Statement of Faith

The following statements are the basic elements of Christianity that will be taught, and which the policies and practices of Grace Academy shall reflect, at all grade levels.

Of the Bible

Our chief aim in life is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. God teaches us how to do this in his written Word, that is, the Bible. He does reveal himself in his creation, through his providence, and by means of the human conscience, but this revelation is insufficient to give that knowledge of God and his will that is necessary for salvation. Only the salvation-history now preserved in the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testament Scriptures, which God has given by the infallible inspiration of the Holy Spirit, teach what we are to believe about God and what duty He requires of us. By the same token, the Scriptures as the revelation of God are complete and cannot be added to. For Christians, they are the only rule for faith and practice, and are sufficient, containing all things necessary for our salvation. In their totality, the Scriptures are both God-given and man-made.  They are not divine only in part, nor exclusively divine so as not to be fully the work of human writers.  It was breathed out by God, and he is the author both of the verbal form and the content of Scripture. Thus Scripture is the Word of God, and is entirely trustworthy in every respect, although the human interpretation of it remains entirely fallible.

Of the Trinity

God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in all that he is. He has revealed himself as one Lord who exists and acts eternally as Father and as Son and as Holy Spirit -- three persons in one God, equal in power and glory. He is our Creator, Lawgiver, Judge, Redeemer, and Sanctifier. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and everywhere present, as well as holy, loving merciful, gracious, and abounding in goodness and truth. Jesus Christ is God as the Father is God, and, with the Holy Spirit, is to be worshiped and glorified equally with the Father.

Of Creation

By his Word, God created all things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, and as created, the natural order reflects the goodness of its creator. God also preserves and governs every creature and every action, so that all things serve for his own glory and the good of his people.

Of Man

Of all his creation, God made man alone, male and female, after his own image in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, and entered into a covenant of works with man, promising life upon the fulfilling and threatening death upon the breach of this covenant. To be fully human comes from knowing God in Christ, who is the perfect image of God and the perfect pattern of human life. All human beings enjoy equal dignity before God, regardless of sex, race, nationality or color, from the earliest beginnings of life to the moment of death.

Of the Fall

The covenant of works was made with Adam as the covenant head of the human race, so that when he rejected God's Word, he broke the covenant and fell into sin, and all his descendants fell into sin with him. They lost the glory of intimate fellowship with him, and his image in them was spoiled. Thus, all human beings are conceived in sin and brought forth in iniquity, so that by nature we are children of wrath, under the just condemnation of God, totally depraved in both soul and body, prone to evil and liable to eternal death. The fall has also blighted the natural created order. Disasters, illness and imbalance expose its brokenness, and mankind selfishly exploits it, instead of sharing and caring for it responsibly as stewards to whom it has been entrusted by God. We cannot be delivered from this dreadful state of sin and misery apart from the unmerited grace of God as evidenced in the atoning work of Jesus Christ.

Of Jesus Christ

The eternal Son of God became incarnate man in Jesus Christ. He was conceived by his virgin mother Mary through the power of the Holy Spirit, born under the Law, that He might redeem all the elect who were chosen from before the foundation of the world. Although Jesus Christ is both truly and perfectly God and truly and perfectly man, he is but one person. The humanity of Jesus, unlike ours, remained free from sin. Like us, he was tempted at every turn, but he perfectly conformed to God's will in every thought, word and deed. In becoming man, Christ did not cease to be God or divest himself of any divine attribute, but veiled his divine identity. He emptied himself by subjecting himself to the lowliness of human life and submitting to death by crucifixion, which demonstrated both God's love and his mercy toward sinners and his holy wrath and justice. The Lord Jesus Christ is the only savior of lost humanity. Christ achieved justification for all who believe, by which God in him not only pardons the sins of the guilty but also accepts them as righteous through their faith in him. He rose from the dead on the third day and ascended into heaven, where he makes continual intercession for us. He has all authority in heaven and on earth, and reigns over all things as Head of his church, and as King over God's kingdom.

