About BUMC
00- Discipleship Pathway (pdf)
Our Beliefs
God
We believe in one true, eternal, living God. He is unchanging and infinite. He is the Creator and Sustainer of all life. He is all powerful, all knowing, all loving, and all-wise. God created human kind in his own image. He created the heavens and the earth including all life by direct action (Genesis 1:1, John 1:3). Jesus calls God, Father, and describes God as being revealed to human kind as a loving father and is certainly Father to those who become children of God through Jesus (Genesis 1:1, Jeremiah 10:10, Matthew 6:9).
Human kind
Though humanity was created in the image of God, human kind lives in a fallen condition from the result of Adam and Eve’s sin (Genesis 3). All of us are affected by it and all of us have sinned against God. We cannot save ourselves from this fallen state (Romans 3:23).
Sin
Sin entered the world when human kind disobeyed God. This is not the way it is supposed to be! Because of human kind’s original sin, we have all been and are currently affected by sin. All have sinned and fall short of God’s glory (Genesis 3, Romans 3:23).
Atonement for Sin
Because our sin separates us from God and because we have no righteousness on our own, we deserve death due to our rebellion (Romans 3:10, 6:23). We cannot correct our sins on our own. BUT, since Jesus was sacrificed on the cross as God's Son, his death paid for our sins and his pure righteousness was given to us.
Jesus
We believe God sent his only Son who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born from a virgin named Mary. Jesus is God in the flesh and comes into the earth to redeem human kind and save usfrom sin and death. He lived a life without sin, performed many miracles, and gave up his life to die on the cross to atone for the sins of all human kind. He physically rose from the grave three days later. His appearance was witnessed by hundreds of people (1 Cor. 15:6) and he ascended into heaven.
Salvation
Salvation comes through confessing and believing that Jesus Christ is Lord, that He is God’s son, and that He not only died for our sins on the cross but rose from the grave and ascended into heaven (Romans 10: 9-13). We believe salvation happens instantly. We are justified before God because of Christ.
Holy Spirit
Promised to come to all believers, the Holy Spirit lives and dwells inside of believers. The Holy Spirit, God’s presence in us, brings new life into our bodies. The Holy Spirit in us empowers us and gives us grace to do good works and unites believers together into one Church, the Body of Christ. (John 3:3-8, John 14:16-17, John 16:7-11, 1 Cor. 12:19) Special spiritual gifts also accompany the Holy Spirit’s presence in the life of a believer and operate at different times in the life of the believer (1 Cor. 12, 14).
Sanctification
While Salvation happens instantly, sanctification is a process that takes place after a person comes to salvation (accepts Christ as Lord). It is a process that unfolds for the rest of our lives as we strive to become more and more like Jesus (Colossians 3:1-10). The Holy Spirit works inside of us and gives us grace to pursue Jesus and holiness. Sin should consistently be repented of as God perfects us daily.
Trinity (Godhead)
Trinity means that there is one God, but there are three ways that we understand to experience that one God. We understand the Godhead to be revealed in 3 roles: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:13-17). We believe, as Jurgen Moltmann does, that the Godhead is a community of equals and that the Church should strive for similar relationships. The church is to be a counter-culture-community of people that was not placed on earth to criticize and judge, but to demonstrate the unity God wants to bring about in healing the family of God.
Heaven/Hell
We believe in a literal heaven and hell. Those who confess Jesus as Lord and Savior will live with God for eternity in Heaven (John 14:2, 1 Peter 3:18-22). Those who do not will live separate from God in Hell (Luke 13:3).
Scripture
We believe that all Scripture is given from inspiration of God and written by the hands of people. (1 Thessalonians 2:13) It is helpful for teaching, leading, guidance, wisdom, correction, etc. (2 Timothy 3:16)
Our Mission, Purpose, Vision, & Values
Our mission is to make new disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Our purpose is to build relationships, impact others, and grow our faith.
Our vision is a family where sincere love is felt and grace is given.
Our values are to celebrate, engage, transform, & share.
Celebrating Life — We support and inspire each other.
Engaging our area — We believe love is expressed in action.
Transforming our lives together — We walk and worship together to learn and grow.
Sharing our faith walk with others — We reach out knowing we can make a difference.
We believe disciples of Jesus Christ are to be made by Christians who live and share the good news that Jesus has atoned for our sins and given us new life in him (Matthew 28:19-20).
We come together and exist as a church to see disciples made and to dedicate ourselves to Biblical growth and sanctification by teaching and fellowship (Acts 2:42-47).