What We Believe
“…preaching the kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered.”
Acts 28:31
There are many churches and denominations that, while they differ on some minor points of theology, believe the same fundamental truths of the faith. We celebrate them and everyone who believes in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
We believe that what people get saved into is as important as what they were saved out of. Churches do things with a particular style or emphasis. These matters are not issues of eternal salvation yet are deeply held truths for the people who believe them.
At Northlands Church we have some of these deeply held truths that shape the way we do things. They stand on top of the fundamental truths of our common salvation in Jesus to form the theological basis for our practices.
Statement of Faith | Values | Mission | NCMI
Statement of Faith
We believe in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, in their original writing, as fully inspired of God and accept them as the supreme and final authority for faith and life.
We believe in one God, eternally existing in three Persons: – Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
We believe that Jesus Christ was begotten of the Father, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary and is true God and true man.
We believe that God created man in His own image; that man sinned and thereby incurred the penalty of sin which is death physically and spiritually; that all human beings inherit a sinful nature which issues (in the case of those who reach moral responsibility) in actual transgression involving personal guilt.
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins in a substitutionary sacrifice according to the scriptures and that all who believe in Him are justified on the grounds of His shed blood.
We believe in the bodily resurrection of the Lord Jesus, His ascension into Heaven, and His present life as our High Priest and Advocate.
We believe in the personal return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We believe that all who repent of their sin and receive the Lord Jesus Christ by faith are born again of the Holy Spirit and thereby become children of God.
We believe in the baptism in the Holy Spirit, empowering and equipping believers for service, with the accompanying supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit, and in fellowship with the Holy Spirit. We believe in the divinely ordained ministries of Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor and Teacher and expect them to be a regular part of Church life.
With regards to submission to authority, we believe in the principle of being in authority because you are under authority. As such, we believe a strong relationship with the NCMI teams will serve to ensure oversight in matters pertaining to church governance, doctrine and personal behavior.
We believe in the resurrection of both the just and the unjust, the eternal blessedness of the redeemed, and the eternal banishment of those who have rejected the offer of salvation.
We believe that the one true Church is the whole company of those who have been redeemed by Jesus Christ and regenerated by the Holy Spirit; that the local church on earth should take its character from this concept of the church spiritual and therefore that the new birth and personal confession of Christ are essentials of church membership.
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ appointed two ordinances, baptism in water and the Lord’s Supper, to be observed as acts of obedience and as perpetual witnesses to the cardinal facts of the Christian faith; that Baptism is the immersion of the believer in water as a confession of identification with Christ in burial and resurrection and that the Lord’s Supper is the partaking of the emblems symbolic of the Savior’s broken body and shed blood, in remembrance of His sacrificial death, until He comes.
We believe that divine healing was provided for in the Old and New Testaments and is an integral part of the Gospel.
We believe that the Bible teaches that without holiness no man can see the Lord. We believe in the doctrine of sanctification as a definite yet progressive work of grace, commencing at the time of the new birth and continuing until the consummation of salvation.
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Values
The vision statement of Northlands has a set of values that resonate deeply within our members. The first of these values is what we have termed being “Specifically Word Based”. It means we are diligent to study and honor God’s word and give it higher priority than personal preferences, cultural norms or traditional expectations.
An excerpt from the vision document says: “We believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God and accept it as the supreme and final authority for faith and life. We aim to obey it as much as possible. We make a point of following its intent and methodology with diligent integrity”. This is important in all sorts of ways because when we adhere to this we are constantly examining the Scriptures for sound orthodoxy and theology (correct doctrine) and Biblical orthopraxy (correct practice).
Our values are those truths that form the basis of how we operate. They are shared by our members and in many cases are also shared by thousands of churches around the world who relate to New Covenant Ministries International. We trust that they are self-explanatory.
- Distinctively Bible-based.
- People matter to God and therefore matter to us.
- Excellence honors God and motivates people.
- Growth and life-change happens best in small groups.
- Friendship before function.
- Love is the primary message of the gospel and is our defining value.
- Servant leadership.
- Loving God with all our being is the greatest commandment.
- God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
- Helping people of all ages find their most effective area of service.
- Mature response to the Holy Spirit.
- Committed to reach our neighbors and the nations of the world.
- Teams are more effective than individuals.
Mission
The Northlands Church mission statement draws from the Great Commission given by Jesus:
- Introducing Christ
- Pursuing Maturity
- Impacting Nations
Introducing Christ
In His great love for people, God made what scripture calls a great way of salvation. Everyone who has met Jesus knows the power of this message to transform lives. It is the most natural thing in the world to want to tell those we care about what He has done for us. It is our privilege to take up this mission that Jesus gave to the Church.
Pursuing Maturity
Committing our lives to Christ is only the beginning of the journey. As we grow up in the Lord we start to see the world from His perspective. We grow in understanding of the beauty and majesty of our heavenly Father. Our love grows as we discover more of who He is. This compels us to want to be effective in the Kingdom. In our pursuit of maturity, the people at Northlands have committed themselves to growing in the following 5 ways:
- A vital personal walk with Jesus
- Taking a servant’s towel
- Making a commitment to community
- Having a heart for people
- Generous giving
Impacting Nations
God calls His church to think globally. Planting and supporting Churches around the world is the Great Commission Jesus gave His Church. As a growing church Northlands makes its contribution in four ways: praying for other church plants, paying as the Lord leads, preaching and teaching, and ultimately planting churches from Northlands. We join New Covenant Ministries International and many others around the world in believing that the dream of reaching every nation of the world is possible in our lifetimes.
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New Covenant Ministries International (NCMI)
The early church described in the New Testament provides a model in which God raises certain leaders up to go beyond their local church ministry. The local churches recognized God’s call on their lives and released them to minister in other churches. Some of these ministers were called by the Lord as Apostles or the “sent ones” as the word means in the original.
NCMI is an apostolic team of such men and women from all continents of the world.
Their role is to strengthen, equip, and encourage healthy foundations in each local church through their strong relationships with local leadership.
The apostolic team respects the autonomy of the local church.
The NCMI team is primarily funded through unsolicited financial gifts sent by relating leaders and churches.
For more information, please visit the NCMI web site.