WHO WE ARE

 our values

We are quite simply, but profoundly, a church. You may think that a skimpy definition, but we actually intend for it to communicate a great deal. We believe that the church is chiefly defined not by what we do, but by what Jesus has done for us—the gospel. He is the church’s Head and Redeemer. We must think deeply about what the church is before we think about what she is to do. This being the case, you won’t find a lot of information on this website about what we're doing; we would rather glory in who we are in Christ because of His work for us and in us. This is our work—to proclaim and glory in His work.


"You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." —1 Peter 2:9-10

  • THE GOSPEL

    As one pastor put it, the gospel isn't the ABCs of the Christian life, it is the A to Z of the Christian life. The gospel isn't something we advance from, but into. Every time we gather on the Lord's day, our liturgy—if not stated explicitly then assumed—is "Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed!" 

  • DISCIPLESHIP

    Make disciples—that is the mission of the church (Matthew 28:18–20). Programs don't make disciples. Disciples make disciples. Disciples are discipled. We want to make disciples of Christ. As Mark Dever says, "What you win them with is what you win them to." We amen J.I. Packer's quip that we are "to feed the sheep rather than amuse the goats."

  • EXPOSITORY PREACHING

    We normally preach through whole books of the Bible at a time. We believe it takes the whole Bible to make whole Christians. We should't be picky eaters. When God makes the plate, we should clean it.

  • BIBLICAL LEADERSHIP

    Singular churches are to be led by plural elders (Acts 14:23; Philippians 1:1, James 5:14, Titus 1:5). The elder's leadership is to be one of spiritual oversight, as shepherds caring for the souls of Jesus' sheep entrusted to them.

  • FAMILY

    Parents are to be the chief disciplers of their children, and fathers are to be the lead disciplers (Ephesians 6:4; Colossians 3:20–21). Rather than dividing families and sending them in different directions and creating generational divisions, we want to see families unified and worshipping together.

what we believe

 Affirmation of Faith

The Scriptures:

We believe that the Bible is God’s Holy Word; verbally inspired, without error in the original manuscripts, infallible, and sufficient for life and doctrine. (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Mark 13:31; John 8:31-32; Acts 20:32)


The Trinity:

We believe that there is one God, eternally existing as three equally divine persons that know, love, and glorify each other. We believe that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God; yet The Father is neither the Son nor the Holy Spirit, the Son is neither the Father nor the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is neither the Father nor the Son. (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1-3)


The Father:

We believe that God the Father is an infinite personal spirit. We believe that He is eternal, all-present, all-powerful, and all-knowing. We believe He sovereignly works all things according to His plan. We believe He mercifully sent His Son to ransom sinners from every people group. (John 4:24; Psalm 90:2; Psalm 193:7-10; Jeremiah 32:17; 1 John 3:20; Isaiah 46:9-10; John 3:16)


Jesus Christ:

We believe that the Son remaining what He was (God), became what He was not (man). We believe that He was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, and performed miracles. We believe in His substitutionary atoning death, His bodily resurrection from the dead, His ascension and session at the right hand of the Father, His intercession for His people as great High Priest, and His future return. (Romans 9:5; John 1:1-2, 14; Matthew 1:18-25; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:24; Acts 1:11; Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 9:28)


The Holy Spirit:

We believe that the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. We believe He regenerates sinners and unites them to Christ. We believe He indwells believers, sanctifies them, and seals them to the day of redemption. (John 14:15-16, 26; 16:8-15; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Ephesians 1:13-14)


The Fall:

We believe that in Adam, man who was created in the image of God, fell, and now inherits both Adam’s guilt and corruption and is therefore now hostile towards God, dead in his sins, in bondage to sin, and unable to save himself. (Genesis 1:26-27, Romans 5:12; Romans 3:9-20, 23; Colossians 1:21; John 8:34; Ephesians 2:1-3)


The Gospel and Salvation:

We believe that the gospel is the good news of what God has done for us in His Son Jesus Christ. We believe that Jesus lived a perfect life of obedience for us and died a penal substitutionary death for our sins. We believe salvation is a gift that comes only by God’s grace, and that all who trust in Jesus Christ alone are justified, and are eternally secure, unable to lose their salvation. (1 Corinthians 15:1-8; Romans 3:21-26; Ephesians 2:8-20)


The Church, Her Ordinances, and Her Leadership:

We believe that the church is the body of Christ, comprised of all regenerate persons. We believe the local church is to consist of persons baptized upon credible profession of faith covenanting together to be faithful to their Lord Jesus Christ. We believe the Lord gave two ordinances to His church, baptism, and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian baptism is the baptism of believers by immersion. We believe a church is to be elder led and deacon served. We believe the office of elder is limited to qualified men. (Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:25-27; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Hebrews 10:23-25; Matthew 28:19; Acts 6:1–7; 1 Timothy 3:1–13; Titus 1:5–9; 1 Corinthians 14:33–35, 1 Timothy 2:11–12)


Manhood, Womanhood, and Marriage:

We believe that God created human beings, male and female, in His own image with equal dignity and worth but differing gospel-communicating roles, whether single or married. We believe that marriage is the covenant union of one man and one woman before God. We believe that in obedience to the Lord husbands are to reflect Christ by loving leadership and wives are to reflect the church by respectful submission in the Lord. (Genesis 1:26–27; 2:18–25; Matthew 19:3–12;Ephesians 5:22–33; 1 Corinthians 6:9–20; Hebrews 13:4)



For a fuller statement of the truths we hold dear read the Church's Elder Confession of Faith.


church covenant

We the members of Meridian Church do hereby covenant with each other before God to:


  • Be family; to be committed to each other; to love, accept, and forgive each other until death or God’s call causes us to part.
  • Live in Jesus Christ and take His commands seriously.
  • Help one another grow toward Christian maturity by bearing one another’s burdens, encouraging one another, exhorting one another, praying for one another, confessing our sins to one another, speaking the truth in love to one another, admonishing one another, building up one another, teaching one another, comforting one another, submitting to one another, serving one another, patiently bearing with one another, being hospitable to one another, greeting one another, living in peace with one another, regarding one another as more important than ourselves, caring for one another, exercising our spiritual gifts to serve one another, being kind and tenderhearted to one another, being devoted to one another, accepting one another, forgiving one another, loving one another.
  • We invite fellow members to pray for us, teach us, correct us, or rebuke us, if necessary, in a spirit of gentleness and humility should we stray from our Lord’s commands, because the thing we desire most in life is to serve Christ. We voluntarily submit ourselves to one another and to the discipline of the church. Such discipline will always be for the loving purpose of restoration—restoration to fellowship with God and with the covenant community—and it will always be done in accordance with Matthew 18:15-22.
  • Bring honor to the body of Christ by maintaining a good testimony.


We enter into the covenant because we have the common purpose of obeying Jesus Christ, and because we believe that we need one another’s help to do this. As believers, and disciples of Jesus Christ, we have entered into a covenant relationship with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—with the God who revealed Himself in Jesus. Since the blessings and promises of the covenant have been freely extended and given to us, out of wonder, love, thanksgiving, and reverence, we hereby accept and take up the covenant responsibilities that go with such a privilege. This is our reasonable service, and we should do nothing less.


God helps us all! We rely on His grace and hold fast to His promise that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.