jesus gives eternal life), the agent of inspiration and new birth, the restrainer of sin and Satan, and the One who lives in and sanctifies believers. (Gen. 1:2; John 3:5-8; John 6:63; John 14:16, 26; John 15:26; 2 Cor. 3:6, 17; Acts 5:3-4; Rom. 8:11).
We believe the Bible, comprised of both the Old and New Testaments, though written by men, was supernaturally inspired by God so that all that its words reveal are the true revelation given to man by God. In the original manuscripts (recorded by men inspired and directed by the Holy Spirit), it is inerrant and authoritative in all matters because it reveals the truth from God. We believe it is a closed canon of Scripture beginning with Genesis and ending with Revelation. We understand that not all translations today reveal the intended message from God to mankind. (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 3:15-16; Deut. 4:2; Deut. 12:32; Rev. 22:18-19).
We believe that Adam, the first man, willfully disobeyed God, bringing sin and death into the world. Consequently, all persons are inherently sinners from conception, and in need of God’s reconciliation and salvation. (1 Cor. 15:21-22; Rom. 3:10, 23; Rom. 6:23).
We believe that each person can be saved only through the work of Jesus Christ, specifically by accepting His gift of salvation through repenting of sin and placing faith in Jesus alone as Savior. (John 14:6; Eph. 2:8; 1 John 1:9; Rom. 10:9-10; Acts 2:38; Col. 1:14).
We believe the Holy Spirit indwells all who are saved, conforming believers to the likeness of Jesus Christ. Every believer is responsible to live in obedience to the Word of God, which includes separation from sin. (John 20:22; Rom. 8:15; 1 Cor. 2:12; John 14:17; 1 Cor. 6:19; 1 John 2:27; 2 Cor. 5:17; 2 Cor. 6:14-18).
We believe in the filling (sometimes referred to as the baptism) of the Holy Ghost. (Eph. 5:18; Acts 2:4; 4:8; 4:31; 8:17; 9:17; 10:44; 13:9; 19:6).
We believe that local assemblies of baptized believers should meet, under the discipline of the Word of God and the Lordship of Christ, to carry out the commission of God to evangelize, teach, and to administer the ordinances of believer’s baptism and the Lord’s Supper. (Heb. 10:25; Luke 6:46-48; Matt. 28:19-20; 1 Cor. 11:23-25).
We believe marriage is a holy union, instituted by God, between one man and one woman, in which the couple lives in a manner to bring glory to God. (Gen. 2:24; Matt. 19:4-6; 1 Cor. 7:1-5; Eph. 5:22-33.
We believe in the imminent return of Christ. We affirm that believers will be caught up in the air to be with the Lord, followed by a great tribulation period upon the earth. To end the tribulation and save the remnant of Israel, the Lord Jesus will return to establish His earthly kingdom for a thousand years. After that, the unsaved will be raised and judged according to their works and separated forever from God. The saved, having already been raised, will live on forever in fellowship with God. (Rev. 22:7, 12, 20; 1 Thes. 4:13-18; 1 Cor. 15:51-57; 1 Thes. 1:10; Matt. 24:3-51; Dan. 12:1; Rom. 11:1-29; Matt. 25:31-46; Rev. 19:1-21; Rev. 20:1-15; Rev. 21 & 22).
