VISION STATEMENT
Together we know Christ and are equipped to make Him Known in the ways we commit to gather, grow, give, and go.
GATHER
We gather weekly to exalt the name of God in a way that encourages us in the grace of the gospel and welcomes every age and background to encounter the love of Christ. We value an embodied setting where faith is both awakened and strengthened through the elements of the worship gathering.
GROW
We grow by being intentionally engaged with one another throughout the week as the transformative power of the gospel frees us from the bondage of entitled privacy and relational-isolation, and ushers us into a faith family where we are truly known and loved as we are formed into the image of Christ.
GIVE
We give sacrificially of our time, treasure, and talents in a way that is marked by generosity for the sake of living out our callings and giftings to build up one another in the fullness of Christ as well as address personal and systemic needs that promote human flourishing.
GO
We go as ambassadors of God to prioritize ministries of mercy and multiplication in the unique ways God has called and gifted us, seeking to come alongside and advocate for marginalized groups in our local community and be involved in the planting and revitalization of healthy churches locally, regionally, and globally.
GATHER
We gather weekly to exalt the name of God in a way that encourages us in the grace of the gospel and welcomes every age and background to encounter the love of Christ. We value an embodied setting where faith is both awakened and strengthened through the elements of the worship gathering.
GROW
We grow by being intentionally engaged with one another throughout the week as the transformative power of the gospel frees us from the bondage of entitled privacy and relational-isolation, and ushers us into a faith family where we are truly known and loved as we are formed into the image of Christ.
GIVE
We give sacrificially of our time, treasure, and talents in a way that is marked by generosity for the sake of living out our callings and giftings to build up one another in the fullness of Christ as well as address personal and systemic needs that promote human flourishing.
GO
We go as ambassadors of God to prioritize ministries of mercy and multiplication in the unique ways God has called and gifted us, seeking to come alongside and advocate for marginalized groups in our local community and be involved in the planting and revitalization of healthy churches locally, regionally, and globally.
DOCTRINAL BELIEFS
Grace Church is a passionate faith community on a journey to disrupt the suburban pursuit of comfort and complacency. Rather than leading lives that are overwhelmingly busy and underwhelmingly impactful, we will raise up and deploy hundreds of people transformed by the gospel and spiritually formed in Christ for ministries of mercy and multiplication. Together we know Christ and are equipped to make Him Known in the ways we commit to gather, grow, give and go.
Statement of Doctrine
The statement of doctrine at the founding of Grace Church in 1946 remains as the bedrock of theological conviction for us today. The following sections are from Article 2 of our governing bylaws:
Section 1 – We believe in the verbal inspiration of all Scripture, both Old and New Testament, and that they are authoritative, without error, and sufficient for faith and life.
Section 2 – We believe in the one God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Section 3 – We believe in the virgin birth of Christ, and that He is both fully God and fully man.
Section 4 – We believe in the total depravity of all mankind, and in the necessity of regeneration.
Section 5 – We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins, and that with His shed blood He obtained for us an eternal redemption.
Section 6 – We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord, in His Ascension into Heaven and His present life there as our High Priest and advocate.
Section 7 – We believe that salvation is the free gift of God, entirely apart from works, and is possessed by all who have by faith received the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.
Section 8 – We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity and that he indwells all believers upon salvation and equips us for service.
Section 9 – We believe in the personal return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Authority of Scripture
We hold the Bible to be the inspired, inerrant, and sufficient Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, life, salvation, morality, and the proper conduct of mankind, and it is the sole authority of all that we believe and practice.
The Gospel
The Gospel, or “good news” of Jesus Christ, contains the essential doctrine of the Christian faith. While genuine Christians disagree on several secondary doctrines (such as eschatology, church government, forms of baptism), we view belief in the Gospel as the very core of what it means to be a Christian and to pursue a Christ-centered life.
