What We Believe

Faith

  • We believe that the Bible is God's Word.  It is accurate, authoritative and applicable to our everyday lives.

  • We believe in one eternal God who is the creator of all things. He exists in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

  • We believe that sin has separated each of us from God and His purpose for our lives.

  • We believe Jesus Christ as both God and man is the only one who can reconcile us to God. He lived a sinless exemplary life, died on the cross in our place, and rose again to prove His victory and empower us for life.

  • We believe that in order to receive forgiveness we must repent of our sins, believe in Jesus Christ, and submit to His will for our lives.

  • We believe the Holy Spirit enables us to live the holy and fruitful lives that God intends for us.

  • We believe God wants to heal and transform us so that we can live healthy and blessed lives in order to help others more effectively. Scripture requires every person should be shown compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity.

  • We believe God has individually equipped us so that we can achieve His purpose for our lives which is to worship Him alone, encourage others to seek Him and serve the community in which we live.

  • We believe that our eternal destination of either Heaven or hell is determined by our response of accepting or rejecting Jesus Christ.

  • We believe Jesus Christ is coming back again as He promised.

Marriage

  • We believe God's plan for human sexuality is to be expressed only within the context of marriage, that God created man and woman as unique biological persons made to complete each other.  God instituted monogamous marriage between male and female as the foundation of the family and the basic structure of human society.  For this reason, we believe that marriage is exclusively the union of one genetic male and one genetic female.

  • We believe the Bible teaches that the covenant of marriage is sacred and lifelong. The Bible makes it clear that marriage is a legally binding public declaration of commitment.

  • We believe God uses marriage to mold a man and woman into the image of Jesus Christ.

  • We believe God created a man and woman with equal worth but differing roles and responsibilities in marriage, just as the Trinity reflects equal worth with differing roles. 

  • We believe Scripture teaches that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, incest, or pornography is sinful and hurtful to those participating in these activities.

  • We believe the biblical principles shared at MERCI through presentations (video or invited speakers), in the form of individual or group studies, workshops or other events are worthwhile and effective for married couples (as defined above) or those wanting to marry who want to learn more about living a Christian life or who have already surrendered, committed and are striving to follow Christ in all areas pertaining to their lives.  For all others the teachings of Jesus are enlightening but if unapplied will not be fruitful.