What We Believe

Mayesville Presbyterian Church is a congregation of a denomination known as the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church.  As such, we are unreservedly committed to the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the divinely inspired and inerrant Word of God written.  We accept the Bible as the only infallible rule of faith and life.  It is the final appeal in all Church controversies.

A short summary of what we believe contains the following:  We believe in the one sovereign triune God (three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit).  He directly created people as unique beings, in His image and in communion with Him, but mankind broke that communion by sinning against God, and deserved eternal punishment.  However, because of His love, God established the plan of salvation in which He promised to send His Son, Jesus Christ, to save His people from their sins.  Jesus came, served God perfectly, and died in the place of sinners.  He earned both forgiveness and the blessing of eternal life for all those who trust in Him.  Jesus was resurrected to life on the first Easter, ascended into heaven, and will come again to judge the world.  We believe in the person of the Holy Spirit as sent from the Father and the Son to bring people to repentance and faith.  He enables believers to understand the Bible and enables them to live a life of obedient faith to the glory of God.

Our beliefs are given officially and more fully in what are called the Westminster Standards (so called because they were written at Westminster Abbey in London, England between 1643 and 1649 by a body known as the Westminster Assembly).  These standards include the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms.  We believe they are among the finest summaries of the Gospel and other related Bible teachings, and are helpful tools for getting a good overview of the Bible.

Acceptance and proclamation of the teachings of the Westminster Standards is required of all ministers, ruling elders, and deacons.  It is preached from our pulpits, taught to our children, and proclaimed by our missionaries at home and around the world.