We believe that the church is expressed as both Universal and Local.
We believe that the Universal church is the name used to identify the whole body of Christians that exist in the world.
Throughout the world there are followers of Christ virtually everywhere. These believers agree on a set of beliefs that qualify them to be part of the whole called the Universal Church. Without these beliefs they cannot be a part of the whole.
To be a part of the universal church, you must believe that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died for your sins, was buried and rose from the grave. Based upon this He is both the Son of God and the Son of Man and must be the Lord of your life (1 Corinthians 15:1-4 Romans 3:23; 10:9, John 3:16 John 14:6, ). Once you submit to these beliefs, you are automatically a part of the Universal church even if you don’t know it or choose to be. You are in because of what you believe.
We believe that the Local Church is the Universal Church expressed in local communities.
We believe that the Universal Church is comprised of smaller units that we call the Local Church. The requirements for being a part of a local church are the same as the requirements for being a part of the Universal Church except that the local church may exist in a township, a city, a county or wherever.
We also believe that although acceptance into the universal church is automatic being a part of a local church, is a personal choice and is required to be able to grow in ones faith and to find community through relationships with other believers. ( Hebrews 10:23-24)
We believe that the Local Church is the place of restoration, teaching and purpose
We believe that the local Church is where people are restored to fellowship with both God and man and learn how to recuperate from years of disobedience and self will (Joel 2:25-26; 2 Corinthians 5:17).
We believe that the local Church is a place where teaching people the ways of God is the highest priority of the church. It is through teaching that followers of Christ are able to mature in their faith and as a result of that maturing process are able to discover the purpose for which God created them (Romans 12).