Of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity; he is God as the Father is God and the Son is God.  The Spirit was active in the world from the beginning and gave God's Word to the world. The redemption accomplished by the Lord Jesus Christ is effectually applied to all his people by the Holy Spirit, who both regenerates and sanctifies us, working faith in us and uniting us to Christ continually, so that we are enabled more and more to die unto sin and to live unto righteousness until the day we are received into glory.

Of the Gospel of Grace

God requires that out of the sight and sense of the danger, filthiness, and odiousness of our sins, and upon apprehension of God's mercy in Christ, we grieve for and hate our sins, and turn from them all to God, and receive and rest upon Jesus Christ alone for salvation. God does not leave all people to perish in their sin and misery, but out of his mere love and mercy delivers his elect by means of the covenant of grace. It is of grace because God provides the Redeemer, Jesus Christ; accepts the work of the Redeemer on our behalf; and bestows the gift of faith on us that we might believe in and be saved by this Redeemer. Thus being united to Christ, we receive forgiveness of sins and are accepted in God's sight, only for the perfect obedience and full satisfaction of Christ, by God imputed to us, and received by faith alone.

Of Good Works

Faith without works is dead, and all those who have been regenerated and believe in Christ are required by god to show gratitude for their salvation and love for their neighbors by living in a manner consistent with holiness, in sincere obedience, according to what God has commanded in his Word. These good works are the fruit and evidence of a true and lively faith, and the ability to render such obedience is not of ourselves, but wholly from the Spirit of Christ, who enables us to walk in those paths which God has prepared for us beforehand.

Of the Church

God has instituted his Church in the world and has entrusted it with the ministry of the Word and sacraments (the latter being Baptism and the Lord's Supper, where material elements give expression to spiritual realities) in order that through these means, the riches of his grace in the gospel may be made known to the world. Also, by the blessing of Christ and the working of his Spirit in those who by faith receive them, all the benefits of his redemption may be communicated to his people and they may be made holy. The church consists of all those across the ages, chosen and called by God to be his believing and obedient people, and as such has an historical and human identity, comprising all who in every place constitute the worshiping community of God's people. Of this church, Christ is the sole King and Head, ruling it by his Word through the Spirit. It is mandated in Scripture that all Christians join themselves to the visible body of Christ and participate in these means of grace with diligence, preparation, and prayer so that through them they may be instructed and strengthened in faith, and equipped to live in holiness and love. The church exists to worship and bring glory to God and to serve him y proclaiming his message of reconciliation to the world, by building up it's members in their faith and by caring for those in need.

The church is called constantly to reform itself in the light of God's Word. As God's Spirit gives his people new insights into the unsearchable riches of his Word, so they are to formulate afresh the church's beliefs and reshape the church's structures and practices, but always according to the Holy Scriptures.

Of Discipleship

Conversion to Christ in repentance and faith finds expression in membership of a local congregation of his church. Essential to the health and growth of believers, this involves a commitment to the worship, fellowship, service and discipline of the congregation. Members are called to devote their talents and resources to encourage, strengthen and edify the church as the body of Christ -- not only as a center of worship and a means of grace but also a family and a base for evangelism and service. This life of discipleship is marked by: continuing trust in Christ as the only Savior, submission to his lordship, dependence on his grace and strength, a love for God that surpasses all human loves, obedience to all the teachings of God's Word, self-denial in the bearing of the cross, the consecration of all our talents and resources to the service of Christ, the renunciation of all known sin, witness to Christ's gospel by word and deed, care for others in need, work for a more just and peaceful society, and an eager expectation of the reappearing of Christ at the end of the age.

Of the Future

At the end of the age, when Jesus Christ comes again in person, visibly, suddenly and in triumphant glory to judge the world in righteousness, there will be a general resurrection of the dead, both of believers and unbelievers, and the selfsame bodies of the dead will be raised up by the power of Christ. Immediately following this resurrection will be the general and final judgment of angels and men, when the lost will be cast into hell and be punished with unspeakable torments in both soul and body forever, and the elect who were chosen from before the beginning of the world will be received into heaven, be forever freed from all sin and misery, and be filled with inconceivable joy in the immediate presence of God the Father, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. God's plans for the whole of creation will be consummated, and there will be a new heaven and a new earth, to the glory of God and the unending joy of renewed humanity.