DOCTRINE
What We Believe
A Christ-centered statement of faith, formation, discipleship, and purpose.
E320 is a Christ-centered, Bible-believing church committed to helping people know God, grow in faith, become who God created them to be, and make a meaningful difference in the world.
Our name is inspired by Ephesians 3:20, which reminds us that God is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask, imagine, or think according to His power at work within us.
Because of that truth, we believe following Jesus is not simply about attending church. It is a lifelong journey of transformation. Through Jesus Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit, God restores us, develops us, and empowers us to live with faith, purpose, integrity, and impact.
We believe we can Expect More from a life fully surrendered to God.
01
the bible
We believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and the authoritative foundation for what we believe and how we live.
Scripture reveals who God is, who we are, how salvation is received, and how followers of Jesus are called to live. While the Bible was written through human authors within particular historical settings, we believe they wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
God’s Word remains relevant and trustworthy and provides truth, wisdom, correction, direction, and spiritual formation for our lives.
scripture Psalm 119:105; Isaiah 40:8; John 17:17; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20-21
02
god
We believe there is one true and living God who eternally exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Each is fully God, equal in divine nature and united in purpose, while personally distinct.
God is holy, loving, just, gracious, all-powerful, all-knowing, ever-present, and faithful. He created all things and continues to work within His creation according to His purposes.
scripture Genesis 1:1; Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1-3; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 4:4-6
03
god the father
We believe God is a loving and faithful Father.
He is the Creator and Sustainer of all things and sovereignly works according to His wisdom and purpose. Humanity was created in His image and for His glory.
God is not distant from His creation. He desires relationship with us and demonstrated the depth of His love by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, so that humanity could be reconciled to Him.
scripture Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 103:8-13; Matthew 6:9; John 3:16; Acts 17:24-28; Ephesians 1:3-6
04
jesus christ
We believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God, fully God and fully human.
Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, demonstrated the Kingdom of God through His teaching and ministry, willingly died on the cross for our sins, and physically rose from the dead.
Through His death and resurrection, Jesus defeated the power of sin and death and made reconciliation with God possible.
Jesus ascended to the Father and will return again. We believe Jesus is not simply one path toward God. He is the way through whom humanity is reconciled to God.
scripture Isaiah 53; Matthew 1:18-23; John 1:1-14; John 3:16; John 14:6; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 5:8; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 1:15-20
05
the holy spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit is fully God and actively works in the lives of people today.
The Holy Spirit draws people toward Christ, brings conviction, gives spiritual understanding, guides believers into truth, develops Christlike character, and empowers followers of Jesus to live out God’s purposes.
We believe every follower of Jesus should continually seek to be led and filled by the Holy Spirit.
The Christian life was never intended to be lived through human strength alone. God’s power works within us, enabling transformation that extends beyond what we could accomplish by ourselves.
scripture John 14:16-17; John 16:7-15; Acts 1:8; Romans 8:9-14; Galatians 5:22-25; Ephesians 3:16-21; Ephesians 5:18
06
the gifts of the holy spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to believers for the strengthening of the Church and the advancement of God’s purposes in the world.
These gifts are not given for personal status or spiritual superiority. They are given so that we may serve others, build the Church, demonstrate God’s grace, and participate effectively in His mission.
We believe the gifts of the Spirit remain relevant to the Church today and should operate with biblical integrity, spiritual maturity, love, wisdom, and order.
scripture Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 1 Corinthians 13; 1 Corinthians 14:1, 26-40; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Peter 4:10-11
07
humanity
We believe every person is created in the image of God and therefore possesses inherent dignity, value, and worth.
Humanity was created for relationship with God, but sin has broken that relationship and affected every dimension of human life. Every person needs the grace and redemption offered through Jesus Christ.
Because people bear God’s image, we are committed to treating people with love, honor, compassion, and dignity while faithfully communicating the truth of Scripture.
We believe God’s grace does more than forgive our past. Through Christ, God begins transforming us into the people He intended us to become.
scripture Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 8:3-6; Romans 3:23; Romans 5:12; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:1-10; Colossians 3:9-11
08
salvation
We believe salvation is God’s gift to humanity through Jesus Christ.
Sin separates humanity from God, and no amount of morality, achievement, religious activity, generosity, or good works can restore that relationship. Salvation is not something we earn. It is something God offers by grace because of what Jesus Christ accomplished through His death and resurrection.
Jesus accomplished what we could not accomplish for ourselves.
Scripture teaches that we receive salvation by placing our faith in Jesus Christ – believing in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead and confessing with our mouths that Jesus is Lord.
“If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
This confession is more than the repetition of religious words. It is the outward expression of genuine faith – a decision to trust Jesus Christ as Savior and acknowledge Him as Lord.
“For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”
We believe the invitation of salvation is available to everyone. Scripture declares, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13).
When a person turns toward God in repentance and places faith in Jesus Christ, they are forgiven, reconciled to God, and given new life.
Salvation is therefore both a decisive beginning and the beginning of a transformed life.
We are saved by grace, through faith, in Jesus Christ – not because of our works, but because of His finished work. And while good works cannot produce salvation, genuine faith should increasingly produce a life that reflects the One who saved us.
scripture John 1:12; John 3:16-17; Acts 2:38; Acts 4:12; Acts 16:30-31; Romans 3:23-26; Romans 5:8-10; Romans 10:9-13; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:4-7
09
spiritual formation & discipleship
We believe Jesus did not simply call people to believe in Him. He called people to follow Him.
Salvation begins our relationship with Jesus; discipleship develops that relationship.
