Our Beliefs

Centuries before Jesus was born, God’s prophets spoke of the coming of the Kingdom of God (sometimes referred to as the “Kingdom of Heaven”): a future time when all injustice, war and oppression would cease and the peoples of the earth worship only God.  (Isaiah 2:2-4)

When Jesus began His ministry he proclaimed the good news that, “The kingdom of God is at hand.” Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”  - Mark 1:14-15 

When Jesus the King came, He ushered in His Kingdom. Jesus came healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, and setting free those who were living in darkness.  He was the “first fruits” of the Kingdom - an early taste of the Kingdom and a guarantee that the fullness of the Kingdom would one day be a reality on earth.

We currently live in a time where the Kingdom is “now” (the Holy Spirit is among us in power), but “not yet” (the world is still full of pain and brokenness). The church is a present demonstration of the reality of the Kingdom, and God’s chosen agent of its fulfillment.

The Kingdom will be fully realized when Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead, and all things are made new. The children of God will live with him forever in resurrected bodies of extraordinary glory.

(2 Sam 7:12-16; Dan 2:44-45; Mat 6:9-13; 6:33; 9:35; 10-26 (kingdom parables); Mark 1:14-15; Luke 17:20-21; John 18:36; Acts 1:6-8; 19:8; Rom 14:17; 1 Cor 6:9-11; 15:50-57; Rev 11:15; 21:1-4, 22-27)

We believe that the Bible is the divinely inspired Word of God, without error in the original manuscripts, and the final authority in all matters of faith and instruction for a God-honoring life.

(2 Timothy 3:16-17; 1 Corinthians 2:12-13) 

We believe that there is one living and true God, the creator of all things, eternally existing in three distinct persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - and that these are one. 

(Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14)

We believe that man was created by God in his own image; that man sinned and by sin incurred physical and spiritual death; that all humans are born with a sinful nature, and choose sin, and are therefore under just condemnation; that man is unable through his own effort to restore himself to right relationship with God.

(Romans 5:6-19)

We believe Jesus Christ died in our place and for our sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day, personally appearing to his disciples. (Romans 4:25; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8) 

We believe in the bodily ascension of Jesus to heaven, his exaltation and enthronement at the Father’s right hand. (Acts 2:33, 5:31; 1 Peter 3:21-22)

We believe that ALL of humanity has fallen short of God’s standard and are in need of a Savior. God in His mercy is the author and perfecter of our faith. He sent Jesus Christ, born of a virgin, to die on a Roman cross to forgive our sins, and rise from the dead three days later to defeat sin and death. He is the one who initiates and finishes our salvation. In other words, we believe in a God-centered salvation. (Romans 3:23, 6:23, Hebrews 12:2, 1 Peter 1:3-5)

We believe that God is at work; convicting us of sin, cleansing us, molding and shaping us into His image. We believe in a God-centered sanctification. (Galatians 2:20, 1 Corinthians 6:11, John 17:17, Hebrews 10:10,14; 1 Thessalonians 5:23)  

We believe that God will bring His followers to Heaven to be with Him forever. They will be glorified by His doing. He is the final judge for everyone. He will separate the sheep (believers) from the goats (unbelievers). He will reward everyone according to what they have done. We believe in a God-centered glorification of the saints. (Matthew 25:31-46, Romans 8:30, 2 Corinthians 3:18, Philippians 3:20-21, Revelation 21:5-8, Revelation 22:11-13)

We believe that God’s heart is that none would perish, but all would believe in Him. Sadly, not all will believe, but everyone who repents and trusts that Jesus Christ is God, their Savior, are made alive (born again) by the Holy Spirit, cleansed of their sins, delivered from condemnation, and given the righteousness of Christ and life abundant and unending. These are gifts of grace provided for entirely by the merits of Christ’s death and resurrection, not by individual effort. A person is saved by grace alone through faith alone not by works. 

(2 Peter 3:9,Ephesians 2:8-9; Hebrews 9:12, 22; Romans 5:11, 18; 10:8-15) 

We believe in baptism by immersion in water for the believer in order to fulfill the command of Christ, a mark of our union with him and his body. This action is symbolic of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Water Baptism identifies us with these three actions. We are dead to sin and alive to God through Christ. It also identifies us with the name of our God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Water baptism is symbolic of Jesus Christ being buried and rising from the dead.

(Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:37-41, 19:1-6, Romans 6:3-6, Colossians 2:11-15, Acts 8:16, 10:48, 19)

We believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit, a tangible experience of God’s empowering presence.

