About Third Congregational UCC
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At Third Congregational UCC, East Saint Johnsbury in Vermont, we believe what The Bible tells us, and The Bible says we have all sinned. Do you believe you are a sinner in the sight of God? As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. The Bible says that the penalty of our sin is death, and that because we have sinned, we deserve the lake of fire (hell.) For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
We believe that we don't have all the answers and that disagreement and discussion are healthy. We believe that the faith community is great not because it's like-minded on every issue but because it is rooted in faith in Jesus, who is a lot more interesting than religion has made Him seem.
About Eternity: We all were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin or in union with God through forgiveness and salvation. For the Christian, eternity is a place of eternal union and life with God.
About Salvation: We believe in salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ; that this salvation is based upon the sovereign grace of God; that it was purchased by Christ on the cross; that it is received through faith, apart from any human merit, works, or ritual; and that salvation results in righteous living, good works and biblically informed actions to bring about godly justice wherever we live.