Statement of Faith

At Restored West Valley, you will hear the word “Gospel” repeatedly because it is the most important truth that we can know and experience. The Gospel is not merely a message that needs to be shared with non-Christians, but also with Christians. It is not something that mature Christians move on from, but rather something that they move deeper into. The Gospel is the lens in which we should view theology, ministry, and all aspects of life.

The Apostle Paul defined the word, “Gospel” concisely in 1st Corinthians 15:3-5 when he wrote, “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.” Simply put, the Gospel is all about Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, and the implications it has for us.

The word “Gospel” literally means “good news.” It is the good news of God taking on flesh through the person Jesus Christ and rescuing mankind by His perfect life that we could never live, His substitutionary death that we deserved, and the resurrection that now gives us true life through His Spirit. While the Gospel can be stated in a sentence, it is also the grand narrative that is told throughout the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation. The Gospel is the glorious story of how God is reconciling the whole world back to Himself through the life, death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. It is personal, yet cosmic. It is simple, yet infinite.

God's Gospel originates in, and expresses, the wondrous perfections of the eternal, triune God.

We believe in one God, eternally existing in three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, who know, love, and glorify one another. Perfectly equal in their divinity, however subordinate in responsibility; the Son submits to the will of the Father & the Holy Spirit is submitted to the will of the Father & the Son. This one true and living God is infinitely perfect both in His love and in His holiness. He is the Creator of all things, visible and invisible, and is therefore worthy to receive all glory and adoration. Immortal and eternal, He perfectly and completely knows the end from the beginning, sustains and sovereignly rules over all things, and providentially brings about His eternal good purposes to redeem a people for Himself and restore His fallen creation, to the praise of His glorious grace.

(Genesis 1:2, 26; Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 3:16-17; John 1:1-5; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2; 2 Peter 1:16-21)

God's Gospel is made known supremely in the Person of Jesus Christ.

We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus, Israel’s promised Messiah, was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.

( Lk. 1:35; Jn. 1:1, 14:6; Acts 1:1-10)

God's Gospel is applied by the power of the Holy Spirit.

We believe that salvation, attested in all Scripture and secured by Jesus Christ, is applied to His people by the Holy Spirit. Sent by the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ and is present with and in believers through the proclamation of the Gospel. He convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and by His powerful and mysterious work regenerates spiritually dead sinners, awakening them and persuading to repentance and faith, baptizing them into union with the Lord Jesus, such that they are justified before God. By the Spirit’s working, believers are renewed, sanctified, and adopted into God’s family; they participate in the divine nature and receive His sovereignly distributed gifts. The Holy Spirit is Himself the down payment of the promised inheritance, and in this age indwells, guides, instructs, equips, revives, and empowers believers for Christ-like living and service. 

(Jn. 14:15-27, 16:7-15; Acts 16:14; Rom. 8:1-30; 1 Cor. 12:3; 12-14; 2 Cor. 3:4-18; Eph. 1:13-14, 2:4-5, 5:18; 1 Thes. 1:4-5)

God's Gospel alone addresses our deepest need.

Being estranged from God and condemned by our sinfulness, our salvation is wholly dependent upon the work of God's free grace. God credits His righteousness to those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, thereby justifying them in His sight. Only such as are born of the Holy Spirit and receive Jesus Christ become children of God and heirs of eternal life.

(Gen 3; Ps. 143:2; Is. 53:6; Rom. 3:23; I Jn. 1:8-10)

God's Gospel is accomplished through the work of Christ.

We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation and being made right with God.

(Rom. 3:21-26; Eph. 1:27; Heb. 7:22-28)

Item descriptionGod's Gospel is authoritatively revealed in the Scriptures.

All Scripture is self-attesting and, being Truth, requires our unreserved submission in all areas of life. The infallible Word of God, the sixty-six books of the Protestant Old and New Testaments, is a complete and unified witness to God's redemptive acts, culminating in the incarnation of the Living Word, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible, uniquely and fully inspired by the Holy Spirit, is the supreme and final authority on all matters on which it speaks.

 (Matthew 5:17-20; John 16:12-13; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:19-21)

Item descriptionGod's Gospel is now embodied in the new community called the Church.

We believe that we are not simply saved as individuals, but that we are saved “into” something called the Church.  This is given many different names in Scripture but the primary one is that of a family or the “household of God.” (Eph 2-3)  We are to relate to God as our Father and each other as brothers and sisters “in Christ.”  This leads to a deep loving community that displays the power of the Gospel to a watching world (John 13:35).

We believe that the local church is an autonomous group of believers who join their lives together by the Gospel. Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which visibly and tangibly express the Gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish the believer.

The local church is governed by the scriptures and operates under the Lordship of Christ with Elders leading the people toward faithfulness in Christ. We believe that Elders are spiritual parents in the “household of God” called by God to provide oversight to a local church.

(Acts 2:42-47; Eph. 1:22-23; 1 Pet. 2:9-10)

God's Gospel compels us to Christ-like living and mission to the world.

We believe that God’s justifying grace must not be separated from His sanctifying power and purpose. God commands us to love Him supremely and others sacrificially, and to live out our faith with care for one another, compassion toward the poor and justice for the oppressed. With the Gospel, the Spirit’s power, and fervent prayer in Christ’s name, we are to combat the spiritual forces of evil.

In obedience to Christ’s commission, we are to make disciples among all people, always bearing witness to the Gospel in word and deed. We believe that all Christians are called to a life of godly character, devoted to the Lord Jesus Christ and service to Him. 