(Mark 1:8; Acts 2:1-4, 8:14-17, 10:44-46) 

We believe that the Holy Spirit abides within all believers, guiding, strengthening, teaching and setting them apart unto God.

(John 14:16-17, Romans 8:9-17, 1 John 4:13) 

The gift of the Holy Spirit is for “everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself” - which means ALL believers. We can receive the Holy Spirit spontaneously as Peter and the other disciples did on the day of Pentecost, and as Cornelius and his household did when Peter preached the gospel to them. We can also receive the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands and prayer, as did the people of Samaria and the twelve men Paul met near Ephesus. 

We can be confident that God will continue to fill us with His Presence when we ask Him, as He is a good Father who delights to give us good gifts.

(Joel 2:28-29; Luke 11:13; 24:44-49; John 15:26; 16:1-15; Acts 2: 1-47; 8:4- 17; 10:44-48; 19:1-7)

As Christian believers we live in joyful response to God who has saved us and called us to live for Him. When we sin, we confess that to God (and other believers) and trust Him to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. As we discern God’s will for our lives (see for example 1 Thess 5:18 and Mat 28:16 - 20) we respond in faith-filled obedience, trusting the Spirit to give us the power to obey God’s leading and follow in Jesus’ footsteps. As we go on walking with Jesus, the Holy Spirit shapes and molds us into the likeness of Jesus Christ: full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the “fruit of the Spirit”and the mark of a maturing Christian.

(Rom 12:1-2; 1 Cor 6:9-20; 2 Cor 3:17-18; 5:16-17; 1 John 1:9; 2:1-6; 2:15-17, Galatians 5:22-23)

The Holy Spirit has given many gifts to the church including prophecy, teaching, faith, healing, speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues and words of knowledge and wisdom. All the gifts of the Spirit continue today and have been given for the building up of the church and the spreading of the good news of Jesus Christ to the world. In 1 Corinthians 12 the apostle Paul says: “4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”

Jesus said that we cannot be fruitful in our lives unless we abide in him, and he in us. Jesus has sent the Holy Spirit to be his very presence in us, as His body. The Holy Spirit has given gifts of grace to  strengthen the body, so that we can accomplish the mission Jesus Christ has given the church. Without the Holy Spirit and His gifts, the church cannot be fruitful.

Jesus not only preached the good news of the Kingdom of God, but He demonstrated it through miracles, healing, raising the dead and casting out demonic spirits. Jesus promised that his followers would do all this and even more. After the Holy Spirit came  to Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection, we see various members of the church performing healings, miracles, speaking in tongues, prophesying, and raising the dead. People come to believe in Christ as the message of Jesus and his Kingdom is not only proclaimed, but also demonstrated.

(John 14:12-14; 15:5; Acts 3:10; 9:36-43; 14:1-3; 1 Cor 12:4-31; 14:1-18; 14:26-33; Rom 12:3-8; Eph 4:11-16; 1 Pet 4:10-11)

We believe in the universal church; a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all who are born of the Spirit are members. We believe in the local church, consisting of a family of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized in a credible profession of faith, and joined together for worship, fellowship, and work. We believe that God’s manifest presence in the church compels us to share the good news of Jesus to the world and continue the work Jesus began.

(Ephesians 2:19-22; Acts 1:8, 2:42; Hebrews 10:23-25; Matthew 10:7-8; John 14:12) 

Ephesians 4:11 And he [Jesus Christ] gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. 

Jesus gave the Church “people gifts” as well as “spiritual gifts”. These people are “the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds (or “pastors”) and teachers. Jesus has given these gifts so that the church may be a mature, “adult” body - one suitable to be joined with our head, Jesus Christ. These “people gifts”, like spiritual gifts, were for both the early church and the church today: they remain necessary “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”. This means that the Church cannot function effectively without these gifted people. 

The “people gifts” can be summarized as follows:

APOSTLE: Apostles are given by God to shape the church into a missional community, and lead the church into Gospel breakthroughs in new areas. They play a key role in laying the proper foundations (doctrine, vision and values) for local churches and church plants. Apostles operate in close relationship with, and provide support to, local church eldership teams and church-plant leadership teams. Apostles do not just relate to church leadership, however, but as much as possible are in a loving relationship with the church as a whole. 

Modern attempts to recover the gift of ‘apostles’ have often been viewed with suspicion, being interpreted as an attempt to gain the same authority as the original apostles, who are attributed with writing the New Testament. This is a bit misleading as the New Testament was actually written by apostles and non-apostles (e.g. Mark, Luke, Jude and the anonymous author of Hebrews). Luke, who wrote the single largest portion of the New Testament (the Gospel of Luke and Acts), is not identified as an apostle. 

