What we believe
We are part of the United Free Church of Scotland, which is itself a church of the Reformation; and we are part of the church through the whole world and in all times that holds to the belief that Jesus Christ is Saviour and Lord. The Bible, which we believe to be the infallible word of God, is our touchstone for everything we believe. We also hold to the Westminster Confession of Faith as a good summary of the teaching of the Bible. (You can read it here - http://www.reformed.org/documents/wcf_with_proofs/)
What does that mean? It means a great deal – though in essence it means that we believe that Jesus Christ is the one who, in dying on the cross, bore the penalty for sin that was due to us and enables us to be with God forever in a new heaven and new earth free from all sin, sorrow and suffering.
We believe God is the sovereign, transcendent and personal God who has made the universe, including us. Our misery lies in our rebellion, our alienation from God, and the guilt that lays on us. That rebellion which, despite his great patience, must attract God’s implacable wrath. He is utterly righteous and nothing that is not righteous can stand before Him.
But God, precisely because love is of the very essence of his character, takes the initiative. He prepared for the coming of his own Son in what we speak of as the Old Testament, by raising up a people who, by covenantal requirements, temple worship, systems of sacrifice and of priesthood, by kings and by prophets, are taught something of what God is planning and what he expects. The Old Testament (or Covenant) is preparation for and points to the New in the coming of Jesus.
In the fullness of time his Son comes. Though fully God and equal with the Father, He comes born in a manger taking on Himself our human nature. He comes not, in the first instance, to judge but to save. He does this as he dies the death of his people, rises from the grave and, in returning to his heavenly Father, bequeaths the Holy Spirit as the down payment and guarantee of the ultimate gift he has secured for them—an eternity of bliss in the presence of God himself.
The only alternative is to be shut out from the presence of this God
forever. What men and women must do, before it is too late, is repent and trust
Christ; the alternative is to disobey the gospel.