A disciple is a follower of Jesus who is continually learning His ways, becoming more like Him, living according to His teachings, and participating in His mission.
Jesus’ command to the Church was not simply to gather people or create converts. He instructed His followers to go and make disciples, teaching them to obey everything He commanded.
For that reason, discipleship is not an optional program at E320. It is central to who we are and how we understand the mission of the Church.
We believe spiritual formation is the ongoing work through which the Holy Spirit transforms us into greater Christlikeness. This transformation should affect every dimension of our lives – our minds, character, relationships, priorities, habits, stewardship, decisions, leadership, and purpose.
We believe this transformation occurs as followers of Jesus intentionally engage in the practices and relationships that develop spiritual maturity: studying and applying Scripture, prayer, worship, Christian community, obedience, service, generosity, accountability, and learning to follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit.
Discipleship therefore requires both information and transformation.
Knowing Scripture matters, but discipleship requires learning to live Scripture. Attending worship matters, but discipleship requires carrying what we encounter in worship into everyday life. Believing in Jesus matters, and following Jesus should progressively transform how we think, live, lead, love, serve, forgive, steward, and respond to the world around us.
At E320, our goal is not simply to create church attenders. We want to develop disciples.
We want people to know what they believe, understand why they believe it, develop the spiritual disciplines necessary for maturity, discover how God has uniquely equipped them, and become capable of helping someone else follow Jesus.
This means mature disciples eventually become disciple-makers.
Jesus modeled this multiplication. He developed people who could carry His mission beyond His physical presence, and He commissioned His followers to continue that work from generation to generation.
This is why spiritual formation at E320 moves intentionally from internal development to external impact. God works in us so that He can work through us.
The power described in Ephesians 3:20 is not merely something we expect God to demonstrate around us. It is power that Scripture says is already at work within us. As we surrender ourselves to God, that power transforms our character, develops our capacity, strengthens our faith, and equips us to become who God intended us to be.
Discipleship is the journey of participating with God in that transformation.
scripture Matthew 4:19; Matthew 16:24-25; Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 9:23; John 8:31-32; John 15:4-8; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:1-2; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Galatians 5:22-25; Ephesians 3:16-20; Ephesians 4:11-16; Philippians 1:6; Colossians 1:9-10; 2 Timothy 2:2; James 1:22-25
10
purpose
We believe every person was created intentionally and that God desires to work through the lives, abilities, experiences, relationships, resources, and spiritual gifts of His people.
Purpose is not merely personal achievement. Biblical purpose is discovering how our lives can glorify God and serve others.
The Church should therefore help people discover, develop, and deploy what God has placed within them.
We want people to become spiritually mature enough to ask not only, “What can God do for me?” but also, “What does God want to do through me?”
scripture Jeremiah 1:5; Matthew 5:14-16; Romans 12:4-8; Ephesians 2:10; Ephesians 4:11-13; 1 Peter 4:10
11
the church
We believe the Church is the community of people who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ.
Jesus is the head of the Church, and every believer has a meaningful place within His body.
The Church gathers for worship, teaching, prayer, fellowship, communion, spiritual formation, and encouragement – and then goes into the world to demonstrate and communicate the love and truth of Jesus.
We believe healthy churches develop healthy people, healthy relationships, strong families, servant leaders, and communities transformed by the presence of God’s people.
Church is therefore not simply somewhere we go. It is a people we belong to and a mission we participate in.
scripture Matthew 16:18; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:42-47; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 1:22-23; Ephesians 4:11-16; Colossians 1:18
12
baptism
We believe water baptism is an important act of obedience for those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ.
Baptism publicly identifies a believer with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus and represents the new life we have received through Him.
Baptism does not earn salvation. It is an outward expression of the inward transformation that has begun through faith in Christ.
scripture Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38-41; Acts 8:36-38; Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:12
13
communion
We believe Communion was established by Jesus as a continuing practice of the Church.
Through the bread and the cup, followers of Christ remember His sacrificial death, celebrate the grace we have received, examine our own lives, and proclaim our faith in Him until He returns.
Communion reminds us that our relationship with God and with one another is grounded in what Jesus accomplished for us.
scripture Matthew 26:26-29; Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
14
eternity
We believe humanity was created for eternity.
Those who receive salvation through Jesus Christ will experience eternal life with God. Scripture also teaches the reality of eternal separation from God for those who remain separated from Him through sin.
Our belief in eternity gives urgency to our mission and hope to our lives. Because eternity matters, helping people encounter Jesus and experience the transforming power of the Gospel matters.
scripture John 3:16; John 5:24; John 11:25-26; Romans 6:23; 2 Corinthians 5:1; Revelation 21:1-5
15
unity in the essentials
We believe there are foundational truths that define historic Christian faith: the authority of Scripture, the Trinity, the deity and humanity of Jesus Christ, His atoning death and bodily resurrection, salvation by grace through faith, and the work of the Holy Spirit.
We also recognize that sincere followers of Jesus may reach different conclusions about secondary theological matters. We refuse to make every disagreement a reason for division.
On essential matters, we pursue unity. On secondary matters, we extend grace. In everything, we pursue love.
scripture John 13:34-35; John 17:20-23; Romans 14:1-19; 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; Ephesians 4:1-6
E320 is built upon the conviction that the Gospel does not simply prepare us for eternity – it transforms how we live today.
We believe God can restore what has been broken, renew the way we think, develop what He has placed within us, deepen our relationships, give purpose to our lives, and use ordinary people to make an extraordinary difference.
Our expectation is not rooted in ourselves. Our expectation is rooted in God.
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us…”
And because God’s power is at work within us, we choose to live expecting more.