Where We've Been
Founded in 1957, 22nd Street Baptist is celebrating nearly 60 years of reaching Tucson and beyond for Jesus. Starting with a small chapel and growing as the neighborhood around us grew, 22nd Street was never satisfied with simply building a bigger church. Over the years, we've been a part of starting or supporting nine church plants while creating new ministries to help us reach the community around us.
Where We're Headed
We believe God is deeply in love with people and wants them to know Him and His amazing plans for their lives. We also believe it's our role as a church and as believers to do all we can to share this message of hope and love with everyone we can. To fulfill this role, we have embraced the vision to develop disciples who impact the world with the good news of Jesus Christ.
The three main elements of our vision are:
One of the last instructions Jesus gave His disciples was to “go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation” [Mark 16:15]. The good news of forgiveness, hope, and eternal life is at the heart of why we exist as a church.
Just as a rock tossed in a pond sends ripples expanding outward in all directions, our goal is to help spread the good news throughout Tucson, across the US, and around the world.
Accomplishing this vision will take believers who are fully surrendered to Christ and God’s call on their life. We know that not everyone is at that place; therefore, we want to help people move from their present spiritual condition, to full devotion to Christ.
While these may look like typical elements of a church vision--evangelism, missions and discipleship--we know there is nothing typical about a church that is fully committed to being used by God. We claim the promise of 1 Corinthians 2:9 that says "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him."
WHAT WE BELIEVE
IN ESSENTIAL BELIEFS - WE HAVE UNITY
IN NON-ESSENTIAL BELIEFS - WE HAVE LIBERTY
IN ALL OUR BELIEFS - WE SHOW CLARITY
The Bible is God’s written revelation to man. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired by God, it is truth without any mixture of error. We accept the Bible as the final authority for all matters of faith and practice.
(2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20, 21; 2 Timothy 1:13; Psalm 119:105,160, 12:6; Proverbs 30:5).
God is the creator and ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God. (Genesis 1:1, 26, 27; 3:22; Psalm 90:2; Matthew 28:19; 1 Peter 1:2; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all men by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to heaven’s glory and will return again to earth to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. (Matthew 1:22-23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5, 14:10-30; Hebrews 4:14, 15; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Romans 1:3-4; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Timothy 6:14, 15; Titus 2:13)
The Holy Spirit is equal with the Father and the Son as God. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. The Christian seeks to live under his control daily. (2 Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13, 14:16, 17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:1)
Man is the special creation of God, made in His own image. He created them male and female as the crowning work of His creation. Although man has tremendous potential for good, he is marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called “sin.” This attitude separates man from God and causes many problems in life. (Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:3-6; Isaiah 53:6a; Romans 3:23; Isaiah 59: 1-2)
Man was created to exist forever. He will either exist eternally separated from God by sin or in union with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is hell. To be eternally in union with him is eternal life. Heaven and hell are places of eternal existence. (John 3:16; 1 John 2:25; 1 John 5:11-13; Romans 6:23; Revelation 20:15; Matthew 25:31-46)
Salvation is a gift from God to man that must be received by humble repentance and faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the cross. Man can never make up for his sin by self-improvement or good works – only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can man be saved from sin’s penalty. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith. (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8, 9; John 14:6, 1:12; Titus 3:5; Galatians 3:26; Romans 5:1)
Because God gives man eternal life through Jesus Christ, the believer is secure in salvation for eternity. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the Christian. (John 10:29; 2 Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 7:25; 10:10, 14; 1 Peter 1:3-5)
We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God (Genesis 1:26-27). Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person. We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture (Genesis 2:18-25). While we believe God sanctioned marriage for both believers and unbelievers, we believe Christians should only marry Christians (1 Corinthians 7:39; 2 Corinthians 6:14-15). We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other (1 Corinthians 6:18, 7:2-5; Hebrews 13:4). We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman. We believe that any form of sexual immorality (including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, and use of pornography) is sinful and offensive to God (Matthew 15:18-20; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10). We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ (Acts 3:19-21; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11). We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity (Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31). Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture nor the doctrines of this church.
We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life. (Psalm 139).