Core Doctrines, Teachings, and Practices
Regrettably, an all-too-often obstacle to church unity is the doctrinal basis which varies considerably from church to church. In order to minimize any potential schisms our doctrinal basis has been set out in a minimal form in order to highlight the main tenets of our core beliefs and practices which should accord with the main foundational principles of the Christian Faith as established in Protestant Christianity.
1. Belief in the Divine Godhead and Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
2. Salvation as a Free Gift of God's Grace through the Atoning Sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the cross.
3. The presence of the sin-nature within all mankind and the need for a full pardon, cleansing, and atonement through faith in Christ.
4. Justification and Redemption through a living Faith in Christ.
5. The Divine Authority of the Bible, as the Fully Inspired Word of God.
6. The Scriptural emphasis upon the precepts of Discipleship, the New Birth, Baptism, and Regeneration (spiritual growth and maturity).
7. The personal and collective Responsibility of all believers and churches at the Judgement Seat of Christ (2 Corinthians Ch.5 v.10 & Revelation Chs.2 & 3)
Teachings and Practices
There are literally thousands of different Christian denominations worldwide that hold varying applications, interpretations, styles, and methods of Christian practice and teaching, and of course, they cannot all be right. From the lessons of scripture, we believe that we should all be patient and tolerant and have an attitude of humility and openness in seeking to learn, expand upon, and understand the fullest truths of Christian teachings and practices even if they do initially seem to be at variance with those that we may have already adopted as being right. The Scriptures can easily be misunderstood, misinterpreted, and misapplied in a lot of instances and even many of our Lord Jesus' actions and teachings were misunderstood by those who professed 'knowledge and wisdom'.
It will therefore come as no surprise, the large number of Christians who attend and then leave a church after a relatively short and set period of time due to their dissatisfaction or disagreements with various aspects of the Service - the teachings or practices. Traits of 'spiritual pride, sedition, and wilfulness (which none of us would admit as having, even to the slightest degree), serve only to exacerbate such strife, dissension, and disunity, which is why we urge caution and patience to any that may attend our church; for without doubt, many will be dismissive of any church's ethos and practices if they are too intolerant and unwilling to fully observe and test the genuineness of that church in the full light of the scriptures. Just because a teaching or practice is unfamiliar to us or even if it appears controversial does not mean that it is not true, and we should all be striving for the peace and unity of the Spirit - the unity in the Truth! All too often, we are like the children in the marketplace that Jesus spoke about (Matthew Ch.11 vs.16-17), always expecting others to come over to our way of reason and practice, rather than being more flexible and understanding, in case we are the ones that need to shift position or rethink and re-evaluate as to whether we are holding to the truth. Sincerity may be commendable, but remember, we can be sincerely wrong.
However, having said that, we do appreciate that if those who are seeking a church to attend are looking for 'markers', or indicators as to a Church's authenticity and alignment with the scriptures as they know them, then a brief outline would be useful. Our spiritual ethos very much aligns with the true evangelical traditions laid down by John Wesley. These include the personal pursuit and practices of holiness and sanctification, righteousness, and godliness, fervent and spontaneous Praise and Hymn singing, and unmeasured serving and giving. We seek to bless rather than to be blessed and to give freely rather than to receive. We are not a denominational church as such, although our ethos does accord with the general traditions of undiluted, uncompromised, and Spirit-inspired, Evangelical Christianity. We intend never to be over-dogmatic or legalistic in any form or fashion (which is quite easily done when holding to traditions), but at the same time, we do not want to 'move the goalposts' in order to satisfy or appease worldly or secular whims and desires. Therefore we can include the following brief information to outline some of our established beliefs, teaching, and practices, beginning with those practices that we do not engage in or endorse.
