Our Beliefs

The mission of Great Bridge Presbyterian Church is to “share Christ’s love and equip God’s people.”

Our values and vision are reflected in our belief that Jesus Christ is the cornerstone on which Great Bridge Presbyterian Church is built. We believe that Jesus Christ is the only Son of God.  Our vision is to Share Christ’s love through one million touches in our church, community, country, and throughout the world.

We are Presbyterian, which is a branch of the Christian faith that comes out of the Reformation, when men and women sought to “reform” Christ’s church to be more focused on learning about God through His Word, encountering God in meaningful worship, and following Christ alone as the ultimate authority in their lives.

We are Christ-centered, which means that we encourage all to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, whom we believe is the sole provision God gives us sinful, broken people to be reconciled to him.  Being Christ-centered also means that we seek to pattern all that we do after the life, ministry, and commission of Jesus.  Four values enable us to do that:

GRACE: We are saved through God’s gift of Grace and we demonstrate God’s unconditional love in gratitude to God and service to others.

BIBLE: The Holy Bible reveals God’s Word and is the sole foundation for daily living, providing exposure to God’s truth and person. We desire that each individual know God personally and discover God’s will for their life through intentional regular study. prayer and meditation.

PRAYER: We accept God’s invitation to come into His presence and seek His will through prayer.

COMMUNITY: We believe spiritual growth is nurtured by personal relationships within the church community. We invite all people to participate in a fellowship that loves our neighbor, serves one another and speaks the truth in love.

We are evangelical, which means we feel called to share the good news of Jesus’s life, teaching, death and resurrection with the whole world.

We are committed to growth, believing that in the Great Commission, Jesus gave us the command to make disciples.  This means conversion is a life-long process, and we take seriously the part of our mission statement that states our desire to equip people to mature in Jesus Christ.

We are missional, which means we feel called to go “outside the walls” and demonstrate in our lives, words and actions the core truth that God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, to provide to those who believe the assurance of an eternity spent with Him.  This commitment has led us to join with other like-minded churches in the Fellowship Community who are seeking to lift up this as the highest purpose for the church.

SACRAMENTS

Baptism and Communion are the two sacraments we celebrate as a Presbyterian Church.  A sacrament is something we do outwardly that we believe reflects an inward work of grace in our hearts

 Baptism

Baptism is the sign and seal of incorporation into Christ.  Presbyterians believe Baptism the beginning of life in Christ, not its completion. Both believers and their children are included in God’s covenant love.   Baptism, whether administered to those who profess their faith or to those presented for Baptism as children, is one and the same sacrament.  Baptism is received only once, though there may be many times throughout one’s life to reaffirm the commitments made at Baptism.  As there is one body, there is one Baptism.  (Eph. 4:4-6).  The PCUSA recognizes all Baptisms with water in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit administered by other Christian churches.  Baptism is celebrated in a service of public worship.

Please contact the church office to set up an individual counseling session on the meaning of baptism.

Communion

Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper with his disciples, encouraging them to continue in this meal together to remember his sacrifice for them, which is represented in the bread, symbolizing his body, and the juice, symbolizing his blood.  Our communion table is open to anyone who has placed their faith and trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and we celebrate communion the first Sunday of every month.  We provide an annual class to help children understand the meaning of this important action.