Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church and Elementary School Proclaiming Christ Crucified, Risen and Coming Again Through the Gospel in Word and Sacraments
www.stpaulsbangor.com Our message can be summed up in the three-fold motto of the Lutheran Reformation:
By Grace Alone
By Faith Alone
By Scripture Alone
Grace Alone
We believe that we are saved by the Triune God’s free grace, His undeserved love
for sinners. Jesus Christ lived the perfect life that we have failed to live. He suffered the punishment for sin which we deserve to suffer. He rose physically from the grave on Easter to conquer death itself. We are saved by what Christ did for us. Faith Alone
The Good News (Gospel) of what Jesus did for all people is personally received by faith alone. This faith is not a decision we make. Faith is a child-like trust in Jesus which the Holy Spirit creates in the human heart through the Gospel (John 15:16; Romans 1:16; Romans 10:17; 1 Corinthians 12:3). That is why the Bible says “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). This God-given faith in Jesus brings forth the fruit of Christian living (John 15:5; Romans 6; Ephesians 2:10). This Good News (Gospel) comes to us in God’s Word and Sacraments (Baptism and Holy Communion). These two sacraments are simply the Word of the Gospel in visible form. We will be happy to tell you more about these “means of grace” which the Holy Spirit uses to create and sustain faith in Jesus. Scripture Alone
The Good News about Jesus is revealed only in the Bible. The Bible is God’s own Word. Every word of Scripture is God-breathed and without error (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 2 Peter 1:21). We want to teach all of God’s Word correctly. In the Bible, the one true, triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) reveals the Law and the Gospel. God’s Law, like a mirror, shows our sin. God’s Gospel shows us our Savior (Romans 6:23). For a detailed version of what we believe, please visit the following link on the WELS website: http://www.wels.net/what-we-believe/statements-belief/this-we-believe/this-we-believe
For a detailed version of The Book of Concord (1580), please visit the following link:
http://bookofconcord.org/info.php
For a detailed version of Luther’s Small Catechism, please visit the following link:http://stpaulsbangor.com/web_documents/luther__s_small_catechism.pdf
For other doctrinal statements from the WELS site, please visit the following link:
http://www.wels.net/about-wels/doctrinal-statements/doctrinal-statements
Online Offerings: https://tithe.ly/give?c=1318252