Our community is blessed with many wonderful Christian churches, each with their own dynamic, emphases, and distinctives that set them apart.  The core distinctive of ECOG can be summed up in the phrase, "Spirit-led and gospel-centered."

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Spirit-led, in our case, is meant to convey that we believe that the Holy Spirit actively leads and ministers to and within believers and the Church.  We believe the gifts of the Holy Spirit as displayed in the New Testament did not cease, but are active and available today for the empowered witness of the Church and for the glory of God. (1 Cor. 12:1-11)

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Gospel-centered is a term meant to emphasize the priority and sufficiency of Scripture.  We believe the Bible, the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, are the inspired Word of God and are therefore without error in their original writings.  It is God's instruction and, therefore, our standard for living.  As such, everything that informs our thinking -from who God is, to cultural issues and moral questions -is held up to, and filtered through, Scripture.

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BASIC VALUES:  The guard rails that keep us on track.

Because people matter to God, people matter to us.  It is our mission to connect people to Christ as we help one another to live for Him.

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We believe that the cross is the ultimate equalizer of all people and our objective is to be a place where everyone knows that their age, income, history, social standing, education, cultural background or ethnicity does not increase or decrease their value in the community.  All are valuable and important to God and to us.

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We desire to connect with our unchurched, or poorly churched, friends, even if that means giving up methods and traditions that are comfortable to us.  We do not believe, however, in compromising biblical faithfulness in order to grow.  Our purpose is not to get as many people as we can into a building on Sunday, but to faithfully share the life-saving, life-changing good news of Jesus Christ.

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We believe that if we are going to do something, we are going to do it well.  As ministries develop and events are planned, they will be done with quality, integrity, and enthusiasm.

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We believe the church isn't something you go to once or twice a week, but is an intentional community doing life in Christ together.  We can't provide a quick fix for complicated and difficult life situations.  What we can do is come alongside and walk together, encouraging each other, sharing burdens, celebrating joys, and discovering together what the Bible teaches about how to best live in our circumstances.

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The purpose of everything we do is to know Christ and make Him known.

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SUMMARY OF BELIEFS:  The basics of our Christian faith.

The Bible, in its entirety, is the inspired and infallible Word of God.

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In the one, true God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, Holy Spirit

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That all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and therefore lost and without hope apart from salvation in Christ.

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That justification, regeneration, and the new birth are wrought by faith alone, in Christ alone. That this gift of salvation is by God's grace to all who would turn from their sins, trust in Jesus, and in His atoning death on their behalf.

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In the believer's water baptism by immersion, and in celebrating the Lord's Supper.

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In the baptism of the Holy Spirit and that the gifts of the spirit are employed today for encouragement and strength, empowered service, and witness of the Church.

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