God explains to us how He ordered the world, what has gone wrong, and who will ultimately set it right throughout the pages of Scripture. As the story unfolds, we learn that we, tragically, are the ones who are responsible for the corruption and brokenness in God’s creation. Rather than listen to God, we decided to define truth for ourselves, and as a result, we have corrupted what could be harmonious relationships with each other and with Him. While this can be difficult to hear, it is not the end of the story. God, in His great love for us, chose to intervene in our mess by Jesus substituting Himself in our place, taking the pain and penalty of all that we have caused on the cross, and trading us—exchanging with us—our sin for His perfect righteousness. In other words, Scripture tells us that we are so corrupt that only the death of the Son of God can set us right. But it also tells us that we are so loved that Jesus wanted to give up everything He had, on our behalf, for us. Therefore, Scripture simultaneously confronts us with the enormous depth of our sin and–at the same time–the enormous height of God’s love for us. Both of these, together, are the truth revealed in Scripture. Our aim is always to present both as boldly and as clearly as possible, because if either is missing or diminished, truth is lost. 

At Bridges, we emphasize that truth matters through: 

Steve: Life group curriculum?

Success looks like: 

The Gospel is Our Only Hope

Rather than being a set of beliefs that are only important at the onset of following Christ, the Gospel is how Christians continue to grow deeper in their faith even after decades of walking with Jesus. The Gospel is a declaration or announcement of what Christ has done on our behalf. On the cross, Jesus substituted Himself in our place, taking our sin and giving us His infinite worth, acceptance, status, and inheritance. He then rose to life again in victory over our sin, its penalty, and the grave–freeing us from any accusation, guilty verdict, or fear that previously held us captive. Therefore, the more the Gospel is believed, the more worthy, accepted, valued, forgiven, confident, and secure we will feel. Similarly, the more the Gospel takes root in our hearts, the more charitable, forgiving, patient, generous, and gracious we will be. When we see that we were given everything (His status, His worth, His acceptance, His value), even when we deserved to have everything taken from us–we, then, leverage ourselves for others as He did for us. The Gospel turns enemies into friends, outcasts into family, and traitors into heirs. It isn’t simply our only hope, it’s the only hope of the world. 

At Bridges, we emphasize that the Gospel is our only hope by:

Success looks like:

Doctrinal Statement (click here)

Church Covenant

I promise by the aid of my Savior:

1. To walk lovingly and humbly with my brethren, to pray for them, to separate myself from worldliness and unchristian practices and to walk in a manner so as not to offend my brother;
2. To pray for the advancement of this church in knowledge, spirituality and fruitfulness, to uphold its program of worship, training and teaching, to observe its ordinances and to affirm its doctrines;
3. To give regularly and cheerfully as God prospers, for the support of an evangelical ministry among us, for the relief of the needy and for the spread of the Gospel;
4. To serve faithfully in some activity of the church, taking care to assume only such duties as can be effectively performed and to improve my abilities in service by prayerful study of God’s Word;
5. To maintain family worship, encourage family prayer, Bible study and Christian nurture of any under my care, “that we may grow in the image of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord”;
6. To endeavor by example and effort to win souls to Christ and to enlist unchurched believers for membership in the church;
7. To follow the New Testament as my rule of faith and practice.