Beliefs
To assure that we are like-minded in the LRCA joint-venture approach to discipling LRCA students, our Christian community beliefs are set forth in full in the LRCA Christian Community Statement which is to be read together with the LRCA Doctrinal Statement, the LRCA Mission Statement, the LRCA Core Values Statement, the LRCA Educational Philosophy Statement, and any other policies or statements adopted or approved by the LRCA Board of Trust.
LRCA MISSION FIT
Key Excerpts from
the LRCA Christian Community Statement:
LRCA Mission Fit
LRCA is available to parents fully convinced that the LRCA philosophy of Christian education matches their own philosophy as to how they want to disciple their children. LRCA is looking for mission fit between school and parents and, thus, asks parents seeking student admission about Christian belief; agreement with the LRCA Doctrinal Statement, and church membership. LRCA desires to come alongside the family to help the family provide a vibrant, college-preparatory, learning environment for the student who wants to learn and the family who wants their children to practice the Christ-centered worldview. LRCA staff prayerfully considers admission, continued enrollment, and re-enrollment in light of our perception of mission alignment between parents and school as co-disciplers.
LRCA admission is open for the student of any parent (or legal guardian) who agrees:
- that it is the responsibility of a parent to teach his or her child a biblical worldview (Deuteronomy 6:1-9, Psalm 78:5-6, Proverbs 22:6),
- that the primary responsibility for discipling a child remains with the parents (Ephesians 6:4),
- that a parent (or legal guardian) and LRCA, as co-disciplers, should be teaching and modeling the same truth and agrees to allow his or her child to be educated and influenced in an intentionally Christian environment that presents biblical truth from LRCA’s interpretation of the historical orthodox Christian teaching of the Bible regarding both faith and practice.
Continued enrollment at LRCA is contingent upon this same understanding and support.
LRCA Consequential Faith Objective
LRCA believes that consequential faith is modeled more than taught and that parents who desire consequential faith for their children need to introduce them to a way to live and not just a way to believe.
LRCA Christian Community
To assure that we are like-minded in our joint-venture approach to discipling LRCA students, LRCA has set forth our beliefs and practices in writing. Our LRCA Christian community exercises and expresses its Christian beliefs and mission and purposes in various ways, including: our status as a Christian community, our activities as a Christian community, and our standards as a Christian community. There can be no exhaustive list of what conduct and lifestyle the LRCA Christian community desires of LRCA Christian community representatives and participants, but the following is offered as a guideline: Required by the Law and Required by the Bible. All conduct prohibited by the law and all conduct proscribed by the historical orthodox Christian church as unbiblical is outside the boundaries of LRCA Christian community orthopraxy. Alcohol use laws are an example of the law. Sexual conduct and marriage are an example of biblical rules.
The LRCA Christian Community “Religious Organization”
Little Rock Christian Academy will, as a religious organization, exercise its prerogative to neither commence nor continue an appointment, employment, admission, enrollment, or other category of LRCA Christian community representation or participation if it is believed by LRCA that so doing will cause confusion about, conflict with, or compromise of the LRCA Christian community’s mission to disciple LRCA students by providing a distinctly Christian education from a Christ-centered worldview.
Roles and Expectations for LRCA Community Participants
(Student and Parent or Legal Guardian)
LRCA asks that at least one parent (or legal guardian) of each student be a devoted follower of the Lord Jesus Christ as demonstrated in testimony, lifestyle choices, and conduct, to adhere the LRCA Doctrinal Statement, and to be an active member of a local denomination of the historical Christian church. Each participating parent or student is either a co-discipler or the one being discipled. Co-disciplers and the one being discipled are expected to abide by applicable LRCA Christian community standards, manifest respect for the beliefs shared in common by the LRCA Christian community, and be fully supportive of the LRCA Christian community mission in word and conduct.
What does this mean in practice? Two examples:
- Belief Systems outside the Circle of Orthodoxy Embraced by Historical Christian Church. The doctrinal beliefs of the LRCA Christian community are those within the circle of orthodoxy embraced by the historical Christian church. It is the belief of LRCA that the admission of a child of a parent who adheres to a faith tradition outside the circle of orthodoxy embraced by the historical Christian church would create confusion in LRCA’s mission to teach LRCA students the truth as stated in our LRCA Doctrinal Statement (see below). Consequently, admission will be denied when LRCA determines that the doctrine of another faith system (e.g. Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses) does not align with the doctrine of the LRCA Christian community.
- Human Sexuality and Marriage. LRCA stands firmly upon the truth claims and moral foundations of Christianity, as expressed in the Bible as understood by the historical orthodox Christian church. This includes but is not limited to the biblical definition of marriage, the attendant boundaries of sexuality and moral conduct, and the clear biblical teaching that gender is both sacred and established by God’s design. Parents (or legal guardians) who choose to enroll their children at LRCA are agreeing to support the biblical values and the relevant Christian positions regarding faith and practice embraced by the historical orthodox Christian church as it has interpreted the Bible and the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ.
LRCA Mission Fit Recap
Selecting the distinct philosophy of discipleship espoused by LRCA is an important decision. Little Rock Christian's desire is that parents make an informed choice. Thus, these key excerpts of LRCA's Christian Community Statement have been provided. Please know that prayerful consideration is given to admission, continued enrollment, and re-enrollment in light of a perception of mission alignment between parents and school as co-disciplers.
You are invited to explore whether the mission of Little Rock Christian Academy aligns with your mission for discipling your children. Our prayer is that you discover God’s perfect will for your family as you pursue this most critical parental duty.
DOCTRINAL STATEMENT
We believe that the Bible, consisting of 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, verbally inspired, free from error in doctrine, fact and ethic, and inerrant in the original writings, is the Word of God and the only infallible and authoritative rule of faith and practice.
We believe in the Holy Trinity, one God eternally existent in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - the same in substance, equal in power and glory.
We believe in the Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His miracles, His vicarious and atoning death, His bodily resurrection, His ascension to the right hand of God the Father, and His personal and physical return in power and glory.
We believe that God created man in His own image but that through sin, man brought upon himself and his posterity not only physical death, but also spiritual death which is separation from God; that all human beings by physical birth possess a sinful nature.
We believe that the salvation of lost and sinful man is a free gift of God's grace apart from works, based solely upon Christ's vicarious and atoning death, effected by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit, and received by trusting in Christ's finished work on the cross, and that this salvation is eternally secured to all believers.
We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by Whose indwelling upon salvation the Christian is enabled to live a godly life; that it is incumbent upon every believer to walk worthy of his calling--to walk after the Spirit and not after the flesh.
We believe in the resurrection of the body of both the saved and the lost--they that are saved to the resurrection of life everlasting and they that are lost to the resurrection of eternal damnation.
We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Diversity
LRCA is committed to cultivating mutual respect, celebrating God-given differences around the cross of Christ and building up the Body according to the truths of scripture and in accordance to our stated mission. We value both the uniqueness of individuals as well as varying cultures that contribute to our collective identity. In deepening kingdom diversity, LRCA desires to foster a community that is able to express the love of Christ to diverse others within the attitudes, beliefs, and practice of our Christian faith.
We also recognize that diversity for diversity’s sake is of very little use. Only when there is unity in diversity around the cross of Christ is there tremendous benefit not just to LRCA, but the overall Body of Christ as well.