Our Beliefs.
Not weird. Not partisan. Not micro. Not Mega. Just Jesus.
To all who are wear and need rest;
to all who mourn and long for comfort
to all who feel worthless and wonder is God cares;
to all who fail and desire strength;
to all who sin and need a savior;
to all who hunger and thirst for righteousnes;
And to whoever will come:
This church opens her doors wide and welcomes
you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our Identity
God's family of missionary servants.
Our Vison
A city transformed by the Gospel.
Our Mission
Helping you finds and follow Jesus.
Buck Creek cuts through our neighborhood. It flows from Allegan County, through Gaines and Byron Townships, into Kentwood, through Wyoming and finally to Grandville. Eventually it meets up with the Grand River and into Lake Michigan.
This little waterway was also a stop on the underground railroad. Just across the street from Lemery Park, escaping slaves would walk in the creek toward freedom.
It is our desire that Buck Creek Community Church would help you experience Living Water and freedom in Jesus Christ. If you don't know what that means, no worries. We are here to help with that. Curious about Jesus?
oh, and in the mean time, you belong here.
THE BIBLE
The Bible, the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, is inspired, authoritative, sufficient and without error. Any creed or confessions of men, while helpful in outlining and preserving the historic faith, remain secondary and subordinate to the revealed word of God. We seek unity in essential beliefs. We Value liberty in non-essesntional beliefs. We pursue love in all things.
ABOUT GOD
God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God.
"Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting You are God." Psalm 90:2
Genesis 1:1, 26, 3:22
Matthew 28:19
1 Peter 1:2
2 Corinthians 13:14
HUMANITY & DEPRAVITY
People were created in the image of God to be worshipers of Him. People are the crown jewel of God's Creation. Although created in God's image, sin has infiltrated every area of human existence, and therefore made humanity fully broken, and incapable of living the life God designed for us to live. All humanity has inherited the debt of sin in this world, but also contributes to sin.
Genesis 1:27
Psalm 8:3-6
Isaiah 53:6
Romans 3:23
Isaiah 59:1,2
We believe in the historical and literal fall into sin of Adam as the first created man, which we call original sin. We believe that due to Adam's sin, all men receive the guilt and corruption of his and consequently are deemed sinners by heritage and choice. Humanity, in and of itself, is selfish and does not seek God, but rather seeks his or her own pleasure.
Genesis 3
Romans 5
1 Corinthians 15:22
Our Beliefs.
ATTONMENT
We believe in the Atonement of Jesus Christ. We believe the death of Jesus Christ, the penalty of sin has been paid for all who believe in Him as Lord and Savior.
Hebrews 2:17
Romans 5:11
2 Corinthians 5:18-21
JUSTIFCATION
Jesus came to seek and save sinners. We believe a sinner is justified (declared not guilty) with God not by his/her own merits or good works but by the unmerited grace of God. Even faith is the gift of God! We believe sinners are saved by grace through faith and not by works.
Romans 4:25
Romans 5:16-18
Ephesians 2:8-10
SANCTIFICATION
We believe a sinner works out their salvation together with the church. The more we submit our lives to Jesus, the more we trust Him and believe the truth, the more of Him we get. The more Jesus rubs off on us the more like Him we become. He loves us just as we are and loves us too much to leave us where we are. This is how Jesus saves us every day from the power of sin. We do all of this together, as God's Family on earth.
Romans 4:25
Romans 5:16-18
Ephesians 2:8-10
Philippians 2:12
ETERNAL SECURITY
Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the believer is secure in this salvation for eternity. Salvation is maintained by grace and power of God, not by the self effort of the Christian. it is the grace and "keeping power" of God that gives this secuity.
1 Peter 1:3-5
John 10:29
2 Timothy 1:12
Hebrews 7:25; 10:10-14
THE CHURCH
The Church is the living body of Jesus Christ on earth. He is the head and the source of its life. We believe all true believers need to be a part of a local church, so that they can grow in their faith through instruction, worship, and fellowship with other believers. You can technically be married without ever seeing, talking with or spending time with your spouse but your relationship certainly won't thrive that way. The same is true in the church. You'll never truly flourish the way God intends apart from His church.
Ephesians 5:23
Romans 12:4-8; 1
1 Corinthians 12
Ephesians 1:22-23; 4:1-16
Colossians 1:15-20
BAPTISM & COMMUNION
We believe there are two Sacraments given by Jesus Christ to strengthen our faith as members of His Church. The first is Baptism, which is a sign and seal of God's eternal covenant of grace for us and our children. Baptism symbolized what God has done in washing away of our sins through the blood of Christ, and unites us in death and resurrection of Jesus on our behalf. If you are a believer then you are to be baptized.
The second is the Sacrament of Communion. The broken bread symbolized the broken body of Jesus Christ. The cup symbolizes the blood of Christ poured out at the cross for our salvation. Christ, spiritually present in the bread and cup, is a means of grace that strengthens us, and is celebrated to remind us Christ's sacrifice on our behalf until He returns.
Genesis 17:1-10
Deuteronomy 7:9
Matthew 19:14-15; 28:19
Acts 16;14-15; 30-33
2 Corinthians 11:23-26
Romans 6
END TIMES
When the time is fulfilled, Jesus Christ will return in power and glory to judge the world, and to complete His total victory over sin, death, and Satan. At that time, those who are followers of Jesus will enter His reign forever. Those who are not Christ's will be eternally separated from Him . When either Jesus returns or we assume room temperature, we will see Him face to face and He will wipe away every tear from every eyes. That's when He will save us from even the presence of sin.
Acts 1:6-11
Mark 13:24-27
Revelation 1:7
1 Peter 4:5
Matthew 24:29-31; 25:31-46
Revelation 21:4
OUR CORE VALUES
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Gospel Centrality: The four movements of the Gospel ("Creation, Fall, Redemption, Reconciliation") shape who we are and what we get to do. Our identity is rooted in Christ's finished work vs. what we need too. The Gospel is central to who we are and what we do.
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Generous Collaboration: Out of gratitude we use our resources for the sake of the kingdom-especially for the poor. We partner with like-minded churches for Gospel saturation of our city and in service to our community
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Hospitality: You belong here-especially people live near our building because we seek to be good news to 1. Our local community of Wyoming, MI) 2. Dudes (we skew masculine in order to reach men) and 3. The lost, broken, & hurting.
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Multiplication: Our desired outcome is more of Jesus through more disciples, leaders, groups & churches. Until the gospel saturates every place with his presence through his body where we live, work, learn, and play.
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Rooted + Relevant: We are united by a vintage faith (rooted in the inerrant Scriptures and the Great Tradition) expressed through, excellent, modern worship and we will not be divided by secondary issues.
OUR DENOMINATION
We are in the application process with the Kingdom Network