WHO WE ARE

What We Believe

Cross Life Church

Mission & Beliefs

Cross Life Mission (click here to watch a video)

to actively engage the presence of God as the means to live and declare the Cross Life.

Pastor Scott Ethridge from the Healing Place in Shreveport, LA, spoke a word over Cross Life Church that is available to read. click here

Triune Godhead (Trinity)

God The Father – We believe in the one true and perfect God, Creator of all things, all knowing and all powerful. We believe He is the infinite, everlasting, triune God who elected to manifest as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. He is a sovereign God who has absolute authority.

The Lord Jesus Christ – We believe in the deity of Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of God (John 3:16). He is the ultimate union of God and man. He is true God and true man, conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. We also believe in His substitutionary death on the cross for all mankind, His resurrection, ascension and His eventual return to judge the world.

The Holy Spirit – We believe in the existence of the Holy Spirit as the third person of the Trinity. We believe the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to bring honor and glory to the Lord Jesus Christ, to convict the world of sin, bring regeneration to every born again believer, indwell, teach, guide, comfort and empower each believer to live a life of holiness and purity in the perfect will of almighty God.

The Scriptures

We believe that both the Old and New Testaments are the inspired, infallible and authoritative Word of God. In the Word, we find the revelation of God’s eternal and unchanging will for men and women of all ages. The Word is the divine and final authority for the Christian life.

Salvation/Being born again

In John 20:22, after His resurrection, Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit”. We believe He imparted His Spirit, joining His Spirit with theirs and sealing them or saving them as His eternally. A person believes in Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, repents of their sin and confesses Jesus Christ as Lord. This is what we call salvation or being born again (John 3:3, Rom 10:9-10).

Water baptism

We believe that water baptism is an ordinance to be observed by the church during the present age. Baptism is defined as one being immersed into and raised up from water. Baptism is not a means of salvation, but is symbolic to publicly demonstrate a new believer’s belief that he/she has spiritually died, been buried and raised from the grave with Christ.

Baptism in the Holy Spirit

We believe that Matt 3:11 and Acts 1:5 clearly state that Jesus baptizes believers with His Holy Spirit. A sincere and spiritually hungry believer can expect to be baptized in the Holy Spirit by asking for it. The purpose of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is to provide the believer with the power to be witnesses for Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8).

Being Continually filled with the Holy Spirit

We believe that once a believer has been baptized with the essence and power of the Holy Spirit he/she must be continually filled. Being continually filled requires an intimate relationship with Him through the Word, praise and worship and daily asking for His filling (Matt 5:6 Eph 5:18-21).

Communion

We believe that communion is an ordinance to be observed by the church during this present age. Communion, also known as The Lord’s Supper is the taking of bread and wine (grape juice) as demonstrated by Christ at the last supper, in the upper room, with His disciples. This practice symbolizes the believer receiving Jesus’ body, which was broken, and His blood, which was poured out on behalf of the believer.

Spiritual Gifts

Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4, list special attributes/talents/abilities given by the Holy Spirit to every member of the body of Christ. They are given in accordance to God’s grace, for use within the body for administration, service, ministry and equipping of the body of Christ. They can be given for a lifetime or for a single specific task in the church.

Demonology

This is the teaching and equipping of spirit-filled believers in the understanding of the power and authority of Jesus’ name to exercise authority over demonic spirits in the church and the body of Christ.

Deliverance – We believe that a Spirit-filled believer and or preferably an experienced Spirit-filled deliverance team, ministering in the power and authority of the Word of God and in Jesus’ name, can and does expel demonic spirits from a Christian or Non-Christian. Doing so for a Christian, frees them to be led by the Holy Spirit in all areas of their lives.

Oppression – We believe that in the life of a born again believer, through making bad choices, a demonic spirit can be given access and then have a strong influence and even control of one or more areas of the believers thinking and actions. This condition is also called a stronghold or a house of wrong thinking.

Possession – We believe that in the life of an unsaved person, one or more demonic spirits can be allowed to take complete control of that person’s thought life and actions. Deliverance is much more difficult and unless the person becomes born-again, filled with the Holy Spirit and follows the teaching of Jesus Christ, the demon spirits will return, bringing more and worse with it.

Five Fold Ministry

In Ephesians 4:11 Paul tells us that Jesus appointed and equipped certain believers in these five positions. We believe that their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do His work of ministry and to build up the church, the body of Christ, until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will become fully mature Christians in the Lord. These persons will demonstrate an extraordinary drive and focus in the area of their calling.

Apostles – We believe that Apostles are those whom the Lord gives the special ability and authority to assume and exercise apostolic leadership over one or more churches. These persons have an extra-ordinary authority in spiritual matters and are spontaneously recognized and appreciated by those churches.

Prophets – We believe that Prophets are those whom the Lord gives the special ability to receive and communicate an immediate message of God to His people.

Evangelists – We believe that Evangelists are those whom the Lord gives the special drive and ability to share the gospel with unbelievers in such a way that these men and women become born again believers.

Pastors – We believe that Pastors are those whom the Lord gives the special ability to assume a long-term personal responsibility for the spiritual welfare of a group or body of believers.

Teachers – We believe that Teachers are those whom the Lord gives the special ability to prepare and communicate information from God’s word, relevant to the ministry of the body. They are able to do so in such a way that others will learn and become disciples of Jesus Christ.

Heaven and Hell

We believe that when the Christian dies he/she will forever dwell in blissful fellowship with God throughout eternity. We also believe that when a lost person dies he/she is consigned to hell, there to await the Day of Judgment when he/she shall be punished with eternal separation from the presence of God.