At Christ Church Downingtown, We Believe…

…in the Triune God and His holy, inerrant Word, the Bible.

…that the Good News of Jesus Christ, the only Savior of sinners, is at the heart of the Bible’s message.

…that this Gospel gives to us the free gift of eternal life and enables us to glorify God and enjoy Him now to eternity.

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Below is a short statement of our faith. A longer statement is found in the Westminster Standards (Confession of Faith, Larger Catechism, and Shorter Catechism) which the leadership of our church whole-heartedly embraces as a faithful summary of Scripture’s teaching.

  • We believe in one, holy God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The triune, personal God is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

  • We believe the Scriptures, the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, to be God’s holy, inspired, inerrant word. It is the sole rule of our faith and practice.

  • We believe in the historical fall of Adam and that we are all sinners who deserve the wrath of God.

  • We believe in Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of the Father and very God of very God, who for our salvation, became incarnate in the womb of the virgin Mary, suffered on the cross under the wrath of God as an atoning sacrifice for sin.

  • We believe he was buried, raised on the third day, ascended into heaven, and is now seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, reigning over all heaven and earth. 

  • We believe in the Holy Spirit who powerfully applies to the hearts of the elect the redemption purchased by Christ and dwells in the them today as the downpayment of their eternal inheritance.

  • We believe the Gospel calls all to repent of sin and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.

  • We believe that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, on the basis of the work of Christ alone, as revealed in Scripture alone, to God’s glory alone.

  • We believe Christians are called to walk in the Spirit, striving by faith to glorify God in obedience to his commandments, and to continue to look to Christ for mercy as they struggle against remaining, indwelling sin.

  • We believe Christ is building His church and is ever present with her by the Spirit, and that he has given to her the means of grace—principally the Word, the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and prayer—for her nourishment in this world.

  • We believe Christians are baptized into Christ and so into a local church whereby they worship God, grow in grace, enjoy fellowship, and are equipped to serve for the fulfillment of the Great Commission.

  • We believe Christ will return in radiant glory to judge the living and the dead, sending the righteous to their eternal, gracious reward while sending the unrighteous to eternal wrath.

  • We believe all glory will be to Christ, together with the Father and the Spirit, as it has been from before all time and ever shall be.

If you have more questions about what we believe and why we believe it, the following resources may be helpful to you…