Our Beliefs
WHAT WE BELIEVE
Rooted in Scripture. Grounded in Grace.
As a United Methodist congregation, we share a common heritage with all Christians. We hold to the historic essentials of the Christian faith, guided by the belief that God's grace is available to everyone. Click through the topics below to learn more about our theology and what drives our faith at Immanuel.
We believe in one true, holy, and living God, who is the creator, sovereign, and preserver of all things. We understand God in three distinct but inseparable persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God is infinite in power, wisdom, justice, goodness, and love.
We believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God, fully human and fully divine. In Jesus, we see the clearest picture of who God is and how God loves. We believe in his life, teachings, crucifixion, and resurrection. Through Christ's life and sacrifice, we are offered salvation, reconciliation with God, and the promise of eternal life.
We believe the Holy Spirit is God's present, active presence in the world and in our lives. The Holy Spirit awakens us to God's will, empowers us to live faithfully, comforts us in our struggles, and equips us with spiritual gifts to serve the church and the community.
We believe the Bible is the inspired word of God and the primary guide for our faith and practice. As United Methodists, we interpret Scripture through the lens of the "Wesleyan Quadrilateral"—meaning we seek to understand the Bible by applying Christian tradition, our own personal experience, and God-given reason.
Grace is central to our United Methodist identity. We believe God’s love surrounds us at all times through three expressions of grace:
Prevenient Grace: The grace that surrounds us even before we are aware of God, drawing us toward faith.
Justifying Grace: The grace of forgiveness and new life when we consciously accept Christ.
Sanctifying Grace: The ongoing grace that helps us grow in love for God and our neighbors, continually shaping us to be more like Jesus throughout our lives.
We recognize two sacraments ordained by Christ:
Baptism: A sacred symbol of our adoption into God’s family. We practice both infant and believer baptism, believing that God's grace initiates the covenant. You only need to be baptized once.
Holy Communion (The Lord's Supper): A holy meal that sustains and nourishes our faith. The United Methodist Church practices an "Open Table." You do not need to be a member of this church, or any church, to partake. Christ invites all who seek to love him and live in peace with one another to receive communion.
We believe that God created humans with free will. We are not forced into a relationship with God; rather, God lovingly invites us to respond to His grace. We have the freedom to choose to accept God’s love and the responsibility to live out that choice in our daily lives.
John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement, taught that there is no religion but social religion, and no holiness but social holiness. We believe that loving God (personal piety) must inevitably lead to loving our neighbor (social holiness). We are called to actively work for justice, mercy, peace, and the betterment of our community and the world.