BELIEFS

Our Hope & Confidence

Silhouette of a cross against a cloudy sky

Jesus is God, and He forgives sins.

Central to, and supreme within, our beliefs is that Jesus is the Christ, and that He alone can forgive our sins.

But what does "Christ" mean? The word "Christ" simply means "the anointed one" ... i.e. the King. We believe that Jesus is the holy, anointed, and eternal Son of God — wholly God, wholly man, divine, and incarnate. He is the King of all creation.

What is the role and character of a king? He protects His people! Our King, Jesus, through His sacrifice on the cross, and through His eternal providence, provides His church (those who place their trust in Him) with salvation and security for all of eternity. This is the good news of the gospel!

We believe that Jesus is eternal God, the Son, who descended from heaven, became man, lived a perfect and sinless life, died in the place of His people (bearing in His body their sins, enduring the penalty they deserved), rose from death on the third day, appeared to many, ascended to heaven, took His throne at the Father’s right hand, from whence, today, He protects and provides for His Church and gives salvation to all who come to Him in faith. We believe that He will come again at the end of this age, with glory, to judge the living and the dead, to make everything new, and to dwell with His people forever, reigning over them as their benevolent king.

Christ Church of Clayton is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).

Our Denomination

What We Believe

The Bible

We believe that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of God.
We believe that God’s Word — not church traditions or human opinions — is the ultimate guide for faith and life.

Sin & Transgressions

We believe that we are all born sinners and do daily rebel against God from that sinful nature.
As such, we believe we are rightfully separated from our Creator, a holy and perfect God.

Salvation

We believe that only Jesus can make us right with God — not religious leaders, saints, or our own efforts.
We believe that we are saved through faith, not by being good enough or doing good deeds.
We believe God saves us because He’s gracious, not because we’ve earned it.

Worship

We believe that God deserves all the credit and praise for our lives, our salvation, and every good and perfect gift.
We participate in two sacraments: communion and baptism.

The Church

The Church is the body of Christ and is governed by elders.

Confessions & Creeds

We are a church that is tied in to what the Church has believed from the first century onward, as spelled out in the following summaries of Biblical teachings from centuries past:

Westminster Confession of Faith (1640s)

The Apostles’ Creed (2nd century)

The Nicene Creed (4th century)

Want to Learn More?

If you have questions about our beliefs or about our church, email us or give us a call at 919.333.9514. We'd love to learn more about you and we'd be glad to answer any questions you might have. Join us on Sundays at 10:30 am!