What We Believe

Lutherans in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) are Christians who believe Jesus Christ is their Lord and Savior. The simplest way to express who we are at St. Paul Lutheran Church is this: We are Jesus people. Similar to the first Christians who agreed on one very simple creed….Jesus is Lord! 


We are a community of Word and Sacrament. What does this mean? (We ask that a lot as Lutheran Christians!) Well….. we share a common faith with other Christians who affirm the Bible as sacred Scripture and accept the ancient creeds as accurate summaries of our faith. God’s Holy Spirit is active in scripture, both in its understanding and proclamation (Word); through the living waters of Holy Baptism (Sacrament); and truly present in the meal, Holy Communion (Sacrament). 


As Lutheran Christians, we believe that salvation is by God’s grace through faith alone. 

  • God  

    We believe in the Triune God - God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. We acknowledge one God in these three expressions. We believe that God the Father is the Creator of all that exists, and that God continues to be active in the lives of people today. God is passionate about God’s creation, loves it deeply, and desires that our lives be filled with love and joy.

  • Jesus christ

    We believe that while God has revealed God’s self in many ways throughout history, God is most fully known in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ, born of a virgin, is fully God and fully human. The most important event in Christian history is the death and resurrection of Jesus. On the cross God is there, hidden in weakness, vulnerability and suffering. In the cross we learn that we do not need to find God by being good or holy. Instead God finds us in our darkness, pain, emptiness and weakness. By God’s grace we learn to see the cross as God reaching out to us. And in Jesus’ resurrection, we see God’s power to liberate us from sin and death. By our faith in Jesus’ sacrifice, our sin is forgiven and we are made right with God, freed to be all that God created us to be. 

  • The Bible

    We believe that the Bible is the living Work of God. It is the primary means by which God's Spirit enters our lives, calling us to repentance and faith. When we hear God's Word, God breaks into our lives shattering old ways and creating new life, new values and new commitment.

  • Baptism

    We believe that God has chosen to work through the water of baptism. When water and God’s Word come together and touch the life of a child or adult, we are born again, incorporated into Christ, into his body, the Church. By grace, we receive God’s forgiveness through baptism, and are given the gift of God’s Holy Spirit. In baptism, especially infant baptism, we affirm that God chooses us - we do not choose God. Our baptism reminds us that our status with God never depends upon how we feel, whether we have the "right" religious experience, or our success or failures. Baptism reminds us that God loves us as we are, but refuses to leave us that way. 

  • Holy Communion  

    We believe that God reaches out to us through the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, Holy Communion. By eating the bread and wine by faith, we give flesh to the Christ who continues to work in us and in the world. In Holy Communion we are reminded of Christ’s loving sacrifice, reminded that God is with us daily in ordinary experience, and reminded that a great feast of victory awaits the faithful when Christ comes again.   

  • The Church  

    We believe that the Church is the people of God, called to live by faith as witnesses of God’s love and redeeming work in the world. We are not called to live as Christians in isolation, but in community. God calls us to gather in worship, study, fellowship and to reach out through service to others.