Nevertheless, we strongly affirm that “the twelve” apostles and Paul, who encountered the risen Jesus Christ, played a unique role in establishing the authoritative teachings of the Church as reflected in the New Testament. Modern apostles do not write scripture and their teachings are authoritative only as they faithfully reflect the Bible’s teachings. 

We affirm that the gift of the apostle today is as important as it was in New Testament times: spearheading church planting, building right foundations into churches, raising up and setting elders in place, and catching churches up together in Christ’s global mission. 

(Acts 14:21-28; 15:1-35; 18:7-11; 20:18-21; Rom 15:14-24; 1 Cor 3:5-10, 12:28; 2 Cor 10:13-16; Eph 1:1; 2:19-20; 1 Thes 1:2-7; 2:8-12) 

PROPHET: The church is a prophetic community, demonstrating the coming Kingdom to the world around us, and living in a vibrant relationship with God. Our expectation is that God’s voice will be heard by God’s people within the church. 

In order to equip the church to become this prophetic people, Jesus gives prophets as gifts to the church. In addition to strengthening, encouraging, comforting and building up the church through the exercise of their prophetic gift, prophets serve the church by equipping and teaching others to do the same. 

Prophets call the church to a deeper walk with God. They remind the church of her prophetic role among the nations, and they equip believers to hear from God and to live out this prophetic call which God has given to the church. They often embody God’s heart for the poor, for justice, for truth.  Prophets mentioned in the New Testament include Agabus and the four daughters of Philip the Evangelist. Prophets are rooted in a local church, but often their gift is exercised in a translocal context. It is not uncommon for an apostle to work with one or more prophets as members of his apostolic team. 

Prophecy contains subjective and objective revelation. Subjective revelation is given by God to a believer which is for the strengthening, encouragement, comfort and building-up of the church and conviction of unbelievers, not for adding to the Word of God. Prophetic words are not given the same authority as the Bible and are weighed and tested by the Bible and the church. Subjective prophecy does not replace the Bible in the life of a believer. Its intent is to strengthen and encourage one another. Objective revelation is considered to be absolute truth, which is found in the Bible alone. The Bible contains God’s unchanging word to us, and is our main source of guidance for proper life, belief and action. Prophecies are a gift from God that provide great strength, encouragement, conviction and/or guidance.

The Bible is clear that all members of the church may prophesy and should desire to do so. As God’s ‘sheep’ we all hear the voice of our Shepherd, and all participate in sharing this with others.

(Acts 2:14-18, 38-39; 11:27-30; 13:1-3; 15:32; 19:1-7; 21:8-11; 1 Cor. 11:4- 5; 1 Cor 13:9-10; 1 Cor 14:1-5, 22-33, 36-40; 1 Thes 5:19-22) 

EVANGELIST: All believers are called and empowered by the Holy Spirit to proclaim the gospel to those who are not yet believers. However, Jesus has given us the gift of the evangelist to equip us for this work.

Sometimes evangelists have a supernatural ability to proclaim the gospel in a way that is particularly effective for seeing many respond positively and come to faith in Jesus Christ. Evangelists might equally be more gifted in speaking to small groups or individuals. But the key gifting of the evangelist, according to Eph 4, is to equip the church to live evangelistically. In other words as missionaries in their communities. 

Evangelists serve local churches by modeling a lifestyle of telling people about the good news of Jesus Christ, and they equip and train believers to share the gospel, thus making the church increasingly effective in reaching those around them.

(Matt. 28:16-20; Acts 2:37-41; Acts 8:4-8; Acts 8:26-40)

PASTOR: The church is a pastoral community: one of its defining features is the love of Jesus which is on display in the church. Through our relationships with each other, the church demonstrates heaven to the world around us, the love and grace of the age to come in a world full of ‘ungrace’ and broken relationships. Jesus Christ has brought us together by shedding His blood. He is reconciling people to Himself and to one another. This includes all tribes and tongues, nations and tribes, cultures and ethnicity. 

Pastoral care is the responsibility of every believer, we care for one another in God’s family. The word ‘pastor’ is simply the Greek word for ‘shepherd’ - thus, pastoring is, in essence, shepherding. It happens in many ways in the church - we all shepherd one another. 

