RCC Believes the 66 books of the Bible are the inspired Word of God, given to us by the Holy Spirit, and written down by the people of his choosing [1 Corinthians 2:7-14; 2 Peter 1:20-21]. It speaks with God’s authority through the individual personalities and writing styles of the authors and is without error in whole or in part [Matthew 5:18; 2 Timothy 3:16]. It is living, life-changing, and dynamic as it works in us [Psalm 119:105,160; Hebrews 4:12]. The Bible is the trustworthy final authority on what is believed, taught, and practiced; there are no other writings inspired by God [Proverbs 30:5].

RCC Believes in the one true and holy God, the first Person of the Trinity, eternally existing in 3 separate persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He is the Creator of all things [Genesis 1:1-31; Ephesians 3:9] and Lord of All; the only all-powerful Ruler of the Universe [Psalm 103:19; Romans 11:36]. He orders and arranges all things for His own glory, and according to His own purpose and grace [Psalm 145:8-9; 1 Corinthians 8:6] – including those whom He would call His Own [Ephesians 1:4-6]. In His supremacy He is neither author nor approver of sin [Habakkuk 1:13; John 8:38-47] but holds all accountable who have sinned [1 Peter 1:17]. He saves from sin all who come to an authentic faith through Jesus Christ [John 3:16].

RCC Believes in Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the second Person of the Trinity; eternally equal with, and the same as, God the Father [John 10:30, 14:9]. He became a man through a miraculous conception and a virgin birth [Luke 1:26, 35; John 1:1, 14], with the purpose to reveal God, redeem men, and rule over God’s Kingdom [Psalm 2:7- 9; Hebrews 7:25-26]. He lived a perfect life, committing no sin [1 Peter 2:22], and by the voluntary shedding of his blood and sacrificial death on the cross in our place, saved sinful men from the punishment of eternal separation from God [Romans 3:24-25, 5:8; 1 Peter 2:24; 3:18]. He declared us righteous, gave us eternal life, and adopted us into the family of God [2 Corinthians 5:14-15], made sure by His literal and physical resurrection from the dead [Matthew 28:6]. Jesus Christ will return at God’s appointed time to receive the church and establish His millennial kingdom on earth [Acts 1:9-11] and is the One through whom God will judge all mankind [John 5:22-23].

RCC Believes in The Holy Spirit, a Divine Being and the third Person of the Trinity; eternally equal with, and the same as God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son of God [Mark 1:10]. The Holy Spirit came at Pentecost when he came from the Father as promised by Christ [John 14:16-17; 15:26] and includes convicting the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgement; glorifying the Lord Jesus Christ and transforming Believers into the image of Christ [John 16:7-9; Romans 8:29]. The Holy Spirit unites all Believers into the Body of Christ [I Corinthians 12:13] and indwells, sanctifies, instructs, empowers them for service, and seals them until the day of redemption [Romans 8:9; Ephesians 1:13]. The Holy Spirit is a Divine Teacher, who guided the apostles and prophets into all Truth as they wrote God’s revelation, the Bible [2 Peter 1:19-21]. The Holy Spirit administers spiritual gifts to the church and glorifies Christ by redeeming the lost and building up Believers in the Faith [1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 2 Corinthians 3:18].

RCC Believes that Adam was created by God in His image and likeness, free of sin, to glorify God, enjoy His fellowship, and live life in His will to accomplish His purpose for man in the world [Genesis 2:7; Colossians 1:16]. In Adam’s sin of disobedience to the revealed will and Word of God, he incurred the penalty of spiritual and physical death, and became inherently incapable of doing what is acceptable to God [Genesis 2:16-17; 3:1-19; Romans 3:23; 6:23]. A nature corrupted by Adam’s sin has been transmitted to all men of all ages, except for Jesus Christ, and thus all are sinners by nature, choice, and divine declaration [Psalm 14:1-3; Romans 3:9-18, 23].

RCC Believes that Man’s salvation is wholly of God’s grace through the redemptive work of our Lord Jesus Christ, the merit of His shed blood, and not based on human works or merit [John 3:36; Ephesians 1:7, 2:8-10]. There is no other way man can be reconciled to God [John 14:6]. Anyone can receive God’s gift of salvation by choosing to put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ [Titus 2:11-14]; it is not earned in any other way [Romans 6:23].

Justification is an act by which God declares righteous those who, through faith in Christ, repent of their sins [Acts 2:38; Isaiah 55:6-7] and confess Him as sovereign Lord [Romans 10:9-10; Philippians 2:11]. It is apart from any virtue or work of man [Romans 3:20, 4:6] and involves the assigning of our sins to Christ [Colossians 2:14; 1 Peter 2:24] and the designation of Christ’s righteousness to us [1 Corinthians 1:30; 2 Corinthians 5:21]. God is just and justifies those who have faith in Jesus [Romans 3:26].

