Webelieve there is one true and living God, the Creator of all things, eternal and uncreated, who exists as one undivided divine essence. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.” (Deuteronomy 6:4) We confess biblical monotheism, for God is one (εἷς, Strong’s G1520; one, single; numerical oneness, exclusivity, unity).
We believe the one God is revealed in Scripture as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and that these are not mere titles or temporary roles, but real distinctions as shown by the Son speaking to the Father and the Spirit being sent. “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name.” (John 14:26) “When the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father.” (John 15:26) Therefore we confess the one God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three distinct subsistences, undivided in the one divine essence, fully God. We use “subsistences” as the best English alternative to trinitarian language because it affirms distinction without implying three gods or parts, and corresponds to the semantic range commonly associated with ὑπόστασις ( Strong’s G5287; underlying reality, substantial reality; also used contextually for confidence or assurance).
We believe the Son is fully God and that the Son became incarnate as Jesus Christ, truly God and truly man. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1) “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” (John 1:14) We confess the full deity of the Word and the true incarnation. In John 1:1, the Word (λόγος, Strong’s G3056) is distinguished “with God” (πρός, Strong’s G4314) and affirmed as God (θεός, Strong’s G2316).
We believe the Holy Spirit is fully God and acts as God in salvation and sanctification. “Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost… thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.” (Acts 5:3–4) The Spirit (πνεῦμα, Strong’s G4151) is not an impersonal force but is treated as God and as personally acting.
We believe there is one divine “Name,” meaning one divine identity and authority belonging to the one God, and that Scripture uses “name” in this covenantal sense of revealed identity, authority, and rightful claim. “Name” is ὄνομα (onoma, Strong’s G3686), which can denote a spoken designation and also authority, character, reputation, and revealed identity. Jesus Christ declared, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth… baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” (Matthew 28:18–19) The “power” given to Christ is ἐξουσία (exousia, Strong’s G1849; authority, right, jurisdiction). The singular “name” in Matthew 28:19 denotes one divine authority and one divine identity, confessed with real distinction, for the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are named without being collapsed into one and the same personal subject or reduced to temporary roles.
We confess that the saving Name revealed and given to humanity in the New Covenant is Jesus Christ, for Scripture declares, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) We affirm that Jesus’ name is divinely appointed and bound to His saving mission: “Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21) This confession of the saving Name does not deny the Father or the Holy Spirit, nor does it imply that “Father” and “Holy Spirit” are alternate names for the Son; rather, it confesses the unique saving revelation and mediatorial mission of the incarnate Son, through whom the Father is made known and by whom the Spirit is given.
We further confess that Jesus manifested and declared the Father’s name, and that believers are kept in and through the Father’s own name as revealed and exercised through Christ. “I have manifested thy name.” (John 17:6) “Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me.” (John 17:11) “I kept them in thy name.” (John 17:12) “I have declared unto them thy name.” (John 17:26) To “manifest” is φανερόω (phaneroō, Strong’s G5319; reveal, make known), to “declare/make known” is γνωρίζω (gnōrizō, Strong’s G1107; disclose, make known), and to “keep” is τηρέω (tēreō, Strong’s G5083; guard, preserve). Therefore, the Father’s covenant identity and preserving authority are made known and ministered to believers through the Son and applied by the Holy Spirit, in a manner consistent with Scripture’s real distinction between Father, Son, and Spirit and with the confession of one God.
We believe apostolic baptism is consistently identified with the name of Jesus Christ in the book of Acts. “Be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.” (Acts 2:38) “Only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 8:16) “He commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.” (Acts 10:48) “They were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 19:5) We acknowledge that the New Testament does not preserve a verbatim transcript of the triadic words being spoken at the moment of baptism, while it repeatedly describes baptism as being “in” (ἐν, en, Strong’s G1722; in, within, in the sphere of, by means of) the name of Jesus. We therefore confess that the apostles applied the singular “name” of Matthew 28:19 in a Christ-centered, apostolic manner consistent with the saving Name revealed in the New Covenant, without confusing the Father and the Son or diminishing the Holy Spirit.
Finally, we confess that salvation in the name of Jesus does not diminish the Father or the Holy Spirit, because the one God is the author of salvation and acts in unity in the saving work. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself.” (2 Corinthians 5:19) Therefore, invoking Jesus’ name is invoking God’s saving action revealed in the Son and applied by the Spirit, while maintaining the scriptural distinctions by which the Father sends, the Son accomplishes redemption, and the Spirit applies God’s saving work to believers. We further confess that Jesus Christ is the divinely appointed mediator of the New Covenant, and that His blood is the seal of that Covenant, so that the saving confession of His Name remains central to the church’s proclamation and practice, to the glory of the one God forever.