We understand there are many reasons you might be reading this page. You might be new to Stillwater and looking for a church to visit. You might be a regular visitor wanting to see what we believe and stand for. You might even be a long-time member at Sunnybrook checking our beliefs against your personal convictions. Whatever brought you to this page, it is abundantly clear that doctrine matters. What we teach and who we teach about matters.
It is customary to list out several points of important doctrinal distinctions intended to describe what we believe and why we believe it. Our conviction is that such a list is good, but limited. We don’t want to simply describe what we believe. We want to describe how those beliefs define who we are, what we do, and why we do it. Therefore, we think it would be more helpful if we explain what you’ll find when you join us at Sunnybrook Christian Church.
At Sunnybrook you will hear us constantly preaching and teaching from the inspired, inerrant Bible. You will hear those Scriptures teach that humanity has fallen, separating ourselves from the one true God. You will hear God described as triune, consisting of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. You will hear the remedy for the separation between God and humanity is found only by God’s grace given to us by trusting in the work of Jesus for our salvation. You will hear this salvation was purchased for us by Jesus dying on the cross, in our place, to pay for our sins, and being resurrected on the third day. You will hear the Bible teach that we receive and respond to God’s grace by placing our faith in Jesus, repenting of sin, confessing him as Lord and being immersed into Jesus. You will hear that to those who have been redeemed God gives the indwelling Holy Spirit to comfort, strengthen, and guide our walk. You will hear that Christ himself is head over his bride, the church. You will hear that the church is tasked with remaining faithful in obedience to God and with making disciples of all nations. You will hear that we are to follow and submit to Jesus with our whole lives until he returns to resurrect and judge the living and the dead.
You will hear these things taught with deep conviction from the elders, the church staff, and in volunteer ministries. And we pray that you will do more than just hear. These truths should define who we are, and in so doing, should move us to appropriate action. We often talk about this idea using the words GO-GATHER-GROW. When God speaks through his Word, his church, or his Spirit, it is our responsibility to respond by GOing and making his name famous, GATHERing and living in vibrant biblical community, and GROWing in maturity as we actively engage the process of progressive sanctification.
What we believe affects who we are, what we do, and why we do it. It is our hope and prayer that we have an opportunity to share these deeply-held beliefs with you, and that you will find Sunnybrook a joyful place to serve God, learn more about him, and love his people.
We're convinced we are meant to live for something more than ourselves. Lasting fulfillment comes from connecting to a purpose deeper and bigger than power, position or possessions. Jesus laid it out for his followers: glorify God by making disciples.
That's why we're here - that's our mission. And it's bigger than anything else we know.
If that sounds about right to you, then this might be a great place to land.