1. Unconditional Grace: We avoid the use of unscriptural termonologies such as, 'God's unconditional grace' or 'God's unconditional love', as these are very misleading. That is to say, the terms, 'God's unconditional love/grace' do not appear anywhere in the texts of scripture, and nor is it ever implied. The Bible is full of terms and conditions from start to end and any basic study will reveal that all of the Lord's provisions, promises, and blessings are conditioned upon the rightful responses from His people. The inclusion of words such as, 'Provided', 'If'', or 'In' in relation to so many of God's promises is indisputable, and by excluding these, one simply becomes guilty of 'taking away from God's word' - a practice that we, as believers are forbidden to do. As an example, many ministries and individuals will cite just a portion of the healing verse from Exodus chapter 15, that being, "I am the Lord your healer" as an absolute, as though it is completely 'unconditional' when in actual fact the promise is preceded by the conditions, "If you will diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give heed to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon you which I put upon the Egyptians; for I am the Lord, your healer. (Exodus Ch. 15 v.26).
Some other prime examples from the countless other scriptures are:
"If you continue in my word, then you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free"
(John Ch.8 vs.31-32)
"If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you will and it shall be done for you"
(John Ch.15 v.7)
"If we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his son cleanses us from all sin
(1 John 1:7)
"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us."
(1 John Ch.1 v.8)
"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans Ch.8 v.1)
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away." (2 Corinthians Ch.5 v.17)
We believe wholeheartedly that God's love and God's grace are immense and without measure; He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. In the Old Testament, He is attributed as being 'gracious and merciful, full of steadfast love.' And so by stressing the above terms and conditions in relation to God's love and grace, we are by no means diminishing the truth about God's nature and character. A good analogy to employ here is that of water - it is absolutely essential for the life of every living thing on this planet, but too much of it can be destructive and devastating (Floods): So too with any unbalanced, over-emphasis upon grace, to the exclusion of truth. Grace is absolutely essential in the Christian life and walk, but so too is the fear of the Lord and the reverence of His entire Word. 'The law came through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ'. (John Ch.1 v.17). Grace and truth should never be separated, and yet in many ministries and churches, they are. We do preach the abundance of God's goodness and grace, but always in balance with the concept of the Way, the Truth, and the Life!
2. The Laying on of Hands: We avoid the indiscriminate laying on of hands during the course of our church Services: There is no scriptural precedent for believers casually joining, or laying hands upon one another. The laying on of hands is a spiritual act and should only be done by an authority that has been rightfully sanctioned and ordained by the Lord, and at particular times. In the New Testament, this laying on of hands was often carried out by the apostles and was never a general practice to be adopted by all. In Acts Chapter 8, even though great signs and wonders were performed through Philip the Evangelist, yet it required the higher authority of Peter and John to come down and lay hands upon the new converts so that they could receive the Holy Spirit. And the apostle Paul warned Timothy, an ordained Pastor, not to be hasty in the laying on of hands (1 Timothy Ch.5 v.22). The unwarranted and indiscriminate laying on of hands without the rightful authority or anointing is in effect an act of presumption, rather than an act of faith, based upon the truth, the way, and the life. Furthermore, the forming of circles by joining hands together is a practice found only in pagan and heathen ceremonies (Wicca, Druidic, Celtic, Spiritualistic Seances, and so on) and never in the Bible. If we understand the spiritual connotations behind these pagan ceremonies - that of joining hands - then we would understand the implications of doing that in church. There are some that have never learned the deeper things of Satan (Revelation Ch.2 v.24) and who may scoff at this concept, but spiritual contamination and defilement are rife where these practices go unchecked. True unity and fellowship are best expressed through walking in the light (1 John Ch.1 v.7), which is the light of truth, obedience, and righteousness, and not the outward and superficial act of forming circles and joining hands together.
3. Giving and Receiving: We avoid all forms of commercialism at all times. Nothing is ever bought, sold, or traded on our premises. Our only source of income is our Sunday Free-Will Offerings, and there is no compulsion for any one to give. We never canvass or solicit funds at any time. We do encourage Tithing as a genuinely Scriptural practice, but this is only encouraged and is not compulsory or binding upon any that do not want to give. All of our services are provided free and without cost or charge. This includes Weddings, Funerals, Baptisms, and Dedications. This precept also extends to the use of our church or premises by any outside Christian group, where there is no levy or charge. All of our available Bibles, books, and resources are also provided freely for the glory of God. Our ethos is absolutely in line with the scriptural principle:- 'Freely you have received, freely you shall give.'
