Our Beliefs

We believe that the Bible is contained in the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. We believe it is the inspired, inerrant, infallible, living, and all-sufficient Word of God. By the sovereign power of the Holy Spirit, God’s Word is the primary means by which the elect are united to the risen Christ and nourished unto eternal life. The Bible alone is the sole rule for our faith and practice. 

What we believe about the Bible is contained in the Westminster Standards (the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms, 1646). We do not recognize these documents as infallible but as a sound interpretation of biblical doctrine and a faithful expression of the historic Christian faith (our pastor, elders, and deacons all subscribe to the Westminster Standards).

To summaarize, we look no further than the five slogans that emerged from the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. The five slogans teach:

1. Salvation is by grace alone (sola gratia)
2. Salvation is through faith alone (sola fide)
3. Salvation is in Christ alone (solus Christus)
4. The Bible alone is the Word of God (sola Scriptura)
5. To God alone be the glory (soli Deo gloria).  

Furthermore, we hold to a high view of the work of called, trained, and ordained leadership in the life of the local church. As the ordained leadership shepherd and feed the flock through spiritual oversight, discipline, doctrine, preaching, prayer, and the right administration of the sacraments (baptism and the Lord’s Supper), God promises to bless His redeemed children with growth in grace.

We believe in a warm and welcoming expression of the Christian faith, one that promotes and defends sound doctrine while at the same time exhibiting sincere love, joy, humility, patience, and kindness. 

We believe that the Bible teaches a Presbyterian form of church government. The word Presbyterian is derived from the Greek word for elder (presbuteros). The Apostle Paul, in the pastoral epistles, not only gave explicit direction for the appointment of a plurality of elders in every church (i.e., Titus 1:5; Acts 20:17), but, in addition, provided clear qualifications for the office of elder (1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9).

We understand the office of elder to be divided into two distinctive roles, that of ruling elder and teaching elder or pastor (1 Timothy 5:17). Both ruling and teaching elders are responsible to provide loving and encouraging spiritual oversight for every member of the flock (1 Peter 5:1-3). However, the teaching elder or pastor is called, in particular, to “work hard at preaching and teaching” (1 Timothy 5:17).

Under a Presbyterian or representative form of government, members of the local church are accountable to their session of elders, sessions are accountable to their local presbytery, and presbyteries are accountable to the General Assembly (c.f. Acts 15). In a day when moral and doctrinal oversight and accountability are rare in the church, God’s prescribed form of shepherding His people exalts His divine wisdom and care. The Apostle Paul charged the Ephesian elders to “pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood” (Acts 20:28). 

The Book of Church Order, commonly referred to as BCO, is part of the constitution of the Presbyterian Church in America, which is subject to and subordinate to the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, the inerrant Word Of God. The BCO is comprised of the Form of Government, the Rules of Discipline, and the Directory for Worship as adopted by the Church.

At Faith Presbyterian Church, worship is considered the highest priority and privilege of the Christian Church (Psalm 100). We desire that our worship:

1. Glorifies God
2. Edifies the body of Christ (Ephesians 5:19, Colossians 3:16)
3. Magnifies the message of salvation through Christ alone (1 Corinthians 14:24-25)

FPC encourages the flock to worship in a three-fold manner, namely, in public, family, and private worship. Indeed, we believe our confession when it states that:

“God is to be worshipped everywhere, in spirit and truth, as, in private families daily, and in secret, each one by himself; so, more solemnly in the public assemblies, which are not carelessly or willfully to be neglected or forsaken, when God, by His Word or providence, calls thereunto” (Westminster Confession of Faith: XXI. 6).

We promote the simple Christian life, that is, one where private and family worship is central to everyday home life. Private worship (personal devotions) and family worship help prepare the entire household for a more God-centered, Christ-exalting, and Spirit-filled observance of the Lord’s Day.

One of the primary tasks of the leadership of FPC is to keep the means of grace central in the life of the church. The means of grace (Word, sacraments and prayer) are the means that God Himself has personally appointed and promised to bless for the salvation, sanctification, and comfort of His people (c.f. Acts 2:42).

It is through the Word (read and preached), sacraments, and prayer that God’s people are united to Christ and, in Him, nourished and kept unto eternal life. The unadorned means of Word, sacrament, and prayer are spurned by the world as a foolish waste of time (1 Corinthians 1:18, 21). The means of grace are viewed by pragmatic church growth experts as ineffective and irrelevant. However, we understand the Word, sacraments, and prayer to be the very means by which the Holy Spirit unites sinners, through faith, to God’s crucified and risen Son (c.f. Westminster Shorter Catechism Q. 88).

FPC's music for worship intends to be God-glorifying, Christ-centered, biblical corporate worship that vibrantly responds to the greatness of God in his providence, grace, and love as evident in the gospel. Thus, it's our hope that we all learn what it means to be true worshippers of God during this aspect of the service.

Worship is gratefulness for the good news--it becomes our desire to magnify God in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit by skillfully combining God’s Word with music, as believers have done from the beginning of time and will continue to do throughout eternity. It is indeed what is regulated by Scripture.

Dr. Derek Thomas: Put simply, the regulative principle of worship states that the corporate worship of God is to be founded upon specific directions of Scripture. On the surface, it is difficult to see why anyone who values the authority of Scripture would find such a principle objectionable. Is not the whole of life itself to be lived according to the rule of Scripture? This is a principle dear to the hearts of all who call themselves biblical Christians. To suggest otherwise is to open the door to antinomianism and license.

Song Criteria

Is the song biblical? The lyrics must be in accord with the truth of God’s Word and fit with our confessional understanding of Scripture.

Is the song God-glorifying? Does the song direct us toward God? Does the song revere and praise God, or is it solely reflecting on the benefits he bestows to me in the experience of worship?

Is the song Christ-centered? Does it focus on boasting too much of my own commitment and devotion rather than the merits of Christ’s finished work?

Is the song singable? In Psalms, we find the congregation of God's people singing together with the blessing of a variety of instruments.  Therefore, we choose songs that are suitable for the whole congregation and accompany our singing with various instruments.

To accomplish the above, FPC primarily uses the Trinity Psalter Hymnal but we'll often incorporate many other traditional or modern songs that will be printed in the bulletin.

If you have any questions regarding our worship music, please contact Rev. Naulty or Dr. Henry Duitman (FPC's Music Director).

FPC is committed to personal and corporate evangelism. However, we understand evangelism and mission to be more than just an event facilitated by a church or the handing out of a gospel tract. Gospel proclamation primarily entails the faithful reading and preaching of the Scriptures in the gathered public worship of God on the Lord’s Day. Worship is doxological evangelism. The Gospel is also proclaimed when God’s people scatter throughout the week to their homes, neighborhoods, and vocations and share the gospel with others––thus being salt and light in a corrupt and dark world (Matthew 5:16).

The end goal of our evangelistic endeavors, whether at home or abroad, is not simply to get people to make a decision or pray the sinner’s prayer. Rather, it is to lead people to committed church membership and a lifetime of repentance and faith in Christ through the ordinary, yet life-transforming, ministry of the Word, sacraments, and prayer.

Our Lord Jesus Christ says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12).

At FPC, we encourage strong unity and loving hospitality. We want to be warm and welcoming to all those that visit us. We firmly believe that as Christ and His Word remain central, God’s people will stand faithfully with, and for, one another.