– Reformed
In the Reformed tradition we, like the reformers before us, trust in God’s sovereignty over all things. The life of our church reflects the lordship of Christ in all areas. We affirm the doctrines of grace – Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Definite Atonement, Irresistable Grace and Perseverance of the Saints.
– Baptist
Baptism is the covenant sign of a person’s entrance into the body of Jesus Christ, through his death and resurrection. As such, it is for those who have repented of their sins and believe in the gospel, thus receiving the Holy Spirit. The baptism is an immersion into Christ’s death as an “appeal to God for a good conscience” (1 Pet 3:21). After which we have certainty that we will be “united with Him in a resurrection like His” (Rom 6:5).
– Liturgical
Scripture is full of ceremony. The service should be a picture of reverence and gladness (Psalm 100:2, Heb 12:28). There are calls throughout scripture to sing loud, raise hands, kneel, and more. Our service works to enlist the heart, mind and strength in the worship of God. This might seem strange at first if you’re not used to it, but you’ll start to notice the affect it has in shepherding you and your family into a spirit of reverence and joy.
– Family Integrated
The family is one of God’s three spheres of human governance, with the husband as head. We also see in scripture that children are assumed and expected to be involved in the life of the church, including the main gathering. Thus, we don’t have programs going on during the service that would separate the family, and/or remove children from the assembly. The Bible says that the shouts of infants “still the enemy and the avenger” and thus we are happy to have their chirps during the service (Psalm 8:2). This can be a challenge, so we will have people available to help parents who need it. We know first hand what it is like to wrangle energetic children.
– Complimentarian
Jesus Christ is a man, and the church is a woman. This is on purpose and is the archetype behind the home, the church, the government and society at large. We are happy to obey, and lean into commands in scripture regarding the sexes as He designed them.
– Expository Preaching
We have not been commanded to simply preach about the Word, but rather to proclaim the Word itself (2 Tim 4:2). As a practice then, the preachers at NCC will work diligently to ensure that the main point of the passage is the main point of the sermon. If Paul is making an argument, we will lay out that argument. If there is a narrative, we will preach the whole narrative, so you know exactly what tribe of Israel is going up against what warring nation and why, for example. Even in topical sermons we will seek to let the scripture drive the presentation. That said, the majority of our sermons will be walking through books of the Bible section by section.
– Last Supper Elements
We believe that in communion we participate in fellowship with the risen Christ– not in transubstantiation, but in spiritual communion. As such, we like to participate as often as is fitting. We take it each week, and we take the elements as Jesus demonstrated, namely with wine and unleavened bread. Wine was intended to gladden the heart, and we think that chemically removing this element is misguided, though often times well-intentioned. Since symbolism is deep in the heart of communion, we also want to maintain the symbolism in the bread as given and used by Jesus– namely nourishment without sin.
– Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs
We want to sing from God’s song book- the Psalms. The Psalms themselves also instruct us to sing new songs (Psalm 33:3). So we do. New songs from our generation, and new songs from the saints who came before us- Hymns and spiritual songs (Eph 5:19).