OUR BELIEFS
Doctrine & Denomination
Our Heart
Who We Are
Waite Park Church is a multi-generational, neighborhood church that works so that everyone we come into contact with would experience what Jesus promised when he said in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have life and have to in the fullest sense.”
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Find Life
We want to be a community where people of all ages find life in a deep, ongoing relationship with Jesus. We fully believe that God is present and active in our lives and that we can know God through Jesus Christ, and when we do, we can know peace no matter what we’re going through in life. We want to be a place for people who broken and hurting—people who can’t seem to get their stuff together—because we believe Jesus can transform any of us, no matter where we’ve been or what we’ve done.
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Share Life
We want to create space where people can share life with each other. We aren’t meant to be alone. Sometimes we need to rely on each other’s strength when we’re weak. Sometimes we need people to catch us when we’re falling. And sometimes we even need people to tell us when we’re being hypocritical or just plain jerks. We try to accomplish this in many ways, but the primary way we do it is through small groups that meet during the week that focus on studying the Word, worshipping God together, and developing deep friendships.
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Give Life
We are a mission-focused church that knows we’re called to offer that life to people who are lost and hurting. Every day, we’re learning what it means to walk with people through the mess of life and to offer them the life Jesus gave us. We want to offer life and hope to our neighborhood and beyond by partnering with local and global ministries.
Our Denomination
While we know that no denomination is perfect - we recognize the value that comes with being a part of a larger community. Our denomination provides accountability, support, and an interconnectedness to the whole Body of Christ that we otherwise wouldn't experience.
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We're proud to be part of the Wesleyan Church - a denomination with a rich history that focuses on the gospel of Jesus Christ, life change, social justice, and church multiplication.
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If you're interested in learning more, visit www.wesleyan.org
Our Doctrine
You'll find that the Wesleyan Church tends to live out the phrase:
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In Essentials Unity,
In Non-Essentials Liberty,
In All Things Charity.
Meaning that we recognize that there are some doctrines which are very important and necessary to get right and we're also comfortable with the fact that there are other beliefs that the Bible (and church history) is less clear on. The Apostle's Creed and Nicene Creed are good rules of faith for such "essentials."
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The following doctrinal positions are held by the Wesleyan Church.
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The Holy Trinity
We believe in the one living and true God, both holy and loving, eternal, all present, all knowing, and all powerful. Within this unity there are three persons of one essential nature — the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
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The Father
We believe the Father is the Source of all that exists, whether of matter or spirit. With the Son and the Holy Spirit, He made mankind in His image. By intention He relates to people as Father, thereby forever declaring His goodwill toward them.
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The Son
We believe in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, fully God and fully man. He died on the cross and was buried, to be a sacrifice both for original sin and for all human transgressions, and to reconcile us to God. Christ rose bodily from the dead, and ascended into heaven, and there intercedes for us at the Father’s right hand until He returns to judge all humanity at the last day.
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The Holy Spirit
We believe in the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father and the Son, and is of the same essential nature, majesty, and glory, as the Father and the Son, truly and eternally God. He works in us in convicting us of sin, in regeneration, in sanctification, and in glorification. He is ever present, assuring, preserving, guiding, and enabling the believer.
The Scriptures
We believe that the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments constitute the Holy Scriptures. They are the inspired Word of God and superior to all human authority, and have been transmitted to the present without corruption of any essential doctrine.
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The Atonement
Jesus offered Himself, once for all, through His perfect life, suffering, and death on the cross to provide secure forgiveness and redemption for the sins of the world, both original and actual. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Him. For those who are able, this salvation is made possible only when they repent and exercise faith in Christ.
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Good Works
We believe that although good works cannot save us from our sins or from God’s judgment, they are the fruit of faith and follow after regeneration. Therefore they are pleasing and acceptable to God in Christ, and by them a living faith may be as evidently known as a tree is discerned by its fruit.
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The Sacraments
We believe that water baptism and the Lord’s Supper are the sacraments of the church commanded by Christ and ordained as a means of grace when received through faith. They are tokens of our profession of Christian faith and signs of God’s grace toward us. By them, He works within us to strengthen and confirm our faith. Neither Baptism nor Communion are necessary for salvation.
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The Second Coming
We believe that the certainty of the personal and imminent return of Christ inspires holy living and zeal for the evangelization of the world. At His return He will fulfill all prophecies made concerning His final and complete triumph over evil.
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Final Judgment
We believe that the Scriptures reveal God as the Judge of all and the acts of His judgment are based on His omniscience and eternal justice. His administration of judgment will culminate in the final meeting of all persons before His throne of great majesty and power, where records will be examined and final rewards and punishments will be administered.