What We Believe

Presbyterian Theology is what many refer to as “Mainline Christianity.” Here at the Spring Lake Presbyterian Church we proclaim the following:

We believe in one God, described in Scripture as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

• God the Father: as Creator.
• God the Son: whose life, death and resurrection provides a pathway for us as believers into a personal relationship with our Creator.
• God the Holy Spirit: whose presence in the world empowers, encourages and inspires us as Christians.

We believe that the Bible is the Inspired Word of God. This means that the writers were human beings that were led by, not controlled by, the Holy Spirit to record their memories and understanding of actual events. We believe that the Holy Spirit uses the Scriptures of both the Old and New Testament to help us in our journey to become the people that God is calling us to be. Our theology then is derived from the Scriptures and we are always seeking a better understanding as individuals and a community of believers.

We believe that the Church is the community of faith. The “Church Universal,” described in Scripture as “The Bride of Christ” is made up of those who believe in Christ as the Son of God and Savior of sinners. It crosses denominational boundaries and is ultimately those names that are written “in the book of life.” The Church, led by the Holy Spirit is the ambassador of Christ to the world. It has been, and continues to be imperfect because we are imperfect as human beings in understand and living out God’s will.

We celebrate the Sacraments of Baptism and Communion. We recognize God’s presence in every aspect of worship but we are obedient to Christ’s instruction regarding baptism and Communion.

• Infant Baptism claims God’s promise of forgiveness of sins and our commitment as parents and a faith community to teach the child the message of the Gospel.
• Adult Baptism gives testimony to our response to God’s forgiveness and call to commitment in our lives as we enter a relationship with him.

Communion, also called Holy Communion, The Lord’s Supper, or The Eucharist is an opportunity to experience the presence of Christ and remember his sacrifice for our sins. We experience the presence of Christ not in the elements of bread and wine (or juice) but in the worship event through the power of the Holy Spirit. We acknowledge and remember the amazing sacrifice of Jesus, “every time we eat this bread and drink this cup.”