At Alderwood we follow Jesus together. While followers of Jesus differ on many aspects of their beliefs, there are some key doctrines that the global church has held as core to the Christian faith going back to Jesus’ earliest followers. At Alderwood, we consider these essential doctrines of the faith to be as follows:

God: We believe in the one eternal triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who is the creator of all things, is perfectly good, and who governs all things according to the purpose of his will.

Humanity: All humanity is created in the image of God and made for relationship with God, and therefore possesses intrinsic dignity and worth. God created both male and female, equal in value and given the mandate to partner with God to rule and reign over creation. However, ever since the sin of Adam and Eve, humanity has rebelled against God and is therefore separated from God and in bondage to sin and death, incapable of restoring themselves to life and relationship with God.

Jesus: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, the promised king of the Old Testament who would come to restore all things and rule over all of creation with righteousness and justice. He is the eternal God in human flesh, fully God and fully human at the same time. He was born of a virgin, lived a perfect life, and defeated sin and death by dying on the cross in place of humanity and rising again on the third day. He offers forgiveness to all who will believe in him and provides the only way to restoration of life and relationship with God.

The Holy Spirit:  Jesus has ascended to the Father and given his Holy Spirit to all who follow him. The Holy Spirit is continually at work to glorify Jesus and accomplish the will of the Father. He regenerates sinners, illuminates the scriptures, and indwells, guides, convicts, equips, comforts, and empowers believers for Christ-like living and service.

God's Self Revelation: God has been revealing himself to all of creation from the beginning. This revelation is seen through the beauty and complexity of creation itself, through Jesus, and through the scriptures. The scriptures consist of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, which are the Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, sufficient for salvation and faith, and completely authoritative and trustworthy in everything they teach.

Salvation: Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus alone. No one is capable of earning God's favor on their own, and there is no other way to the Father but through Jesus. Through Jesus' death on the cross and his resurrection on the third day, all who believe in him will be saved from sin and receive eternal life. Salvation is publicly declared and symbolized in the act of baptism, as instructed by Jesus himself.

The Church: Jesus' church consists of all those who have placed their faith in Jesus throughout every nation, without regard to their language, denomination, or theological differences. The purpose of the church on earth is to show the world who Jesus is by worshipping God, loving and serving people, and spreading the good news of Jesus through word and action until he returns.

The Future: On a day that is only known to God, Jesus will return to earth to complete his victory. Everyone who has ever lived will be raised, and those who know Jesus will be welcomed into eternal life in the New Heavens and New Earth, where God and creation will be fully reunited. Those who have rejected Jesus will face the just and final consequence for their sin in Hell. Creation's rebellion against God will be put to an end once and for all and the power of sin and death will be no more.