Our Beliefs – Ordinances

The belief in ordinances reminds us that faith is meant to move from inward conviction to outward covenant. The beliefs identify the first principles and ordinances as faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, and laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. These are not empty religious customs. They are sacred responses to the grace and call of God.

Faith opens the heart to Christ. Repentance turns the soul away from sin and toward God. Baptism becomes a visible witness of cleansing, commitment, and new life. The laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost points to the believer’s continuing need for divine companionship, guidance, comfort, and power.

Living Hope’s mission of knowing the Lord more fully through prayer, worship, and reading the word gives these ordinances a lifelong setting. They are not one-time moments to be remembered only in the past; they mark the beginning of a life that keeps growing toward God. The believer who has entered the waters of baptism is still called to daily faith. The one who has sought the Holy Ghost is still called to listen, obey, and be transformed.

This theme is lived out today when people respond to Christ with sincerity instead of casual religion. It is seen when parents teach children why baptism matters, when the church reverently administers sacred ordinances, and when disciples remember that obedience is not a burden but a covenant pathway into deeper fellowship with God.

To live this belief today is to point every sermon, prayer, ordinance, act of service, and personal testimony back to Jesus Christ. He is the source of salvation, the pattern of discipleship, and the living hope at the center of Christian faith.