1. The entire Bible is the inspired Word of God, without error. The main message is salvation through Jesus Christ, God’s message of love and hope for all people.

  2. There is only one true God, who exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy    Spirit. (The Trinity)

  3. God is the creator of everything that exists.

  4. Adam and Eve, our first parents, were originally created by God to be pure and holy. They lived according to God’s will, doing what was pleasing to Him.

  5. Adam and Eve, the man and woman whom God created in the beginning, went against God’s will and brought sin into the world. Since that time, all people have been conceived and born in sin. (Original Sin)

  6. Sin has broken our relationship with God. Sin is everything we do in thought, word, and deed, which is not according to the holy will of God.

  7. People cannot restore their broken relationship with God. People cannot gain God’s favor through good works or moral living.

  8. God sent His Son, Jesus, into the world. He is both true God and true man. He lived to fulfill God’s law for us, died on the cross to pay the penalty our sins deserved, and rose from the dead so that we might have eternal life. Jesus is the only One who can fix our broken relationship with God. He ascended into heaven, where He now sits at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us.

  9. Because of Jesus’ death on the cross, God declares a person just or righteous and forgiven, for Jesus’ sake. This happens not because of human effort, but because God freely gives the benefit of Jesus’ perfect life, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection to all who believe in Jesus as Savior.

  10. Faith in Jesus is a gift of God, given by the power of the Holy Spirit; thus all the glory belongs to God.

  11. To give us His gracious gift of salvation, God works through certain things. These are called "the means of grace," which are His Holy Word, Holy Baptism and Holy Communion. By these "means," the merits of Jesus’ perfect life and atoning death are personally conveyed to all who believe in Jesus as their Savior. Through these same "means" the Holy Spirit empowers us to live a Christian life.

  12. Christians have one, ultimate hope: Heaven (or eternal paradise). Jesus will come again to take all believers to Himself. On the final day, all those who have lived and died on earth in every generation will be raised to life. Those who are still alive will be bodily transformed (glorified). After the resurrection (the dead being raised to life), the final judgment will take place. Unbelievers will go into eternal damnation, and believers into eternal life.

  13. The true Christian church is made up of all believers of all times who believe in the Triune God and in Jesus Christ as their only Savior from sin by His sacrificial death for us all on the cross.

  14. God wants Christians to join with other believers in churches that correctly teach God’s Word and administer Holy Baptism and Holy Communion according to the teachings of Scripture.

  15. Christians are called to share with others the truth of the only way of salvation: faith in Jesus Christ and God’s promises in Him. Christians are also called to live godly lives and to show their faith by their deeds of love toward others.