Principles of Partnership
Attend or Belong?
It’s possible to turn up at the same place on regular occasions but not really belong. We want to encourage those committed to making the Rediscover Church their spiritual home, to become Partners as a way of identifying they belong. Partners is an expression of commitment – a way of saying you are joining hands with the Rediscover Church Family, standing with us in building a preferred future together. Partnership shows:
· A desire to commit to the church and be a responsible part of its present and future ministry
· That you connect with our core beliefs, vision and values and find belonging in who we are and where we’re going
· Your willingness to express your gifts and talents through the church as we seek to share the gospel and make disciples
· Your commitment to the Partners and leaders of the church through love, prayer and service
· That you want to grow in your faith and help others do the same
The early church in the New Testament
It is clear from the New Testament that God never intended Christians to ‘go it alone’. The imagery often used almost always describes the church as people being together in meaningful relationships. It is described as the ‘Body of Christ’ (Romans 12:4-5, 1 Corinthians 12:12-27, Ephesians 4:4-16) and implies many different members joined together in unity. It is also described a ‘Building’ (Ephesians 2:19-20, 1 Peter 2:4-5) which suggests numerous ‘stones’ joined together to form a strong structure.
Jesus also set an example for us by regularly attending services in the synagogue and Temple (Luke 4:16) and called the latter ‘My Father’s House’ (John 2:16)
The bible regularly uses words such as ‘together’ and ‘fellowship’ to describe the community of Gods people. The early church met both centrally and in homes. They showed love and hospitality to each other and looked out for one another’s needs. They were a community that studied and based their lives on God’s word, they prayed, shared fellowship (including meeting one another’s needs), worshipped together and understood they were called to share the hope and light of the gospel with the world around them.
When Saul came to Jerusalem (Acts 9:26) he tried to ‘join’ the disciples – a word which means to ‘glue or cement together’. He wanted to do more than attend, he wanted to become bonded to the community of believers in a definite commitment.
Who we are
We belong to the Elim Pentecostal Churches in Great Britain and Ireland – a movement that was started in 1915 through the dynamic ministry of George Jeffreys and now has around 600 churches in the UK, as well as working in many nations around the world. For more information about Elim visit www.elim.org.uk
We are active in working alongside churches of all denominations and value our good relationship with other churches in the city. We are a member of the Evangelical Alliance, which is the largest representation of evangelical believers in the UK.
Where we are going
We are committed to reaching out to the world with the transformational gospel and forming Jesus following disciples. We are committed to empowering people to LIVE for God, LOVE others and THRIVE in His abundant life. we call this: LIVE | LOVE | THRIVE.
Our Core Beliefs
The Bible: We believe the Bible, as originally given, to be without error, the fully inspired and infallible Word of God and the supreme and final authority in all matters of faith and conduct.
The Trinity: We believe that the Godhead exists co-equally and co-eternally in three persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - and that these three are one God, sovereign in creation, providence and redemption.
The Saviour: We believe in the true and proper deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His real and complete humanity, in His sinless life, in His authoritative teaching, in His substitutionary and atoning sacrifice through His blood shed, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, in His heavenly intercession and His second advent to receive His Church.
The Holy Spirit: We believe in the deity of the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father and the Son and the necessity of His work in conviction of sin, repentance, regeneration and sanctification, and that the believer is also promised an enduement of power as the gift of Christ through the baptism in the Holy Spirit with signs following. Through this enduement the believer is empowered for fuller participation in the ministry of the Church, its worship, evangelism and service.
Mankind: We believe in the universal sinfulness of all men since the Fall, rendering man subject to God’s wrath and condemnation.
Salvation: We believe in the necessity for salvation of repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ by which the sinner is pardoned and accepted as righteous in God’s sight. This justification is imputed by the grace of God because of the atoning work of Christ, is received by faith alone and is evidenced by the Fruit of the Spirit and a holy life.
The Church: We believe in the spiritual unity and the priesthood of all believers in Christ and that these comprise the universal Church, the Body of Christ.
The Ministry: We believe in the ministries that Christ has set in His Church, namely, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers and in the present operation of the manifold Gifts of the Holy Spirit according to the New Testament.
The Ordinances: We believe in the baptism of believers in water in obedience to the command of Christ and the commemoration of Christ’s death by the observance of the Lord’s Supper until His return.
The Commission: We believe that the Gospel embraces the needs of the whole man and that the Church is therefore commissioned to preach the Gospel to the world and to fulfil a ministry of healing and deliverance to the spiritual and physical needs of mankind.
The Coming King: We believe in the personal, physical and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to reign in power and glory.
The Future State: We believe in the resurrection of the dead and in the final judgment of the world, the eternal conscious bliss of the righteous and the eternal conscious punishment of the wicked.
Build With Us
By belonging to our church we look for members to make the following commitments:
1. Live a life of godliness – live out your faith by following Jesus example in every area of your life, allowing the Holy Spirit to shape, challenge and help you grow His fruit in your life
2. Pray for the ministry, members and leaders of the church
3. Be an active attender and participator in the activities and ministries of the church and seek to serve alongside one of our ministry teams
4. Be an active giver – the New Testament makes it clear that generous giving is part of Christian commitment. We believe that the scriptural principle of giving a tithe (one tenth) of our income to God is one which honours Him and always brings His blessing upon the giver (Malachi 3:8-12)
5. Be an encourager by investing love, time, hospitality and appreciation into the lives of others in the church
6. Reach out to others by letting the transformational hope of the gospel overflow from your life to those around you
SOME IMPORTANT NOTES BEFORE YOU COMPLETE A PARTNERSHIP APPLICATION - PLEASE READ CAREFULLY:
IF YOU ARE APPLYING AS A COUPLE - PLEASE COMPLETE INDIVIDUAL MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONS
If you are applying to become a member as someone watching our services online from outside of Devon, and unable to attend in person, we will consider you for an ‘Online Network Membership’ - for more details click here.
BEFORE AN INDIVIDUAL SENDS IN A PARTNERSHIP APPLICATION WE REQUEST THAT:
They actively engage with us as their primary church community for at least 6 months
They attend an 'a place to thrive' COURSE - FOR DETAILS EMAIL THE CHURCH OFFICE