At the heart of the Christian faith is the very good news—in fact, the very best news—that there is salvation in Jesus Christ for everyone who trusts in him. He’s the Son of God who paid for the sins of his people by his death on the cross, so that through faith in him there’s forgiveness, personal renewal, and the hope of eternal life with God and his people in the world to come. No wonder this message is called “the gospel.” “Gospel” simply means “good news”…and this is as good as it gets!
Let’s talk
If this good news is new to you—or if you simply want to learn more about what it means to believe in Christ and live as his disciple—we’d love to talk with you. Whether it’s over the phone, on Zoom, or at a local coffee shop, we’re here for you. Our “Contact Us” page really works!
What kind of gospel?
If you want to understand where we’re coming from here at New Hope, and what you can expect to hear preached and taught from our pulpit, we can describe it this way: our message is apostolic, catholic, evangelical, and Reformed. Here’s what we mean…
Apostolic
After he was raised from the dead, our Savior Jesus sent out his apostles (figures like Peter, John, and Paul) to proclaim the good news, and their message—the apostolic gospel—became the foundation of the Christian church ever since. Thankfully, we have that foundation in writing in the books of the New Testament. These books, along with those of the Old Testament (written before Jesus came, but endorsed by him and the apostles), make up the Bible that we believe to be the Word of God. That’s why the writings (or “scriptures”) of the Old and New Testaments are our highest authority for faith and practice: they’re the final, sufficient, and absolutely trustworthy revelation of God’s mind and will for his church.
Catholic
To say that the church is “catholic” is to say that it’s worldwide: it isn’t limited to any particular time, race, or region. New Hope is located in Fairfax, Virginia, in the 21st century, but the message we proclaim here and now isn’t unique to this place and time. We gladly acknowledge everybody as brothers and sisters in Christ who embrace that message with us.
Evangelical
The adjective “evangelical” has the same root meaning as the word “gospel”—that is, it has to do with the good news of salvation in Jesus. New Hope is a Protestant congregation, which means we believe that human beings, guilty before God, can be forgiven and accepted by God the Judge as a free gift received by faith alone (this is called “justification”), and this is thanks to the finished work of Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection.
Reformed
Not only is New Hope a Protestant congregation, but more specifically, we’re a Reformed congregation as well. We believe that God is the one who sovereignly saves sinners by his grace from start to finish, and that the way we’re supposed to worship him as our sovereign Savior when we meet on Sundays is given to us in the Bible. The Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms, 17th-century statements of Reformed theology originating in England, have stood the test of time as faithful expressions of that biblical message, and we’re glad to have embraced them as our own.
Presbyterian
By the way, in case you’re curious what the word ”Presbyterian” means, it refers to a particular understanding of the Bible’s teaching concerning how the church is to be governed. The word “Presbyterian” comes from the Greek word meaning “Elder” (the books of the New Testament were originally written in Greek), so “Presbyterianism” refers to a system in which government is exercised through the ministry of Elders, called by God and recognized by the people.