We believe that the Gospel is not only the entry point into the Christian life, but is also the dynamic by which we relate to God.  Growing in godliness happens by continually reflecting on the Gospel, or “good news” of Jesus’ death and resurrection on our behalf.  As we reflect on this and God’s Word, we become aware of just how big the separation is between our sinfulness and God’s standard.  This often happens simultaneously with growth in holiness.  As we become more and more aware of just how big the separation is, the Gospel becomes more and more important, the cross becomes more and more central, and, as a result, we are driven to worship, rather than pride or despair.

(Eph. 5:18; 2 Cor. 6:14, 7:1, Rom. 12:1-2, Eph. 4:32, Col. 1:22-24)

God’s Gospel informs every aspect of our lives, including the gift of our sexuality and how we steward it in a broken world.

Our Posture:
At Restored West Valley, we hold two distinct realities with equal conviction: the clarity of biblical truth and the scandalous grace of Jesus.

One of the vital responsibilities of the local church is articulating the clear, biblical vision for human sexuality while holding a deep, compassionate posture toward the personal pain many carry. Historically, the church has often led with prohibition—focusing primarily on what Scripture forbids—rather than displaying the life-giving and dignifying design God created us to enjoy. As a result, many people have felt alienated from the love of Jesus. This grieves the heart of God.

Our Welcome:
Jesus welcomed people before they had everything figured out or fully aligned with his teaching, and we want to reflect that same love. Regardless of your beliefs, background, sexual orientation, or sexual practices, you are welcome at our Sunday gatherings and in a Gospel Community. You do not have to agree with us to be welcomed and loved by us. At the same time, Jesus welcomes us in order to lead us into a new way of life. The call to follow Jesus is a call to increasingly surrender every part of ourselves—including our sexuality—to his loving authority and his vision for human flourishing, as outlined below.

Our Beliefs:
We affirm & uphold the historic Christian understanding of marriage and sexual intimacy: that marriage is a lifelong, sacred covenant between one biological male and one biological female, and that sexual expression is designed by God to be enjoyed exclusively within that union.

Our Beliefs in Practice:
To be clear and transparent about our biblical convictions:

• Same-Sex Attraction & Temptation: We do not believe that the involuntary experience of same-sex attraction or temptation is itself sin. Confusing attraction & temptation with willful sin has caused profound harm, leaving many to believe they live under continual condemnation and are beyond the hope of eternal life. Scripture distinguishes between being tempted and consenting to sin; what matters morally is how we respond to, cultivate, and act upon our desires.

• Marriage: Marriage is a gift between one man and one woman that bears witness to the shape of the gospel, reflecting the covenant love and faithfulness of Christ to His church. Christians are called to marry only fellow followers of Jesus.

• Divorce & Remarriage: We believe marriage is intended to be a lifelong covenant and that divorce falls short of God’s design. Though scripture permits divorce in cases of sexual immorality, abandonment, and abuse, reconciliation should be prioritized before remarriage if it is wise, safe, and possible. Where biblical grounds for divorce exist, we believe remarriage is permissible, but Christians who remarry are to marry another follower of Jesus.

• Lifelong Singleness: We believe singleness bears witness to the supremacy of the gospel, declaring that Jesus, not marriage or sex, is the foundation of a full and flourishing life. Jesus and the Apostle Paul seem to prefer singleness for Christians who are able to embrace it, while honoring both marriage and singleness as vocational gifts from God.

• Sexual Intimacy: We believe that all sexual acts outside of the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman—including premarital sex, same-sex sexual acts, and adultery—fall outside of God’s intended design for human flourishing. This includes use of pornography, which is a sinful and devastating distortion of God’s design for intimacy that objectifies people created in God’s image. Jesus calls His followers to flee all sexual immorality, and pursue freedom, healing, and sexual wholeness in Christ.

(Gen. 1:26–28; 2:18–25; Lev. 18:22; 20:13; Job 31:1; Isa. 56:3–5; Matt. 5:27–32; 15:19; 19:3–12; 22:23–30; Mark 7:20–23; 10:2–12; Luke 16:18; Acts 15:19–20, 28–29; Rom. 1:24–27; 7:2–3; 13:13–14; 1 Cor. 6:9–20; 7:1–16, 25–40; 2 Cor. 6:14–16; Gal. 5:19–21; Eph. 5:3–5, 21–33; Col. 3:5–7; 1 Thess. 4:3–8; 1 Tim. 1:8–11; Heb. 13:4; Jude 7; Rev. 19:6–9; 21:2, 9.)

God's Gospel will be brought to fulfillment by the Lord Himself at the end of this age.

We believe in the personal, glorious, and bodily return of our Lord Jesus Christ with His holy angels, when He will exercise His role as final Judge, and His kingdom will be consummated. We believe in the bodily resurrection of both the just and the unjust—the unjust to eternal judgment for sin, as our Lord Himself taught, and the just to eternal blessedness in the presence of Him who sits on the throne and of the Lamb, in the new heaven and the new earth, the home of righteousness. On that day the church will be presented faultless before God by the obedience, suffering and triumph of Christ, all sin purged and its wretched effects forever banished. God will be all in all and His people will be enthralled by His holiness, and everything will be to the praise of His glorious grace. 

(Matt. 24:29-31, 36-51, 25:31-46; Lk. 12:35-48,16:19-31; 2 Pet. 3:1-13; Rev. 20:11-15, 21:1-8, 22:6-21)

God's Gospel requires a response that has eternal consequences.

We believe that God commands everyone everywhere to believe the Gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God will raise the dead bodily and judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to eternal destruction and the believer to eternal blessedness and joy with the Lord in the new heaven and the new earth, to the praise of His glorious grace. Amen. 

(Mt. 25:46, Jn. 5:24, 3:16; Mk. 9:43-50; 2 Thess. 1:9)