Living Into Our Faith

In claiming that we are Christians, we are saying that God died for us. If you think about it, that's an outrageous claim! Our Faith informs our lives and our actions. Because Christ has shown us Mercy, we must share that love with others. Our Faith informs our lives and our actions. This page is a place to share how we respond to God's gifts.

Our Mission Statement

First Presbyterian Church is an inclusive community in downtown Boise expressing God's love, being disciples, and feeding God's children around the corner and around the world. 

We do this by:

  • Worshiping with authentic praise, prayer and with room for doubts and brokenness.

  • Providing community where we care for one another, grow in faith, and equip leaders. 

  • Going out to our neighbors to learn, feed, house, and partner together in global community. 

Engaged

It's what we do. We seek to engage our greater community and share the good news. We do this by opening our doors to external users, providing aid to those in need, and partnering with community organizations.

Community

It's who we are. We seek to maintain a vibrant community. We do this by fostering the growth of our youth, nurturing friendships within our family, celebrating life together, and supporting each other in times of need.

Downtown

It's where we are. We seek to leverage the opportunities we have to share God's love in downtown Boise. We do this by hosting community events, advancing a message of love and co-operation, and providing a place of worship open to all.

What It means to be Presbyterian

Our Reformed/Presbyterian faith has “habits of the heart”: God’s initiative in all things.

“We believe in being a covenant and confessional community…and, apparently, in alliteration. God created humankind to be God’s image together, not separately.”

Creation

“In the beginning when God created,” says Genesis 1. God initiates creation. God brings it all into existence. God is the one who sets things in motion to create all things in heaven and earth. Without God making the first move, we would be nothing!

The Word of God in Scripture

God makes the first move in revealing God’s self to those whose writings we have today as our Scriptures. God’s revelation was to humans who conveyed God’s word to us. Without God’s initiative, we would never, ever know who God is or what God has done. Scripture is God’s message conveyed by humans.

Incarnation

This means God has become human in Jesus Christ. God initiates salvation, redeeming us from sinful lives by sending the Son of God, Jesus Christ, to be our Savior. God could have let us “stew in our own juice,” as sinners. But God “so loved the world” that God gave Jesus Christ to die to save us (John 3:16).

Salvation

The Reformed faith stresses the glory of God and God’s initiative in salvation. We are saved by God’s loving action for us in Jesus Christ. We call this election (or pre- destination). God picks us up in our sin and does for us what we cannot do for ourselves. God gives us salvation—a restored relationship with God. We are saved by grace, or by God’s gracious election.

Church

The church is God’s covenant people, the “elect,” as we say. We are part of the church today because of God’s work by the Holy Spirit in giving us the gift of faith in Jesus Christ. Again, God—by the Spirit—draws us into the covenant community.