What We Believe

What we believe about God

“There is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and
there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.”
(1 Corinthians 8:6)
We believe there is one God, and we believe that the Bible shows God to be three distinct
persons, namely God the Father, Jesus, who is God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God is
the Creator and Sustainer of all things. He is holy and just. He is loving and compassionate,
offering grace and mercy to all who are willing to receive, and His desire is that all people
come to Him and receive.

What we believe about the Bible

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in

righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)

We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, by which we mean that, though there were many
human writers, the words they wrote were inspired by God. For this reason, we believe the
Bible to be our highest authority for obtaining and measuring truth.

What we believe about Jesus

“He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born over all creation. . . For God was pleased
to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether
things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”
(Colossians 1:15, 19-20)
We believe that Jesus is God, and that He lowered Himself to be born as a human. He lived a
perfect life, fulfilled the Jewish Law, performed many miracles, taught about the Kingdom of
God, and ultimately died at the hands of his enemies as the only perfect sacrifice for sin,
making a way for us to have a relationship of love with God.
We also believe that He was raised back to life again, to show that death is not the end, and is
now with God the Father, praying for His people, and will soon return. . .

What we believe about the Church

“It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and
some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the
body of Christ may be built up.” (Ephesians 4:11-12)
We believe that the Church is the people of God spread throughout the world, what the Bible
calls 'the Body of Christ'. When we refer to our local church, we are referring to the people of
God who gather together in their own neighbourhood. God has given different gifts and
ministries within the Church for the common good, to unite us, to build us up and to help us
become mature in our faith.
Here at Harvest Church, the people of God in Alton and the surrounding area, come together
to worship God, to pray and seek Him, to listen to His Word opened up through preaching, to
have fellowship together and engage in other activities.

What we believe about Mission

“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
(Matthew 28:19-20)
We believe that all Christians have been called to mission, whether locally or further afield.
Jesus' Great Commission of Matthew 28 is relevant to all who follow Him. We have been
commanded to spread the Good News to all those we come into contact with, both through the
things we say and, more importantly, through the way we live. We believe that Christians are
God's ambassadors.