VINEYARD’S Values

The Kingdom of God

We see Jesus’ message about the Kingdom of God as the overall and integral theme of the bible. From it’s beginning, Vineyard has been entrusted with proclaiming the Kingdom of God and testifying of its deeds in healing (physical, mental and social), social justice and liberation for people bound by evil. We want to see what the Father is doing here and now and participate in His creation and transformational work in His creation.

Cooperation With the Holy spirit

To succeed in our mission, we are dependent on the Holy Spirit. We depend on both prayer and the power of God to be able to do what we ourselves could never do in our own power. We pray for the sick, we confront injustice, we listen to God’s voice to others. To do this, we depend on the Holy Spirit.

The presence of God and worship

When someone enters the kingdom she/he experiences the dynamic reality which exists within the triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This means that the experience of the kingdom of God (and thus, the experience of God’s presence) is central to our faith and Christian life. We believe that the Spirit distributes His gifts to us, resulting in prophecy, prayer languages, healing, miracles, and many other gifts as we joyfully experience His presence. We value an approach to God’s presence that is respectful both of God and of those we are with. We eschew hype and other efforts to manipulate either God’s presence or the response of others to His presence.

Reconciling Community

Jesus is reconciling humans to God, to each other, and to the entire creation, breaking down divisionsbetween Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female. Therefore, we are committed to becoming healing communities engaged in the work of reconciliation wherever sin and evil hold sway.

This requires us to move beyond our personal preferences to engage those who are perceived to be unlike us and to actively 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

Compassionate ministrY

We lean toward the lost, the poor, the outcast, and the outsider with the compassion of Jesus as sinners whose only standing before God is utterly dependent on the mercy of God. This mercy can only be truly received inasmuch 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 serving Jesus Himself. This is one of the distinguishing characteristics of a church expressing the love of Christ in a local community.

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 into language and forms that are relevant to diverse peoples, cultures, and sub-cultures.

We seek to plant churches that are culturally relevant in a wide variety of settings 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 heart to reach those who are far away from God.

Phil Strout – An Introduction To Vineyard Core Values