Who We Are and What We Believe
First and foremost, Grimes First Presbyterian Church is a community of people who believe in Jesus Christ and trust Him so much that we have transferred control of our lives into Jesus’ hands. We believe that we all miss the mark of God’s intended best for us, and that Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins, that He was raised from the dead showing His power over sin and death, and that He lives within us and transforms us by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus loves us just as we are and not as we should be, but He also loves us enough not to leave us the way He found us. Everyone is welcome as we seek together to become more like Him. We believe that the Bible is God’s authoritative word to us, and tells us all we need to know about who He is, and how to live a life that helps us become more like Jesus. We seek to submit ourselves to a biblical worldview. We also believe that God is on a rescue mission to His world, and that He came Himself in the person of Jesus to revitalize that rescue mission. Through the power of the Holy Spirit He calls us to join Him in His rescue mission to bind up the brokenhearted, bring good news to the poor (both economically and spiritually), to help others know of His saving love, and to reverse the effects of the fall in our homes, families, neighborhoods, offices, schools, community, world and in our personal lives. We seek to be a family who is radically devoted to Jesus, to one another and to serving the world, and we’d love for you to join us.
Beyond the above description of Who We Are, there are some other ways to describe our beliefs. Grimes First Presbyterian Church is part of the Christian religion, the Reformed theological tradition, the Evangelical movement, the Presbyterian Church (USA) denomination, and The Fellowship Community.
All Christians agree in affirming the Trinity–One God in three Persons: Father, Son and Spirit–as well as the Incarnation that God became human in the person of Jesus of Nazareth.
The Reformed theological tradition descends from Protestant Reformers like John Calvin, John Knox and others. Among other distinctive features, Reformed theology emphasizes God’s love and sovereignty, election for salvation and service, covenant life, stewardship, the fallenness of humankind, and the preaching of the scriptures.
The Evangelical movement spans traditions and denominations and emphasizes personal trust in Jesus and His atoning sacrifice on the cross, interprets scripture more conservatively, and actively participates in engaging cultures to spread the gospel message of loving salvation for the redemption of all creation.
The Presbyterian Church (USA) is the largest of several Presbyterian denominations. It traces back to 1793 and is now headquartered in Louisville, KY. Its constitution has two parts: The Book of Confessions teaches what we believe and The Book of Order teaches how our church is organized.
The Fellowship Community is an order within PC (USA) of churches and leaders called together to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ by growing in Christ’s likeness, living by God’s word, and joining in God’s mission in the world. Our church leadership affirms these essential tenets of Reformed theology.
The Session of Grimes First Presbyterian Church is committed to providing leadership within our denomination. The Presbyterian Church (USA), like other denominations, is experiencing significant challenges. Some of these challenges are necessary and welcome. Other challenges concern us deeply, fostering confusion and causing some to be distracted from the ministry to which Jesus has called His Church. The pastor and elders of Grimes First Presbyterian Church are actively engaged in welcoming and encouraging positive changes in our congregation and denomination while at the same time we feel called to provide appropriate, biblical leadership to the challenges with which our denomination is struggling.