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Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He offers vicarious atonement through His death and resurrection. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven’s glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.

Matthew 1:22,23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5; John 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14,15; 1st Corinthians 15:3,4; Romans 1:3,4; Acts 1:9-11; 1st Timothy 6:14,15;Titus 2:13

The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved. As Christians, we seek to live under His control daily.

2nd Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13; John 14:16,17; Acts 1:8; 1st Corinthians 2:12; 1st Corinthians 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18

The Bible is God’s Word to us. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired by God, it is the truth without any mixture of error.

2nd Timothy 3:16; 2nd Peter 1:20,21; 2nd Timothy 1:13; Psalm 119:105,160; Psalm 12:6; Proverbs 30:5

People are made in the spiritual image of God, to be like Him in character. People are the supreme object of God’s creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called “sin.” This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in life. Every person is sinful, but every person is redeemable.

Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 3:23; Isaiah 59:1,2

Salvation is God’s free gift to us, but we must accept it. We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin’s penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith, we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.

Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8,9; John 14:6; John 1:12; Titus 3:5; Galatians 3:26; Romans 5:1

People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in union with Him is eternal life. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence.

John 3:16; John 14:17; Romans 6:23; Romans 8:17-18; Revelation 20:15; 1 Corinthians 2:7-9

Canyon Hills Friends Church embraces Evangelical Friends Church – Southwest’s (EFC-SW) Faith and Practice statements below to express its core faith, beliefs, and practices. You can find an expanded version of our Faith and Practice, which includes all of our belief statements, by clicking here.

EFC-SW’s Faith and Practice Statement on Sexuality

The Scriptures clearly declare that God is the creator of humanity. The Lord’s creation of men and women, which is in the image of God, includes our sexuality, and by his own statement about all of creation, our sexuality is good. The Scriptures also declare that our sexuality, like every other aspect of ourselves, is subject to sin.

As a consequence of this, our sexuality is to be both celebrated and controlled. We believe that God has created sex as a complementary expression of our being made male and female, and intends our sexuality for mutual self-giving, and not for self-satisfaction. This means the only appropriate context for sexual activity is a publicly declared, legally binding marriage between one man and one woman. Sexual activity outside of marriage, premarital or extra-marital, homosexual or heterosexual, is sinful in that it rejects God’s plan. Within marriage, sexual experiences that involve mental or emotional manipulation, coercion and abuse are always sinful, falling short of the purpose of mutual self-giving. Any involvement with pornography or explicit communication leading to lust is clearly a means of sexual self-satisfaction and falls short of this standard as well. All sexual sin undermines one’s relationship with God, one’s spouse, and others, while destroying one’s self-respect. As with all sins, when we fall short of God’s standards for sexuality, we are called to repent, receive God’s forgiveness, and change our behavior. As we affirm our sexuality, we also affirm that abstinence from sex in singleness is equally a gift from God. While sex is certainly an expression of love and self-giving within marriage, we must remind ourselves that sex is not the only, or even the best means of expressing love. The life of Jesus, who gave up even his own life so that we might live, is surely the best witness to this truth.