Church of the Living God - Traverse City, MI

Crucifixion Friday is hard'; Resurrection Sunday is glorious. What do we do with the difficult (and sometimes very long) day in-between?

We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image (Genesis 1:27). Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life” (Psalm139).

Our bodies tell a story. Specifically, they tell a theological story.

We believe that the Church is Christ’s symbolic body in the earth, and that it should reveal His character, His message, and His love to the world. We believe that the Church is to go into all the world, preach the gospel, and make disciples. This will lead people to have fellowship with God and community with others.

There is a lot that could be said about where we go when we die, and cultural notions haven’t helped to keep our view of Scripture clear. From Milton’s Paradise Lost to Dante’s Inferno, from Chick Tracks to What Dreams May Come, people have ideas that waver somewhere between relatively solid and totally made up. This is my attempt to focus on the Bible, understood in its context. 

Like God covered up the shame and nakedness of Adam and Eve, Jesus covers up our shame, our spiritual nakedness, by offering Himself as the means to triumph over the power and destructiveness of sin. This is the only way we can be saved: through Jesus Christ.

We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells believers (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), confirming their salvation (Romans 8:14-16) and enabling them to bear godly fruit (Galatians 5:22). We believe that the Holy Spirit convicts the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8). He is the source of all power and all acceptable worship and service. The Holy Spirit also empowers believers to have a bold and effective witness (i.e Luke 12:12), so He manifests His gifts in their daily lives for the edification of the church and as a testimony to the world. He never removes Himself from the Church; He is always testifying of Christ; He is always seeking to focus believers on Jesus, not on themselves, their gifts, or their experiences.