Christians believe that God came to us in a human being named Jesus who was fully human, humble and vulnerable. Christians also believe Jesus Christ is fully divine, the Child of God. Jesus lived among us and proclaimed the good news in all he was, said, and did. The good news is the promise that God is with us, loves us and saves us by grace alone. This promise was realized when Jesus was crucified and risen. Jesus died on the cross, but God raised Jesus to new life. As a result, by the gift of grace received through faith, all people can be redeemed into new life in Christ and set free to love and serve all of God’s creation, particularly the vulnerable, just as God loves us.

Sin is a complicated thing to talk about because it comes in many forms, through actions and inactions. Sins can be individual as well as communal. In short, we believe sin is separation from God. Since God is the source of everything that is good and true, this separation from God results in harm, injustice, systemic oppression and evil that people do to each other and to the earth. All people, including Christians, sin. It’s difficult to admit our sins, even to ourselves, but we trust that God’s grace is more powerful than our sins. By grace, God redeems us, heals us, and frees us. That makes us free to love others. God’s inexhaustible love for us makes new life possible.