Methodist Beliefs

/files/Photo Galleries/window_1.bmpThe United Methodist Church’s roots go back over 200 years. We are Christians and we hold the same basic beliefs as all Christians.


We believe in one God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We believe that God is alive and active in our world, that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, and that the Holy Spirit dwells within us as our guide.


We believe that every person needs God’s saving grace in their lives. We believe this salvation and redemption come through faith in Jesus Christ, not through anything we do ourselves. We believe that all who put their trust in Jesus are made new.


We believe in the power of scripture as the primary rule and guide for our lives. We believe that we are part of Christ’s universal church with all fellow believers. With other Christians, we believe that Holy Communion and Baptism are sacraments, through which God’s grace is received in particularly powerful ways.


These beliefs, held in common with other Christians all over the world, are the foundation of our faith. They help us to understand who God is and how God works. They help us to understand our need for God and God’s grace. These beliefs sustain us and remind us that we are God’s beloved and valued children. Through our understanding of these beliefs we can know how we are to respond to God’s word and how to act as people in God’s world.

Our theological umbrella is very large, welcoming under it people from a wide range of Christian theological perspectives.  It is strongly grace-based, while acknowledging that:

  • "...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."  (Romans 3:23)
  • "...while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."  (Romans 5:8)
  • "...if anyone is overtaken in any trespass,..

                they should be restored in a spirit of gentleness."  (Galatians 6:1)

and that we should:

  • "...not worry so much about the speck in another's eye as the log in our own eye."  (Matthew 7:5)
  • "Bear one another's burdens..." (Galatians 6:2)
  • "...love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength...

and love our neighbor as ourselves."  (Mark 12: 30-31)


Our Community

First United Methodist Church is a community of loving people who are fully committed to following Jesus Christ and emporwered by the Holy Spirit to change their world for Christ. 

 

By the grace of Jesus Christ, we are a church that

  • encourages the powerful proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
  • encourages a warm-hearted, personal relationship with Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.
  • is world-wide. You can find United Methodist churches, missions, schools, hospitals or clinics in places all around the world.
  • is an open, inclusive church. Our members come from every culture and socioeconomic group and all are embraced as brothers and sisters in Christ.
  • is in the forefront of encouraging women to give strong leadership in church.  Therefore, we have more women clergy than any other denomination.
  • is a giving church. Members promise to serve God and support the church through their gifts, prayers, presence, and their service; that pledge calls us to give generously to help others.
  • has a family spirit that enables us to be there for each other in our joys and sorrow from cradle to grave.
  • reaches out with deep compassion to help hurting people. We feed more than a million children every day and our United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) provides aid, love and care quickly to victims of natural disasters, ethnic violence and warfare.
  • continues a ministry of preaching, teaching, healing and caring in the name of Jesus Christ.

To learn more about the United Methodist Church, visit www.umc.org.

Open Hearts.  Open Minds.  Open Doors.