Real Life Church | BELIEFS & VALUES (2024)

Jesus came to establish his kingdom on earth today, and he rules both outside of us and in our hearts. His kingdom is marked both by power and authority, and by righteousness, peace and joy. So, the purpose of preaching God’s Kingdom is to bring the reality of His rulership to all of humanity. Luke 11:2, Matthew 4:17, Romans 14:17

We believe in the sovereignty of God, who exists eternally in three persons of the triune Godhead: Father, Son and Holy Spirit (the Trinity). God rules over all creation and over our lives. Genesis 1:1, 1:26-28, 3:22; Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 48:16; Galatians 3:20; 1 Timothy 2:5; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2

We believe the Scriptures (Old and New Testaments) are inspired by God, and we accept them as the final authority for faith and life. We believe that through the scriptures, God has revealed himself, his character and his will. Though the scriptures are ancient, they are relevant and applicable in our lives today. 2 Timothy 3:16-17

We believe Jesus is the son of God. He came to earth, put on flesh, was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. Jesus lived a sinless life, yet he died a sinner’s death. He was the once-and-for-all sacrifice for the sin of humanity. He died so that we didn’t have to. Three days later, he was physically resurrected from the dead. He ascended into heaven and was seated at the right hand of the Throne of God. He is the advocate and mediator (2 Timothy 2:5) on our behalf with God. As we repent and trust Jesus, we receive forgiveness and are “born again.” Matthew 17:5; Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18-25; John 11:25; 1 Thessalonians 4:14; Romans 8:11

We believe that the Holy Spirit is the 3rd person of the Godhead (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), who relates to us as helper, advocate, and as one who convicts us of sin. We believe in (a) the baptism of the Holy Spirit, by which believers are immersed in power and equipped for service (b) the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We believe that these are available today (i.e. tongues, prophecy, healing), and that they exist to benefit the church and to help strengthen the believer. 1 Corinthians 12:7, 14:3-5; Galatians 5:22-23

We believe that every human being was created in the image and likeness of God (Imago Dei). Before we were in our mother's womb, God knew us and knit us together (Psalm 139). Therefore, every human life, including the unborn, carries immense value and should be honored and protected. Still, each of us is born into sin and brokenness. Jesus, through his sacrifice, brings us from a place of brokenness and into right relationship with God, embodying a pattern for reconciliation with one another. Genesis 1:26-28; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20

We believe God created us Male and Female (Genesis 5:2; Matthew 19:4). Man and woman uniquely and together reflect the image of God, and are each loved fully by God. Anything that distorts or undermines God’s image (regarding sexuality, marriage, sex & identity) is a departure from God’s will for the flourishing of humanity, according to the Word of God.

The ethnicity of every human being is an expression of God’s creativity and a revealer of His image to the world. God has called us to affirm His image in every human being. Christ’s reconciliation was not only a God-to-human covenant, but also a human-to-human one. Accepting God’s mission to make disciples of every nation includes every race (Greek: ethnos), which means intentionally making room at the table of God for every person. Any belief or ideal that devalues, disregards, avoids or ignores a person or group of people because of their race is anti-scripture and anti-Jesus. Galatians 3:28 reminds us that, “In Christ, there’s no longer Jew nor Greek, slave nor free… for we are all one in Christ Jesus.” Isaiah 42:1-7; Acts 17:26; Galatians 3:28; Matthew 28:19

The byproduct of truly walking with God is the fruit of the spirit: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. Without these, our beliefs are empty… and we’re not ok with empty beliefs. Galatians 5:22-23

Jesus said, "I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. We believe that God's church is the primary reflection of God’s Kingdom to humanity. It lives out this purpose through the 5-fold ministry: Apostles, Prophets, Teachers, Evangelists and Pastors. When lived out, the church becomes a transformational culture of worship, generosity and community. (Matthew 16:18; Ephesians 4:11).

We believe death is not the end of life. Those whose faith is in Christ will spend eternity with Him (John 3:15-16; 1 John 5:11; Romans 6:23), and those who did not will spend eternity separated from Him (Matthew 25:46).

A rainforest is beautiful, fully maintained by God, untouched by man. A city, full of buildings and people, is built and maintained by man. We aim to be a well-watered garden - a mix of God’s creativity and our work. As cocreators with God, we faithfully steward what God has given us, producing fruit that exists as beautiful a display of God’s life-giving power.

Always striving to embody Malachi 4:6 – that the hearts of the fathers would turn toward the sons, and the hearts of sons toward their fathers. We honor those who have gone before us, and we’re excited about raising up the next generation as we look to the future. We are a community that empowers, builds and releases both young and old.

Generosity begins with our spirit and works its way out into our resource, our time and our talents. We understand that anything we give is in response to the one who first gave to us!

We’re constantly seeking to add value to our local community, other churches, our region and the world. We have a strong orthodoxy which fuels our orthopraxis, because how we live matters.

We’re a community where anyone is welcome - anyone. No one is too far from God. We also understand that in knowing deeply who we are, what we believe and where we are headed, there may be some that choose to plant their roots elsewhere. We’re okay with that, because we’re not the only ones here!

We love our church, but we understand that what we’re a part of is so much bigger than the part we play. We celebrate the wide expression of the Body of Christ around the world and in our region. Each church has unique value, function and purpose, and when we come together, we become better. We’re enriched by fellowship both in and outside of our stream, with the heart to lift Jesus everywhere.

While we’re all gifted uniquely, each of us as Christ followers is called to the “Priesthood of All Believers.” This means that we show up, we worship God fully, we minister one to another and create environments that connect God with people.

We’re people who believe that God isn’t done – he’s just getting started. While we’re grateful for our legacy, it’s only a seed for what’s still ahead of us. We are privileged to be a part of what He’s building – and not even hell can prevail against it.