Beliefs
The
Roots Vineyard stands firmly in the center of orthodox Christian
teaching. Out of loyalty to Jesus and the gospel, we have come to a
number of convictions concerning the clear teaching of the Bible. On the
spectrum of Christian churches:
We are orthodox.
We are evangelicals.
We are empowered evangelicals.
As members of The Roots Vineyard, we make the following confession of faith:
We believe in one living and true God, the Creator and Lord of the heavens and the earth. In the unity of the Godhead, there are three persons of one substance, equal in power and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
We believe that Jesus Christ is truly God and truly man, yet one Messiah, the only Mediator between God and man. There is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.
We believe that Jesus Christ came down from heaven, was incarnated by the Holy Spirit, and was born of the virgin Mary. He live a sinless life in perfect obedience to the Father and was crucified for our sins. He suffered, died, and was buried, and He rose bodily from the dead on the third day. As the God-man, Jesus Christ ascended into heaven and now sits at the right hand of God the Father, interceding for His people. At His first coming, Jesus inaugurated the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God.
We believe that we, along with all men and women, are sinners by nature and choice and are under condemnation. We are accounted as righteous before God only by the merit of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, through faith in Him alone, and not by our own works or deserving.
We believe that we have been born again by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit. This same Holy Spirit now lives in us producing faith, holiness, love, and power.
We believe that the church is intended by God to be a worshiping community of believers observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by His law; exercising the gifts, privileges, and discipline invested in the church by His Word and His Holy Spirit; and seeking to extend the gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth.
We believe Christ committed two ordinances to the church: water baptism and the Lord's Supper. We believe water baptism is available to all Christian believers following a clear profession of faith in Christ. We believe that the Lord's Supper is open to all believers. Through the working of the Holy Spirit, the Lord's Supper nourishes our souls. It brings to our remembrance the sacrifice of Christ for our sins, our communion with Christ and the church, and our obligation to persevere in faith and holiness to the end of our lives.
We believe in the personal, visible appearing of Christ to earth and the consummation of His Kingdom, in the resurrection of the body and the final judgment, and the eternal blessing of the righteous and the endless suffering of the wicked.
We believe the Bible is the actual Word of God without error and the only infallible rule for our faith and practice. It is both relevant and applicable to our every-day lives. The Bible explains how this life was created to be lived and how it is to be enjoyed in all its fullness.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, who came from the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment; and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower for ministry every believer in Jesus Christ. He is an abiding Helper, Teacher, and Guide. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and in the exercise of all of the biblical gifts of the Spirit.
We are orthodox.
We are evangelicals.
We are empowered evangelicals.
As members of The Roots Vineyard, we make the following confession of faith:
We believe in one living and true God, the Creator and Lord of the heavens and the earth. In the unity of the Godhead, there are three persons of one substance, equal in power and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
We believe that Jesus Christ is truly God and truly man, yet one Messiah, the only Mediator between God and man. There is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.
We believe that Jesus Christ came down from heaven, was incarnated by the Holy Spirit, and was born of the virgin Mary. He live a sinless life in perfect obedience to the Father and was crucified for our sins. He suffered, died, and was buried, and He rose bodily from the dead on the third day. As the God-man, Jesus Christ ascended into heaven and now sits at the right hand of God the Father, interceding for His people. At His first coming, Jesus inaugurated the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God.
We believe that we, along with all men and women, are sinners by nature and choice and are under condemnation. We are accounted as righteous before God only by the merit of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, through faith in Him alone, and not by our own works or deserving.
We believe that we have been born again by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit. This same Holy Spirit now lives in us producing faith, holiness, love, and power.
We believe that the church is intended by God to be a worshiping community of believers observing the ordinances of Christ; governed by His law; exercising the gifts, privileges, and discipline invested in the church by His Word and His Holy Spirit; and seeking to extend the gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth.
We believe Christ committed two ordinances to the church: water baptism and the Lord's Supper. We believe water baptism is available to all Christian believers following a clear profession of faith in Christ. We believe that the Lord's Supper is open to all believers. Through the working of the Holy Spirit, the Lord's Supper nourishes our souls. It brings to our remembrance the sacrifice of Christ for our sins, our communion with Christ and the church, and our obligation to persevere in faith and holiness to the end of our lives.
We believe in the personal, visible appearing of Christ to earth and the consummation of His Kingdom, in the resurrection of the body and the final judgment, and the eternal blessing of the righteous and the endless suffering of the wicked.
