What We Believe
The Church at Severn Run is happily part of the Southern Baptist family, but we value the Kingdom of heaven over the denominations of man. People have been arguing the finer points of Christian theology for two-thousand years, and time and again, utterly missing Jesus, the very face of God (Heb. 1:3). Picture one of the many confrontations between Jesus and the especially religious (angry) people, like the Pharisees. Think about the dynamics of the situation.
As self-identified “people of God,” the Pharisees are arguing about God with God, all the while completely missing the person of God standing face to face right in front of them. Maybe in arguing about theology we avoid the pain of actually being confronted with a Savior and with the one true living God; holy and majestic, loving and demanding. Maybe in arguing theology we are subtly seeking power over (and control of) others. Knowledge is power becauseit gives us the illusion of deciding who’s in and who’s out.
This isn’t to say that theology, our thinking about God, our mental ordering of biblical teachings, isn’t important. Ideas are vital, and Truth is critical. This also isn’t about relativism. What it is about is humility. One day soon we will all unavoidably stand face to face before an almighty God. All in all, it’s tragically easy to miss the whole point of the Bible. Much is a mystery, but the main point of Scripture is perfectly clear: God created each of us for life with Him! God is infinitely good, but through our own sinful arrogance we broke relationship with God (and ourselves) through our disobedience and demand for independence. God, in His astonishing love, sacrificed His own Son to pay the price for our sin. And now He invites each of us into personal relationship with Him through life-changing faith in His son Jesus Christ.
At the Church at Severn Run, we seek to keep the Mission the main thing. We’re not going to spend our time arguing with other believers; we’d rather help others find and follow Jesus! The essential all of a disciple is distilled in two wonderfully disruptive words: “Follow me” (Matt. 4:19). As we follow Jesus, we seek above all things to love well, to live Jesus, and to believe big! We offer practical ways to follow Jesus in the four passions of a disciple:
For our life together as believers, Augustine reflects well the heart of a God who both reveals Himself with clarity and wraps Himself in mystery: “In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, charity.” This spirit of humility is the beginning point of our theology. To say we believe in the Bible, of course, is not enough. Many take the Bible as a starting point to some pretty strange destinations. We seek to live Scripture as the Word of God pointing to salvation through Jesus Christ alone (Acts 4:12).
In the end, however, the truest way to discover someone’s beliefs is to watch their life. What we believe, we live. The rest is talk.
Still, convenience demands a written summary to help others know the church we are. A solid theological place to begin is the ancient historical anchor known as The Apostle’s Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived of
the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was
crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into
hell.
The third day He
arose again from the dead.
He ascended into
heaven
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence He shall
come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy
Spirit, the holy universal church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of
sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.
The Nicene Creed provides another excellent summation of biblical theology:
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord,
Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all
things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the
power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made
man.
For our sake he was
crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third
day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into
heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in
glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the
Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the
Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken
through the Prophets.
We believe in one
holy catholic universal and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for
the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the
life of the world to come. Amen.
In more recent history, the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message provides a good general, historical statement of our beliefs (with multiple Scriptural referents) as part of the Southern Baptist family. We are theologically conservative and methodologically creative. The message never changes, but the methods always will! We never want to confuse the unchanging Christ with either the religious culture of the church or the secular culture of an ever-changing world. The Church at Severn Run seeks to be a highly effective Great Commission church having a generational impact on our culture.
We get to do this!
God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God. Genesis 1:1,26-27; Psalm 90:2; Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2.
Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son Of God. Though fully God, He seeks to bring glory to the Father through the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus entered the human race through a virgin birth. He lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He rose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven’s glory and will return again to earth to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 1:22-23; John 1:1-5, 16-17; 14:10-30; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 1:3-4; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; 1 Timothy 6:14-16; Titus 2:13: Hebrews 4:14-15.
The Holy Spirit is equal with the Father and the Son as God. He is present in the world to make us aware of our need for Jesus Christ. He also lives within every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance for doing what is right. The Christian seeks to live under His control daily. John 14:16-17; 16:7-13; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12; 3:16: 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 1:13; 5:18.
Salvation is the free gift from God to each one of us. We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can one be saved from sin’s penalty. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into their life by faith. John 1:12; 3:16-17; 14:6; Romans 5:1; 6:23; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5.
Humanity – Human beings are made in the spiritual image of God, to be like Him in character and joined to Him in relationship. We are the supreme object of God’s attention in creation. Although we have tremendous potential for good and bear the image of God, we are infected with a terminal spiritual disease called sin. Sin is rebellion, self-will, independence, and disobedience toward God. Sin separates us from God our creator and from the purpose of our being. Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6a; 59:1-2: Romans 3:23.
Eternal Life - We are spiritual beings created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or in union with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is to experience a place of great suffering called hell which expresses the utter absence of God; no hope, light, love, comfort, or peace. To be eternally in union with God through
Christ is to experience unending life in heaven, a place in which the full joy, perfection, and creativity of God is forever expressed. Heaven and hell are real places of eternal existence. John 3:16: Romans 6:23; 1 John 2:25; 5:11-13: Revelation 20:15; 21:1-8.
The Bible is God’s holy word to all people. It was written by human authors under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired by God, there are no mistakes in the content of its message. It is completely trustworthy. The Bible is given as a guide to the heart of God and to enable us to live successfully by
accurately interpreting reality in a fallen, pain-ridden world. Psalm 12:6: 119:105, 160; Proverbs 30:5; 2 Timothy 1:13; 3:16:2 Peter 1:20-21
Thanks for exploring life with The Church at Severn Run! Our hope is that you would live an amazing life of faith in Christ and make a real difference in a broken world. Please know you have an open invitation into the Severn Run family….
