Who We Are

Our Vision

 

To Be a Church for Everyone

Rich or poor, young or old, joyful or depressed, everyone has a place here at Hope Community Bible Church.

 

Our Mission

 

Offering Hope

We communicate the hope of the Gospel to a lost world with the goal of seeing them come to know Christ personally.

Building Community

We disciple and build up individual members of the church. We also help meet many physical needs in Chicagoland and those in our wider community.

Proclaiming the Word

The Bible is central to the teaching and life of the church. Jesus, the Word became flesh, is always lifted high.

 

Our History

 

Our church started with a small group of people on February 15, 1956. In September of the same year, the location of the church has been where it currently is today at Park Ridge, Illinois.

From early on, we have been part of the American Baptist Churches USA. Right now, our congregation is composed of people from all walks of life and multiple denominations.

In early 2020, we changed our name from “First Baptist Church of Park Ridge” to “Hope Community Bible Church” to reach a wider audience. We remain evangelical in our beliefs and Baptistic in our traditions. Our goal with the name change was to reach more people for Christ. Whether now or in the future, we do everything for His glory.

We Believe…

  1. The Scriptures. both Old and New Testaments, to be the inspired Word of God, without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men, and the Divine and final authority for all Christian faith and life.

  2. In one God, Creator of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

  3. That Jesus Christ is true God and true man, having been conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He died on the cross, a sacrifice for our sins according to the Scriptures. Further, He arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven, where at the right hand of the Majesty on High, He now is our High Priest and Advocate.

  4. That the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, and during this age to convict men, regenerate the believing sinner, indwell, guide, instruct, and empower the believer for godly living and service.  

  5. That man was created in the image of God but fell into sin and is therefore lost. All men are under God’s condemnation. We also believe that no amount of good works can satisfy God’s standard of perfection. That is why Christ had to come to earth- to satisfy the righteous demands of a holy God and purchase our salvation. He provides the substitutionary atonement for all our sins.

  6. That the shed blood of Jesus Christ and His resurrection provide the only ground for justification and salvation for all who believe, and only such as receive Jesus Christ are born of the Holy Spirit, and thus become children of God.

  7. That water baptism and the Lord’s Supper are ordinances to be observed by the Church during the present age. They are, however, not to be regarded as a part of our salvation.

  8. That the true Church is composed of all such persons who through saving in faith in Jesus Christ have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and are united in the body of Christ of which He is the head.

  9. That only those who are thus members of the true Church shall be eligible for membership in the local church.

  10. That Jesus Christ is the Lord and Head of the Church, and that every local church has the right under Christ to decide and govern its own affairs.

  11. In the personal, premillenial and soon coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and that this “Blessed Hope” has a vital bearing on the personal life and service of the believer.

  12. In the bodily resurrection of the dead; of the believer to everlasting blessedness and joy with the Lord, of the unbeliever to judgment and everlasting conscious punishment.

In 2022, the Elders and Staff of Hope Community Bible Church voted to adopt the Nashville Statement on Biblical Sexuality. This statement can be viewed here, and accurately conveys our convictions about marriage, sexuality, and their relationships to culture.