What We Believe

We believe...

In Jesus...
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor... to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor..."
"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.

But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full. Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep."

"But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. Treat others the same way you want them to treat you."
"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
"Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. "Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
"Come unto to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest."
In being peacemakers...
As a community of faith we have covenanted together:
  • to work to ensure that Creation is respected, enhanced, and protected;
  • to speak out against all forms of oppression to ensure the dignity and worth of all people;
  • to accept our responsibility as ministers of reconciliation in the world by helping people to accept one another and God, and;
  • to promote peace and justice in all life circumstances.
As a community of faith we further declare that:
  • Peace is the will of God and all war is sin. All persons are created in the image of God and owe their first allegiance to God.
  • All persons have the responsibility:
  1. to read and interpret the Scriptures,
  2. to reflect on their religious experience in order to understand peacemaking for them and the world, and
  3. to obey God's will for peace above all human directives, even when obedience requires conscientious objection or civil disobedience.
As a community of faith we believe that all persons should examine and speak out against individual, corporate, and national participation in the forms of political and economic oppression that cause war and work, even if at some cost to themselves, to discover constructive avenues of peacemaking within these venues, for in doing so we demonstrate our obedience to Jesus Christ.
In Being Welcoming and Affirming

For in Christ Jesus you are all children of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
~Galatians 3:26-28

Having covenanted together:
  • To discover and affirm our individual gifts and use them in celebration as God’s servants; To speak out against all forms of oppression to insure the dignity and worth of all people; To accept our responsibility as ministers of reconciliation in the world by helping people to accept one another and God; and
  • To promote peace and justice in all life circumstances;
We, the Jeff Street Baptist Community at Liberty, further state that:

We welcome and affirm all people, regardless of race, nationality, class, gender, age, ability, sexual orientation, or gender identity as we seek to understand and live a life reflecting Paul’s statement that we are all one in Christ Jesus.
In Living Simply that Others May Simply Live

"Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you?


...Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself."
"The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.'

"Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." '

"But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'

"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." 
In Care for Creation

In Justice

In Resurrection