We believe the Bible is the actual Word of God without error and the only infallible rule for our faith and practice. It is both relevant and applicable to our every-day lives. The Bible explains how this life was created to be lived and how it is to be enjoyed in all its fullness.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, who came from the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment; and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower for ministry every believer in Jesus Christ. He is an abiding Helper, Teacher, and Guide. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit and in the exercise of all of the biblical gifts of the Spirit.
What Makes A Vineyard A Vineyard?
Throughout its history, the Vineyard movement has fostered a conversation about the kingdom of God. This conversation is ongoing, and so it is important both to remind those in the movement of what these concepts involve and to introduce those new to the Vineyard to these distinctive emphases.
Kingdom Theology & Practice
The Vineyard is committed to the theology and practice of the kingdom of God--rooted in the vision of the Hebrew prophets and fulfilled in the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. The movement is distinctively rooted in a renewed understanding of the centrality of the kingdom in biblical thought. We view the kingdom of God as the overarching and integrating theme of the Bible.
From the beginning, the Vineyard has been committed to proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God and to bearing witness to the "already and not yet" of the kingdom in our words and deeds--through healing (physical, emotional, and social), doing justice, and delivering those held captive by evil. Since the kingdom of God is the future reign of God breaking into the present through the life and ministry of Jesus, we are a forward-leaning movement that emphasizes the ever-reforming nature of the church and engages the world in love.
Culturally Relevant Mission
The church exists for the sake of those who are exiled from God. We are called to bring the gospel of the kingdom to every nook and cranny of creation, faithfully translating the message of Jesus in language and forms that are relevant to diverse peoples and cultures.
The Vineyard seeks to plant churches that are culturally relevant in a wide variety of settings, both locally and internationally. Each Vineyard church is encouraged to reach those in its community not already reached by existing churches. To this end, we promote a creative, entrepreneurial, and innovative approach to ministry that is faithful to Jesus and expressive of his desire to reach those who are far away from God.
Compassionate Ministry
We lean toward the lost, the poor, the outcast, and the outsider with the compassion of Jesus, knowing we are sinners whose standing before God is utterly dependent on his mercy. This mercy can only be truly received in as much as we are willing to give it away.
We believe that ministry in Jesus' name should be expressed in concrete ways through the local church. The poor are to be served as though we serve Jesus himself. This is one of the distinguishing characteristics of a church expressing the love of Christ in a local community.
In fact, in all forms of ministry, compassion is a hallmark of the One who was "moved with compassion" in the face of human need. This being the age of grace (and "the year of the Lord's favor") compassion should constitute the leading edge of our service to God, each other, and our broken world. With humility, we seek to avoid unauthorized judgments of others, realizing that we suffer and struggle along with the rest of humanity.
Reconciling Community
Jesus is reconciling people to God, to each other, and to the entire creation. He breaks down divisions between Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female. Therefore, Vineyard churches are committed to being communities of healing, engaged in the work of reconciliation wherever sin and evil hold sway.
We also seek to be diverse communities of hope that realize the power of the cross to reconcile what has been separated by sin. This requires that we move beyond our personal preferences and engage those whom we perceive to be unlike us. We must actively work to break down barriers of race, culture, gender, social class, and ethnicity.
We are convinced that the church (locally, nationally, and globally) is meant to be a diverse community precisely because Jesus is Lord over every nation, tribe, and tongue. We are not satisfied with the status quo when it doesn't reflect this kingdom reality. Instead, we pray eagerly for the coming of God's kingdom here and now and hope to see the reconciliation that is evidence that kingdom in our midst.
Experiencing God
The triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) is eager to be known and experienced by all. We believe that God is searching for the lost and longs to draw us into loving, intimate relationship with him. In Vineyard churches, we welcome God's personal presence, we seek to be attentive to his presence, and we value the passionate pursuit of his presence in order to respond in obedience to his initiatives.
We understand God's presence as a palpable reality. As we become increasingly sensitive and responsive to the Spirit's presence, we too can learn to "see what the Father is doing" and support his work with our lives.
We value an approach to God's presence that is respectful both of God and others. We eschew hype and other efforts to manipulate either God's presence or the response of others to his presence. We distinguish between the Holy Spirit and the human response to the Holy Spirit, which shares in all the beauty and brokenness of our humanity.
These, then, are the core values that draw us together as a movement. They are different aspects of the treasure buried in the field that is the Vineyard. The treasure, of course, is the kingdom of God embodied and brought forth by Jesus of Nazareth.
This article was take from the national Vineyard website at...http://www.vineyardusa.org/site/about/article/core-values.
| the_vineyards_statement-of-faith.pdf |
| the_vineyards_theological-statements.pdf |
| the_vineyard_genetic-code.pdf |