Biblical Summary of The Gospel
There is one, triune, eternal God that created all things for his glory (Genesis 1:1, 26; Deuteronomy 6:4; Colossians 1:16, Psalm 90:2).
All of humanity (save One) was birthed with a sin nature, regardless of whether we grew up going to church or we grew up in a home where God was never mentioned, meaning we have all undermined God and chose our glory over His. We believed that our way was better than God’s, we lived for ourselves and rebelled against God, doing so with the very bodies, minds, and hearts he gave us to glorify him with (Romans 3:23, Ephesians 2:1-3, Psalm 51:5).
God, being completely just and completely holy, will not allow men to undermine his name. Therefore, the wages of sin is death, and all of humanity is dead in sin, unable to do anything to regenerate themselves (Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:1-3, Colossians2:13).
At the perfectly set time, God sent the Son whom he loves, Jesus Christ, into the world as fully God and fully man, born of a virgin (John 3:16-17, Galatians 4:4, Luke 1:26-28).
Jesus lived the perfect, sinless life that we could not and was crucified on the cross, dying the death that we deserved. In doing so, God poured out the wrath due to mankind onto His Son, and provided atonement for our sin (2 Cor 5:21, Hebrews 4:15, 1 John 2:2, Matthew 20:28, Romans 3:24-26).
On the third day following the death and burial of Jesus, God raised him from the dead, proving he was the Son of God (Ephesians 1:20, Acts 2:24, Romans 4:24).
Salvation is offered by God’s grace, a free gift entirely apart from works, and it is possessed by all who have by faith trusted in Jesus Christ as Saviour. The same power that raised Christ from the dead is now at work in those who believe (2 Corinthians 4:14, Romans 8:11).
The divine person of the Holy Spirit indwells all believers at the moment of conversion and affirms their placement as an adopted child of God, equipping them for good works as a result of their saving faith (1 Corinthians 3:16, 2 Timothy 1:14, Galatians 4:6).
Leadership Structure
Our Members
Have a covenant relationship with the church and are in charge selecting and voting on the governing church authorities. Each member is a steward of the Gospel and has been called to gather, grow, give, and go.
Our Elders
Are men who lead the church directionally and help care for the spiritual needs of the congregation. We have staff elders, often referred to as pastors, and lay elders; each of these men are responsible for the shepherding of our congregation.
Our Ministry Directors & Staff
Are men and women who oversee various ministries, daily operations and high-impact areas of the church that equip the members and encourage an environment for the church to thrive.
If you would like more details on how we utilize God’s giftings of men and women in our church, these three sermons studying 1 Timothy 2:8-3:13 are a great place to start!
DOCTRINAL BELIEFS
Grace Church is a passionate faith community on a journey to disrupt the suburban pursuit of comfort and complacency. Rather than leading lives that are overwhelmingly busy and underwhelmingly impactful, we will raise up and deploy hundreds of people transformed by the gospel and spiritually formed in Christ for ministries of mercy and multiplication. Together we know Christ and are equipped to make Him Known in the ways we commit to gather, grow, give and go.
Statement of Doctrine
The statement of doctrine at the founding of Grace Church in 1946 remains as the bedrock of theological conviction for us today. The following sections are from Article 2 of our governing bylaws:
Section 1 – We believe in the verbal inspiration of all Scripture, both Old and New Testament, and that they are authoritative, without error, and sufficient for faith and life.
Section 2 – We believe in the one God, eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Section 3 – We believe in the virgin birth of Christ, and that He is both fully God and fully man.
Section 4 – We believe in the total depravity of all mankind, and in the necessity of regeneration.
Section 5 – We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins, and that with His shed blood He obtained for us an eternal redemption.
Section 6 – We believe in the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord, in His Ascension into Heaven and His present life there as our High Priest and advocate.
Section 7 – We believe that salvation is the free gift of God, entirely apart from works, and is possessed by all who have by faith received the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.
Section 8 – We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity and that he indwells all believers upon salvation and equips us for service.
