OUR BELIEFS
OUR BELIEFS
Rooftop is a diverse community of believers seeking to follow Jesus. That means we each have various ideas and beliefs about God and the world. We commit to the core teachings of Christianity and then agree to disagree about the non-essential points of faith.
We align with the Apostle's Creed statement of faith. The following is a brief yet concise explanation of the essential beliefs to which we are committed.
WORD OF GOD
The Bible is God’s unique revelation to people. It is the inspired, infallible Word of God, and the supreme and final authority on all matters upon which it teaches. No other writings are vested with such divine authority.
THE TRINITY
There is only one God, creator of heaven and earth, who exists eternally as three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, each fully God yet each personally distinct from the other.
GOD THE FATHER
The Father, the first Person of the Trinity, is transcendent and sovereign over all his creation, and omnipresent in and through his creation. His power and essence are infinite, beyond human comprehension. He is holy and perfect in his attributes, and is the ultimate source of all goodness and love.
JESUS CHRIST
Jesus Christ, second Person of the Trinity, was born of the Virgin Mary, lived a sinless human life, willingly took upon Himself all of our sins, died and rose again bodily, and is at the right hand of the Father as our advocate and mediator. Someday, He will return to consummate history and fulfill the eternal plan of God.
THE HOLY SPIRIT
The Holy Spirit, third Person of the Trinity, convicts the world of sin and draws people to Christ. He also indwells all believers. He is available to empower them to lead Christ-like lives, and gives them spiritual gifts with which to serve the church and reach out to a lost and needy world.
REGENERATION
Apart from Jesus Christ, all people are spiritually lost and, because of sin, deserve the judgment of God. However, God gives salvation and eternal life to anyone who trusts in Jesus Christ and in His sacrifice on his or her behalf. Salvation cannot be earned through personal goodness or human effort. It is a gift that must be received by humble repentance and faith in Christ and His finished work on the cross.
THE CHURCH
All believers are members of the body of Christ, the one true church universal. Spiritual unity is to be expressed among Christians by acceptance and love of one another across ethnic, cultural, socioeconomic, national, generational, gender, and denominational lines.
THE LOCAL CHURCH
The local church is a congregation of believers who gather for worship, prayer, instruction, encouragement, mutual accountability, and community with each other. Through it, believers invest time, energy, and resources to fulfill the Great Commission – reaching lost people and growing them into fully devoted followers of Christ.
END THINGS
Death seals the eternal destiny of each person. At the final judgment, unbelievers will be separated from God into condemnation. Believers will be received into God’s loving presence and rewarded for their faithfulness to Him in this life.
SERMON SERIES
MORPH: Experiencing Lasting Change as Followers of Christ
The Bible tells us to “be transformed.” The Greek word for that is “morph,” and it’s used of butterflies and power rangers. To be a follower of Christ means to be forgiven and changed in a deep and lasting way. But is change like that possible? How does God accomplish it? And what can we do to cooperate? Join us in this 14-week series as we explore what the Bible says about morphing into the image of Christ. God loves us just like we are, but too much to let us stay that way.
BIG SIX KEY PRACTICES
We believe every church and follower of Jesus should prioritize these practices. Click to learn more.
Learn who God is and how to live our lives. To value teaching, studying the Bible, listen to sermons, follow Rooftop’s Statement of Faith, and generally live life according to how God says we should, in Scripture.
Share God’s love with others. To value evangelism means to invite people to church, to talk about Jesus to others, to reach out to people who are different from us, and to care about others who don’t know Jesus.
Prioritize the needs of others. To value service, often called our “Third Floor”, means to use your talents to serve the church, to help others when they need it, and to serve and give to the poor. We do this by joining at least one serving team here at Rooftop.
Give God all the devotion and honor He deserves. To value worship means to come to church, to praise God by singing, to tithe God’s money back to him, and to live a life of devotion to Jesus, who rules over all.
Live together as God’s family. To value community, sometimes called our “Second Floor”, means getting to know others at church, talking about your struggles, working out conflict like Jesus says, and living as a member of God’s family — not an isolated Christian.
Ask God to do what we can’t do. To value prayer means to pray for your church leaders, to lay hands on the sick, to expect miracles from God, and to ask God’s Spirit to give us strength and wisdom to do his work.
ELDER TEAM STATEMENTS
The Elder team occasionally publishes a position paper to clarify the team's beliefs on a specific top. You can find links to those documents below.
If you have any questions about our beliefs at Rooftop, please contact a pastor or elder with the following form.