We do not condone in any way, the so-called 'Prosperity Ministries', 'Extreme Grace Ministries', and many of the so-called, 'Faith Ministries' which we would term more accurately as,' Presumption Ministries'. We do not advocate any ministries that focus entirely on selected aspects of teaching to the exclusion of other more important truths and teachings. Those that focus on the 'End-times' for instance, or other sensationalist topics that promote speculation and conjecture rather than sound and balanced teaching. Whilst we have conducted detailed Discipleship classes and studies on the End Times, Spiritual Warfare, Spiritual Gifts, and Healing, to name a few, it has never been to the extreme as though they are the all and end of deeper Christian Ministry; or that any so-called, 'in-depth knowledge' of these topics alone, is evidential of one's superior spirituality or authority in Christ!
4. Praise and Worship: We believe that praise and worship should be fully honouring and glorifying to the Lord at all times. We believe that the Book of Psalms, known in the Hebrew Text as the 'Book of Praises', lays down the ideal format for true praise and worship - that it is joyful and exuberant, spontaneous and fully expressive, incorporating singing, shouting, dancing, the lifting of hands, and clapping (all scriptural terms), and in general, the unrestrained rejoicing in the Lord (when truly done in the Spirit). Of course, we understand that not every spiritual manifestation is genuinely of the Lord, and so we aim to be cautious and wise, but not to the extent where we become guilty of 'quenching the Spirit'. We believe that freedom does not necessarily denote frivolity as those who are perhaps emotionally stunted, and spiritually dulled, and against freedom of emotion and expression in worship would claim.
As already mentioned true worship and praise should be centered upon the Lord and therefore does not require a darkened auditorium, strobe lighting, or a host of loud musicians all dressed down and trying to show off their own musical skills and abilities in such a 'worldly' and 'secular' fashion. It should never be about modernising worship to make it ever-relevant and appealing to secular styles and fashions. We make use of a single piano and a power-point system for displaying our selected Hymns and Choruses, all of which have been carefully selected to reflect the true spiritual art of praise and worship in line with all of the Biblical truths and exhortations relating to the Lord God Almighty and all of His marvelous attributes and work in the salvation of the church and of mankind. Many of our hymns can be traced back to the golden eras of revival from the eighteenth century right through to the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. We currently have a song base of some 550 Hymns and 250 Choruses, many of which have been lost to the modern churches, and yet they are a rich inheritance given to all of God's people; and if any church wishes to see true revival, then one of the starting points will be to revive the legacy and golden treasures of these wonderful revival hymns! On one occasion Evan Roberts was asked whether the same revival in wales could happen in London, and he simply replied with the question, 'Can they sing?' The fact is, that rapturous praise and singing has always been at the heart of every great spiritual renewal and outpouring.
Remember we are referring to the true evangelical/pentecostal styles of Hymn singing. There are those who imagine that Hymn singing is outdated and old-fashioned and no longer has a place in the 'modern church'. Many imagine Hymn singing to be high-pitched, cold, ritualistic, and too formal, with archaic phrases and words that are more or less obsolete. However, those said persons in all likelihood have never experienced the true richness and vibrancy of Evangelical Hymn singing, both in their content and in their style and presentation. They are rich in scriptural truths and precepts, with beautiful harmonies, melodies, and tones, ranging from the devotional hymns of love and endearment to the Godhead, to the rapturous hymns of triumph and glory, and hymns of testimony, proclamation, and joy! These Hymns are inspirational, uplifting, spiritually edifying, and educating, and this needs to be experienced in order to be fully appreciated. We seek to encourage a glad and full surrender when it comes to praise and worship - to sing and to make melody to the Lord with all of one's heart!
These Hymns are a treasure given to God's people during the many times of great outpourings and revivals, and it is a tragedy that so many churches have dispensed with the hymn books in favour of the more modern and contemporary songs that to any discerning believer would be deemed as worldly and secular, and nowhere on a par with the treasures of the past. A fair comparison would be between the gold that was stripped from Solomon's Temple during the Egyptian invasion during the reign of Rehoboam, and its replacement with the lesser items of bronze! We believe wholeheartedly in the rich legacy of evangelical hymns and would encourage one and all to experience it first-hand for themselves at our church. At least half of our morning Service is given over to praise and worship, and we never begin any of our other mid-week Services without the element of Praise and Thanksgiving to the Lord, our Wonderful God, and Redeemer. Hallelujah!