Section 9 – We believe in the personal return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Authority of Scripture
We hold the Bible to be the inspired, inerrant, and sufficient Word of God that speaks with final authority concerning truth, life, salvation, morality, and the proper conduct of mankind, and it is the sole authority of all that we believe and practice.
The Gospel
The Gospel, or “good news” of Jesus Christ, contains the essential doctrine of the Christian faith. While genuine Christians disagree on several secondary doctrines (such as eschatology, church government, forms of baptism), we view belief in the Gospel as the very core of what it means to be a Christian and to pursue a Christ-centered life.
Biblical Summary of The Gospel
There is one, triune, eternal God that created all things for his glory (Genesis 1:1, 26; Deuteronomy 6:4; Colossians 1:16, Psalm 90:2).
All of humanity (save One) was birthed with a sin nature, regardless of whether we grew up going to church or we grew up in a home where God was never mentioned, meaning we have all undermined God and chose our glory over His. We believed that our way was better than God’s, we lived for ourselves and rebelled against God, doing so with the very bodies, minds, and hearts he gave us to glorify him with (Romans 3:23, Ephesians 2:1-3, Psalm 51:5).
God, being completely just and completely holy, will not allow men to undermine his name. Therefore, the wages of sin is death, and all of humanity is dead in sin, unable to do anything to regenerate themselves (Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:1-3, Colossians2:13).
At the perfectly set time, God sent the Son whom he loves, Jesus Christ, into the world as fully God and fully man, born of a virgin (John 3:16-17, Galatians 4:4, Luke 1:26-28).
Jesus lived the perfect, sinless life that we could not and was crucified on the cross, dying the death that we deserved. In doing so, God poured out the wrath due to mankind onto His Son, and provided atonement for our sin (2 Cor 5:21, Hebrews 4:15, 1 John 2:2, Matthew 20:28, Romans 3:24-26).
On the third day following the death and burial of Jesus, God raised him from the dead, proving he was the Son of God (Ephesians 1:20, Acts 2:24, Romans 4:24).
Salvation is offered by God’s grace, a free gift entirely apart from works, and it is possessed by all who have by faith trusted in Jesus Christ as Saviour. The same power that raised Christ from the dead is now at work in those who believe (2 Corinthians 4:14, Romans 8:11).
The divine person of the Holy Spirit indwells all believers at the moment of conversion and affirms their placement as an adopted child of God, equipping them for good works as a result of their saving faith (1 Corinthians 3:16, 2 Timothy 1:14, Galatians 4:6).
Leadership Structure
Our Members
Have a covenant relationship with the church and are in charge selecting and voting on the governing church authorities. Each member is a steward of the Gospel and has been called to gather, grow, give, and go.
Our Elders
Are men who lead the church directionally and help care for the spiritual needs of the congregation. We have staff elders, often referred to as pastors, and lay elders; each of these men are responsible for the shepherding of our congregation.
Our Ministry Directors & Staff
Are men and women who oversee various ministries, daily operations and high-impact areas of the church that equip the members and encourage an environment for the church to thrive.
If you would like more details on how we utilize God’s giftings of men and women in our church, these three sermons studying 1 Timothy 2:8-3:13 are a great place to start!
HAVE QUESTIONS
about beliefs or current topics?
Please feel free to contact us! We’d love to talk with you about your thoughts and where we stand based on our understanding of God’s inerrant Word.
OUR HISTORY
On October 6, 1946 a meeting was held at the home of Mrs. Leah Stanton in Ridgewood; under the leadership of founding Pastor Larry McGill, 39 charter members established Grace Church. Soon after, the Meadowbrook Avenue corner property was purchased. In May of 1947 construction began on the original sanctuary (currently the Children’s ministry wing), and in November of that year the basement was completed and used for services. The building was completed in 1952 and was used until the current sanctuary was completed in 1964. Grace Church has faithfully served the community since 1946 and is trusting God to continue to impact Ridgewood and the surrounding communities in the years ahead.