WHo we are and what we do

We're a home for tired, hurting, and lonely to be impacted by Jesus and to make an impact for Jesus.

Epicenter Church exists to make disciples of Jesus Christ by repairing broken lives, preparing them for spiritual maturity and leadership, and loving people everywhere through prayer, caring for others, and sharing the gospel. 

We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three

persons, that these are equal in every divine perfection, and that they execute

distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence, and

redemption. (Matthew 28:19, John 1:1-4, 1 John 5:7)

We believe in God, the Father, an infinite personal spirit, perfect in holiness,

wisdom, power, and love. We believe that He concerns Himself mercifully in the

affairs of each person, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from

sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. (John 3:16-17, John 4:24,

John 17:5)

We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit.

We believe in His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into

heaven, perpetual intercession for His people, and personal visible return to earth.

(Isaiah 7:14, John 1:14, Philippians 2:5-11, Hebrews 1:2-3, 1 John 1:7)

 We believe in the Holy Spirit who came forth from the Father and the Son to

convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify,

and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit

indwells every believer in Christ, and that He is an abiding helper, teacher and

guide. (John 14:26, John 16:7-15, Romans 8:14-17, Ephesians 1:13- 14)

We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in

the original manuscripts, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and that it

has supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. (John 17:17, Romans

15:4, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:19-21)

We believe that all people are sinners by nature and by choice and are, therefore,

under condemnation. We believe that those who repent of their sins and trust in

Jesus Christ as Savior are regenerated by the Holy Spirit. (John 1:12-13, John 3:3,

16-17, Acts 20:21, Ephesians 2:1-9, Titus 3:5)

 We believe in the universal church, a living spiritual body of which Christ is the

head and all regenerated persons are members. We believe in the local church,

consisting of a company of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible

confession of faith, and associated for worship, work and fellowship. We believe

that God has laid upon the members of the local church the primary task of giving

the gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world. (Matthew 16:16-18, Acts 2:38- 41,

Ephesians 2:19-22, Ephesians 5:25-27)

We believe that Christians should live for the glory of God and the well-being of

others; that their conduct should be blameless before the world; that they should be

faithful stewards of their possessions; and that they should seek to realize for

themselves and others the full stature of maturity in Christ. (2 Corinthians 9:6-8,

Ephesians 4:11-16, Philippians 2:14-16, Colossians 3:17-23, 1 Thessalonians 5:17-

18)

We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and

the establishment of His kingdom. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the

final judgment, the eternal felicity of the righteous, and the endless suffering of the

wicked. (John 5:28-29, Revelation 20:1-15, 2 Corinthians 5:10, Matthew 25:31-

46)*

We believe in the continuation of all biblically listed spiritual gifts. We do not

believe that each believer has every spiritual gift but that the Holy Spirit equips

each believer according to God's will. We have an open and discerning policy

regarding the use of spiritual gifts. We are open so as to not quench the Spirit but

discerning in testing all things so that works are aligned with Scripture. We

believe all expressions of spiritual gifts are to be done according to God's Word.

(Romans 12:3-8, 1 Corinthians 12, 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22)

We believe that the governing council of a church is to be led by a plurality of

biblically qualified and mutually accountable elders, whose title is synonymous

with overseers and pastors. Our Life Groups are led by biblically qualified deacons

who are committed to shepherding and are accountable to the elder council.

(Titus 1:5-9, 1 Timothy 3:1-13)

We believe that men and women have equal worth and dignity, both being made in

God's image. We hold to complementarian roles of men and women only in the

church and the home. Male leadership is to be sacrificial, kind, gracious, loving,

and Christ-like. (Genesis 5:2, Ephesians 5)

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local

church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian baptism is

immersion of a believer in water into the name of the triune God. We believe that

the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ for commemoration of His death. We

believe that these two ordinances should be observed and administered until the

return of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 2:41-42, Romans 6:3-5, 1

Corinthians 11:23-32) *

We believe that every human being has direct relations with God, and is

responsible to God alone in all matters of faith; that each church is independent

and must be free from interference by any ecclesiastical or political authority; that

therefore Church and State must be kept separate as having different functions,

each fulfilling its duties free from dictation or patronage of the other.*

We hold to biblical beliefs on life, marriage, gender, and morality. Jesus was silent

on the political issues of His day. He was seemingly apolitical, yet at the same

time was the most effective activist. In expanding the Kingdom of God, He was

addressing the true issues that plagued society and culture abroad. We believe

there is Christian liberty in how we vote and social causes we exert effort into, but

that these be done in accordance with one's conscience, informed by the

Bible. Epicenter Church is not obligated to address any political or social issue

except that which is deemed necessary to its ministry.

*All primary beliefs and starred secondary beliefs used from “Terra Nova

Community Church,” affiliated with Converge Worldwide and Converge

MidAtlantic