What do we believe?

Open Gate Cowboy Church

CORE BELIEFS: We believe the Bible is the word of God and is our final authority in all matters of faith and life.We believe in one God who exists in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died to save men from their sins. We believe that men are saved by grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ. We believe that baptism is the means by which people are to publicly profess their faith in Christ and identify themselves with his death, burial, and resurrection.

Open Gate Western Heritage Church IS: 
OPEN (God loves everybody -- we should, too)
NON-JUDGMENTAL (see above)
​BIBLE BELIEVING (It's the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.)
RELEVANT(What good is the truth if it's not applied to real life?)
A COMMUNITY OF BELIEVERS (We rub elbows with each other daily --not just on Sundays) 
ACCOUNTABLE TO GOD AND EACH OTHER(Everybody ought to answer to somebody.)
 ALIVE AND GROWING IN OUR FAITH (If it's cold and still, it might be dead.)
 REACHING THE RURAL / WESTERN CULTURE WITH THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST (We love the country life. God created it that way.)

OUR PHILOSOPHY:Open Gate Western Heritage Church is a low-barrier, seeker-sensitive church. Everything we do (or don't do) is guided by one simple question: Will doing this make it easier for those not familiar with Jesus Christ to come to church and hear the Gospel? If the answer is "no", then we will put it aside unless doing so would violate the clear teaching of Scripture.To put it another way, our church is not designed to make "church folks" comfortable. It is designed to be a safe, welcoming environment for those unaccustomed with attending church.Because this is so, you will find a number of things that are different at Open Gate: We let people come and go anonymously.Many people today value their space and time above all else. They don't want unannounced visits or telephone calls during dinner. At Open Gate, we give them all the space they want.We do not ask them to fill out a visitor's card, nor do we do follow-up with them until they give us permission to do so.We seldom do altar calls.While going to the front of the church for prayer is an old tradition, it is one that makes many people uncomfortable -- especially if they are required to stand up in front of people in order to accept Christ or receive prayer. We always make prayer available, but we do not require people to come to the front to receive it.We don't pass the offering plate.Although we need money to operate, just as any church does, we do not believe that money should become the focal point of a church. If someone's heart leads them to give, we provide a place for them to do so. But on the other hand,if their heart does not lead them to give, that's all right, too. We believe God will provide for the needs of our church and for the success of our ministries. And, of course, we let people come as they are.Let's face it. Some folks don't have time to dress up, some folks don't have the clothes to dress up with, and some folks wouldn't dress up even if they could. No matter what people choose to wear, we want them to hear the Gospel. So, there's no dress code here.  People are encouraged to wear whatever is comfortable for them.None of these things are incidental or accidental.They are all designed to give the person who doesn't know Christ an opportunity to hear the Gospel. There are many churches in our area which cater to the mature Christian. We just believe there should be at least one that's designed to reach out to those who do not yet know Christ.