Sanctification is an act by which God declares holy and set apart unto Himself those who are justified (or righteous) before Him. It is positional and has to do with the believer’s standing in Christ alone [2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2]. Progressive sanctification is when a believer, one degree at a time, lives a life of increasing holiness in conformity to God’s will, through obedience to His Word and the empowering of the Holy Spirit [Romans 6:1-22; 2 Corinthians 3:18].

Separation from sin is called for throughout the Old and New Testaments, and that in the last days abandonment of religious belief and worldliness shall increase [2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; 2 Timothy 3:1-5]. Believers should be separated unto our Lord Jesus Christ [2 Thessalonians 1:11-12; Hebrews 12:1-2] and affirm that the Christian life is one of obedient righteousness to the Word of God and a continual pursuit of holiness [Romans 12:1-2; Titus 2:11-14].

RCC Believes that the result of a saving relationship with Jesus Christ is a life that is being transformed to be like Jesus. Our part in this process is to yield our lives to the Holy Spirit through appropriate spiritual disciplines (Sanctification) [2 Corinthians 3:18]. God’s part of this process is to transform us, from the inside out, into the image of Christ [2 Peter 1:4-10]. God justifies and sanctifies us once we repent of our sins and confess Him as Lord [Acts 2:38; 2 Thessalonians 2:13], and as He sets us apart for Himself and calls us to separate ourselves from sin [Hebrews 12:1-2]. It isn’t enough to believe Jesus is God or certain facts about Christ. Even Satan and his demons believe in the true God [James 2:19], but they don’t obey Him.

True saving faith always responds in obedience [Ephesians 2:10] and is manifested by fruits worthy of repentance as demonstrated in righteous attitudes and conduct [1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Ephesians 2:10], experienced to the extent that the Believer submits to the control of the Holy Spirit in life through faithful obedience to the Word of God [Colossians 3:16; 2 Peter 1:4-10]. All the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are secure in Christ forever [John 6:37-40, 10:27-30; 1 Corinthians 1:4-8]. It is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which clearly forbids the certainty of this security as an occasion for sinful living [Romans 6:15-22; Galatians 5:13].

RCC Believes that every man and woman who has ever lived will one day stand before God in judgement. Those who have rejected God and his offer of grace through Jesus will be eternally separated from God in condemnation [2 Timothy 2:12; Matthew 7:23, 8:12]. Believers will enjoy eternal communion and fellowship with God [Matthew 25:46].

RCC Believes that all who place their faith in Christ through salvation and baptism (believers) are united into one spiritual Body, the Church [1 Corinthians 12-12-13]. Christ has authority over the church [Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22], with qualified Elders and Deacons serving under Him and over the assembly [Ephesians 4:11; 1 Timothy 3:1-13]. The Bible instructs Believers to gather to glorify God [Ephesians 3:21] by building itself up in the faith [Ephesians 4:13-16], by instruction of the Word [2 Timothy 3:16-17], by fellowship [Acts 2:44], by keeping the Ordinances [Luke 22:19-20], and by advancing and communicating the Gospel to the entire world [Matthew 28:19- 20]. Wherever Believers meet regularly in obedience to these commands, there is the local expression of the Church [Acts 2:42-47].

RCC Believes that all who place their faith in Christ and follow Him receive and are admonished to apply spiritual gifts [Romans 12:6-8; Ephesians 4:8-13; Corinthians 12].

These gifts include but are not limited to:

• Pastoring / Shepherding
• Serving / Ministry
• Leadership
• Administration / Ruling
• Apostleship
• Teaching
• Knowledge
• Wisdom
• Discernment
• Prophecy / Perceiving
• Faith
• Evangelism
• Encouraging / Exhorting
• Showing Mercy
• Giving
• Hospitality

The working together of Jesus followers possessing these diverse gifts promotes unity and direction in the church.

RCC Believes baptism by immersion is an act of obedience of a Believer publicly testifying to faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior. We are baptized for the remission of our sins and the in-dwelling of the Holy Spirit, symbolizing death to sin and resurrection to new life [Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38]. It is also a sign of fellowship and identification with Christ and the visible Body of Christ [Acts 2:41-42].

RCC Believes that the Lord’s Supper is the commemoration and proclamation of His death until Jesus’s return, and should be preceded by self-examination, confession, and resolution of differences with others [1 Corinthians 11:28-32]. The elements of Communion are only representative of Christ’s flesh and blood, but partaking is actual communion with the risen Christ who indwells every Believer and is present fellowshipping with his people [1 Corinthians 10:16-17].