We believe that all people on this earth -- men, women, and children -- are by nature sinful and, through this sin, are separated eternally from God. However, we believe that Jesus Christ -- God and the Son of God -- was born into the world almost 2,000 years ago. He lived a perfect life, was crucified in order to pay for the sins that separate us from Him, and three days later rose from the dead. By doing so, all people who believe that He is their Savior are forgiven of all their sins and are given eternal life with God. We also believe that Jesus is the only way to salvation.
We believe that to have faith in Jesus is to enter into a personal relationship with him by trusting in the completed work of Jesus through his death and resurrection, and to become part of the community of faith. Through baptism, a person is brought into the people of God, which God calls his "church." Through the Holy Spirit, all believers on earth are able to receive the free grace Jesus offers us through his death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. The Holy Spirit also creates faith in people and unites all believers as children of God. God has also sent his Holy Spirit to all who believe in him to sustain them in their faith. And God uses his people to reveal himself to the world. By faith, we are saved through grace. By faith, we are united into the family of God, and we live to make the name of God known throughout the earth.
We believe that God has revealed himself through the Bible, and that the Bible alone is sufficient for one's faith. The Bible, which is the living and inspired word of God, gives us the story of Jesus, from the book of Genesis all the way through Revelation. God uses his Holy Spirit, through the Gospel message of Jesus, to impart grace and create faith in people. Through the Bible, God also reveals how he has created the world to work -- how we are to live, how he will continue to sustain it, how much he loves it and everything in it. The Bible encourages the believer in his or her faith, and reveals how living in repentance and according to the will of God brings joy in our lives and in the world.
ORLC is a member of the Lutheran Church -- Missouri Synod. What does this mean? To be Lutheran essentially means to focus on the Gospel and scriptural truth that Jesus saves us apart from works. To learn more about the doctrines of the LCMS, click here.
