Christians are referred to as “royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God THAT we may declare the praises of Him who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). Therefore, we are to live out the strong reality of the triune God who has spoken definitively in his Word, as we walk before the watching world.

• We believe in the authority of the Bible.

 “The Bible reveals to us the incarnate Word, Jesus Christ. It is the very word of God, timeless in its expression, and anchoring us to reality in the midst of an ever-changing culture.”  ECBC Core Values

 THEREFORE…

"We will endeavor with a holy resolve to make our teaching and total church ministry centered around the great themes of holy scripture, our essential message being Jesus Christ, the crucified and resurrected Lord… Since faith comes from hearing the message and the message is heard by preaching the Word of God, we pledge to faithfully support the gospel ministry among ourselves and spread the good news of God's redeeming love to the ends of the earth.”  East Cooper Baptist Church Covenant

• God, who is Himself truth and speaks truth only, has inspired Holy Scripture in order thereby to reveal Himself to lost mankind through Jesus Christ as Creator and Lord, Redeemer and Judge. Holy Scripture is God's witness to Himself.
  
  
• Holy Scripture, being God's own word, written by men prepared and superintended by His Spirit, is of infallible divine authority in all matters upon which it touches: it is to be believed, as God's instruction, in all that it affirms; obeyed, as God's command, in all that it requires; embraced, as God's pledge, in all that it promises (Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, 1978).

“Unless I'm convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures and by clear reason (for I do not trust in the pope or councils alone, since it is known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted. My conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not retract anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen.”  Martin Luther

“Therefore we preach the fulfillment of all the promises found in the, in the incarnate, in the incarnate, in the incarnate, found in the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who saves His people from their sins.”

We believe God established the family for human flourishing (Genesis 2:23-24, Ephesians 5:32-33)

 “Because we recognize that God has ordained the institution of the nuclear family and called us into the greater familial community of the body of Christ, we celebrate and strive to build strong families within individual homes and across the generations within our church.”  ECBC Core Value, We Are a Family

“Vast human experience confirms that marriage is the original and most important institution for sustaining the health, education, and welfare of all persons in a society. Where marriage is honored, and where there is a flourishing marriage culture, everyone benefits - the spouses themselves, their children, the communities and societies in which they live. Where the marriage culture begins to erode, social pathologies of every sort quickly manifest themselves.” Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience

Therefore, we affirm the importance of the family as defined by Scripture and also rejoice in the good gift of human sexuality that is a gift in the covenantal marriage. It is a great sorrow to see our culture embrace a multifaceted agenda regarding family (LGBTQ) which support alternative definitions of the family and sexuality. This erosion does not lead to human flourishing but to ruin, heartbreak, sadness. As we speak, we will continually affirm the dignity of every man and woman because they are made in the image of God and heartily state that all people are worthy of Christian love. Therefore, because all people are image bearers, life is a sacred trust. We will seek to care for the most vulnerable people in our culture, which includes the child in the womb. Therefore, we will be intentionally involved in those ministries and legislative agendas, which promote the sanctity of human life. We make disciples (ECBC Core Values). A disciple is a forgiven sinner who is involved in the transformational learning of Christ in repentance and faith.“ Disciples are made by the persevering proclamation of the Word of God by the people of God in prayerful dependence on the Spirit of God”  Marshall and Payne, The Vine Project, p. 145