What We Believe
THE MESSAGE OF THE BIBLE
The message of the Bible is that humanity (in our first parents Adam and Eve) rebelled against God after being tempted by Satan, but God revealed Himself and has worked in human history to redeem fallen mankind. God the Father sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins on the cross so that we could enjoy restored relationship with God and others. God has proven that He forgives sin and powerfully overcame death by resurrecting Jesus from the dead!
WHAT TO EXPECT IN WORSHIP
We worship God through prayer, Scripture reading, preaching, inspirational singing, warm fellowship, serving Communion, nursery, and children’s church. Our worship service is casual, but our desire to experience God is serious. You do not need to dress up for church, but would love for you to wear a smile!
AFFILIATION
Fortuna Church of the Nazarene is a local congregation affiliated with the international Church of the Nazarene, an evangelical Christian denomination in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition which emphasizes the privilege of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the freedom of following Him daily, and the hope of continual cleansing and empowerment by the Holy Spirit to obey God and serve others.
The mission of the Church of the Nazarene is to fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) by “Making Christlike disciples in the nations”. You can learn more about the international Church of the Nazarene at www.nazarene.org or our Northern California District of churches at www.norcal.org
We call ourselves “The Church of the Nazarene” because Jesus grew up in Nazareth, and was therefore “the Nazarene.” This was a humble beginning for Jesus. In John 1:46, one of His disciples asked, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” We identify ourselves with the humility of Christ and have a history of being a church that welcomes and reaches out to the poor, outcast, rejected, and hopeless with the good news of the Risen Nazarene!
WHAT WE BELIEVE
We believe that the Bible is the written Word of God that it contains the “good news” about our redemption, new life, and eternal hope. We believe in the Holy Trinity: God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ, and God the Holy Spirit. We believe in the virgin birth of Jesus, the death of Jesus at Calvary, and the bodily resurrection of Jesus. We believe in the forgiveness of sins through the atonement of Jesus. We believe that we experience spiritual regeneration by the gift of the grace of God through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). We believe in the necessity of being continually filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). We believe the evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit is love (1 Corinthians 13, Galatians 5:22-23). We believe that we are forgiven and freed from our sins to live a holy Christlike life, called sanctification. We believe that all who place their trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior will be resurrected and live eternally to the glory of God. We believe in the return of Jesus Christ which will usher in the fullness of the Kingdom of God on earth. We believe our task until then is to become and make Christlike disciples.
We affirm the historical creeds of the Christian faith including the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed. You can learn more about the beliefs of the Church of the Nazarene by reading our Articles of Faith.