5. Dress Code: There is no strict dress code as such. We do understand that God looks upon the heart and that the inner virtues of a believer should supersede and outshine the outer facade which can always be feigned or put on. However, we would normally encourage church members to make the effort and to dress smartly, if casual to honour the Lord and our status as privileged people. Women are encouraged to veil their heads, but again, this is by no means compulsory; that is between individuals and the Lord, All we can do is to witness to the truth of the scriptures as we regard them, and not to relax or dispense with scriptures that many modern-day believers claim to be old-fashioned, outdated, or legalistic. We believe that authority and headship are important principles to uphold regardless of the consensus of larger majorities. Of course one of the most common excuses that many use in order to flout or bypass the scriptural principles of headship and head-coverings, is to smugly assert, 'It's what's in your heart that matters' or 'God knows my heart'. well, it's a pity that although God does know their hearts, they do not! According to scripture, 'The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt; who can understand it?' (Jeremiah Ch.17 v. 9).
As an example, if any of the Israelites had refused or neglected to apply the blood to the lintels and doorposts of their dwellings as the designated covering decreed by the Lord, in the land of Egypt, would their household have been spared by the Lord from the death of the first-born? No, absolutely not, for the Lord requires obedience and does not regard any misplaced sincerity that does not accord with the obedience and faithfulness that He has ordained. Had any household had the belligerence to assert, 'It's what's in your heart that matters, would that have been acceptable? No, of course not, and yet many will attack teachings that they cannot explain, do not like or do not want to accept, or see such teachings that do not agree with them as being justifiable to reject or ignore.
Likewise, we do not condone the sporting of tattoos, rebel hairstyles, body piercings, studs, and earrings through undesignated parts of the body. Whilst there may be those who formerly received such markings on their body before being saved, our decree would be that as 'new creatures in Christ' and as 'citizens of the new heavenly kingdom' the past marks of our former life or shame should be removed where possible or at least covered over. It can never be deemed as justifiable to openly sport the evidence of rebellion within the church as some kind of witness to 'younger believers' in order to gain their confidence and trust or to 'win them over for Christ'. We certainly would not turn away any who turned up sporting these items; Our stance rather is over those who consider their selves ardent Christian believers, but who think that it is perfectly okay to dress down and to openly sport worldly and secular traits of appearance and dress.
6, Spiritual Gifts: We fully accept and endorse the Gifts of the Holy Spirit and their use and relevance today. However, we do like to exercise a certain degree of wisdom and caution in light of the many false and spurious spiritual manifestations that claim to be of divine origin and are not. We are exhorted, not to believe every spirit, but to test the spirits to see whether are of God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 John Ch.4 v.1). And whilst we do encourage all believers to be accepting of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, we would rather that they seek 'the Giver of the Gifts' more than the actual gifts themselves. By fully seeking the Holy Spirit - the Spirit of Truth - through Jesus Christ, a believer will be better placed to discern between truth and error. The principle of discipleship and submission within the body also applies as the gifts are given for the benefit of the body of Christ, and the Holy Spirit will always move in accordance with the decreed word of the Lord. We like to stress also that the gifts are distributed according to His Divine Will (Hebrews Ch.2 v.4) and not appropriated or received at the mere whim of any individual that believes they have the right capacity to assume any gifts of the Spirit at will as their prerogative or choice. This precept would also exclude the free distribution of any gift by the mere laying on of hands outside of any authentic authority or divine sanction. The Holy Spirit in His sovereignty is far better placed to proportion gifts to the church as and when they are genuinely needed or required, and we fully respect His supremity in this respect. We should also add that the desire and pursuit of the Fruit of the Holy Spirit are far more beneficial to the individual and to the church than the pursuit of any gift, which will be made available as and when the Holy Spirit deems it so. We should also bear in mind that the devil himself has a sufficient amount of authority and power to mimic any gift that he chooses in order to gain the advantage in or over, a believer's life or within a church that lacks the basic wisdom and spiritual awareness to test every spirit manifestation.