In Ephesians 4 Paul refers to the fact that, while many will pastor others in the life of the church in many ways, there are some who are given by God to pastor the church. By this we mean helping the church to be healthy and equipping the church to be pastoral. In this sense, an Ephesians 4 pastor not only cares for others, but equips and trains other believers to care for one another. Pastors model care for those in the church, and train the church to become a caring community. We explain the roles separately, but we recognize that, quite often, they are inseparable. 

As a church we are cautious of the way in which the word ‘pastor’ is often used in the western church today. Using the word ‘pastor’ to refer to those who are employed by the church or lead the church, is often unhelpful and inaccurate. Often it is used as a ‘status’ term: we refer to leaders as ‘Pastor Jim’ or ‘Pastor Bob’, when we wouldn’t refer to any other profession that way, e.g. ‘Engineer John’ or ‘Nurse Betty’. This becomes particularly unhelpful when we begin to see this as a form of respect or submission, therefore putting leaders on a pedestal. 

When using the word ‘pastor’ in this way we can miss the Biblical gift of people who are given by God to establish the church as a caring community. At Living Hope Church we refer to those who have been called by God and appointed to oversee and teach the local church as “Elders”. However, not all elders are primarily pastors/teachers; their primary gifts might be in other areas, which are still vital to the life and health of the church. 

Within the church the elders release pastorally gifted people in order to care for the needs of the people. Some people are particularly gifted to care for others by giving loving care, spiritual advice, prayer and support. People with a pastoral gift often help numerous individuals within the church. The pastoral gift helps equip all believers to care for one other. 

(Acts 13:1-3; Rom 12:7; Col 3:16; Titus 2:1-5; Heb 5:12; James 3:1; Acts 18:24-28)

TEACHER: The church is a community established in the truth of God’s existence and salvation. Therefore, what we know and how we live out what we know is important. To this end, God gives gifted teachers to the church to instruct us to be fully equipped for every good work. 

Once again, when Paul mentions the gifts of the ascended Christ in Ephesians 4 he includes teachers in the list. These aren’t simply people with a teaching gift, they are people given as gifts by God to the church to help the church understand the big picture of God, creation, redemption and eternity - and to equip the church to teach this to the world. A teacher is supernaturally gifted in effectively communicating biblical truth, both locally and trans-locally. A teacher equips believers in various ways: to handle the Bible well, understand Biblical teaching, practice spiritual disciplines such as prayer and fasting, and guard against false teaching. 

While elders carry the primary responsibility for teaching apostolic doctrine to the gathered church, there are many teaching opportunities and contexts within church life apart from those exercised by the Elders. This might include leadership training, Community Groups, children and youth ministry, specialist seminars of topics ranging from singleness, marriage and parenting to emotional health, cultural engagement, and more.

(Acts 13:1-3; Rom 12:7; Col 3:16; Titus 2:1-5; Heb 5:12; James 3:1; Acts 18:24-28)

Jesus told His followers that whenever we gather to remember His death and resurrection, we should break bread and drink wine/juice. This activity is commonly called communion or the Lord’s Supper. It was instituted by Jesus for the commemoration of his death as an expression of our participation in his death and eternal life and of our union with his body, the church.

(Luke 22:19-20 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-32)

We believe in the Spirit-filled life and the ongoing Spirit-transformation of character in the believer. We believe that discipleship is life, not just knowledge. As we walk together, we keep the goal in mind of living, thinking, serving, loving and dying like Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.

(Ephesians 4:17-32, 5:18-21; 1 Corinthians 10:31; 2 Corinthians 6:14, 7:1; Philippians 1:27; 2 Peter 1:5-9) 

We believe in the personal and visible return of Jesus to the earth to judge the living and  the dead.

(Acts 1:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; 2 Timothy 4:1) 

We believe in the reality and personality of Satan and the eternal judgment of Satan and his angels.

(Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10-15) 

We believe in the resurrection of the dead, in eternal life for the believer, and eternal punishment of the unbeliever.

(John 3:16; 5:24; 14:2-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9)

Therefore, human life is sacred and has dignity and value in all its dimensions and in every stage or condition from conception through natural death. 

(Genesis 1:26-27; Leviticus 19:32; Psalm 139:13-14; Jeremiah 1:5)  

God created humans male and female. Together, these two distinct, complementary genders reflect the image and nature of God. 

(Genesis 2:18, 22-23; 1 Corinthians 11:11-12) 

Marriage is a holy union designed by God, intended to reflect the relationship between Christ and His church. Heterosexual, monogamous marriage is the only divinely inspired and approved context for sexual intimacy.

(1 Corinthians 11:3; Exodus 20:14; Hebrews 13:4; Romans 1:26-27)