Redland Church of the Nazarene

OUR MISSION: Changing lives by loving God and loving others.

We understand that the change God desires to bring into our lives and into the lives of those in our community and around the world is a change from the old sinful way of life to a life that is best described as holy or Christlike. We believe God not only wants to forgive us of our sins but also to empower us through his Holy Spirit to live differently and become more Christlike every day. In 1 Thessalonians 4:7 we are told, “God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives.” It is out of this understanding of the change that God wants to bring that all our core values flow.

Our CORE VALUES

Below are our 6 core values. Under each core value is the strategy, or program that will fulfill that core value. Our core values will not change, but because God is always doing a new thing, how we fulfill our core values may change from time to time.

1. Worship

· Passionate Corporate Worship & teaching the practice of Spiritual Disciplines (private worship)

2. Invest in people locally and globally and share Christ with them

· Locally - Invest & invite (build relationships with people and invite them to church). Globally - support missions work through world evangelism giving and short term mission projects.

3. Connect believers in meaningful relationships

· Growth Groups (Groups of 12-16 that meet throughout the week to grow in relationship with one another and with Christ. We believe that this is where real life change happens)

4. Serve others in and out of the church

· Ministry Teams & Serving Community - We are committed to not being a Church of spiritual consumers, but a Church full of servants for Christ and others!

5. Provide dynamic life changing ministry to children and teens

· God’s Little Giants, Under The Sea, Ark, Konnect, Caravan, Quizzing, & DIVE Youth - We believe that children and teens are not just the future of the church, but that they are an important part of the church Now!

6. Strengthen families to become Christ Centered Units

· Family Fun Nights, Family Skills Classes (Parenting, Financial Peace...), Seasonal Events (Fall Festival, Easter Egg Hunt, Family Camp...)

Jesus was once asked what the greatest commandment was.

Matthew 22:37-40 “ ³⁷ Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. ⁴⁰ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

At Redland Church of the Nazarene we are on a journey to learn to love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind and to love our neighbor as ourselves. We hope that you will come and join us on this incredible journey.

Click the below links to discover how we are fulfilling

just a few of our core values...

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About What We Believe

What is a Christian?
A Christian is a follower of the Christ, Jesus of Nazareth. (Acts 11:26). Just as a Muslim accepts and promotes the teachings of Mohammed or a Buddhist accepts and promotes the teachings of Buddha, a Christian consciously decides to accept and promote the teachings of Jesus (Acts 26:28).

If I've done something really wrong, will God forgive me?
Yes! The good news from God is that everyone can have a fresh start with God (2 Peter 3:9). The only requirement is a sincere desire and intention to turn away from what is wrong and to follow God (2 Chronicles 7:14; Psalm 51:7; Isaiah 55:6-7; Mark 1:14-15; Acts 3:19; 1 Thessalonians 1:9). In the Bible, God forgave cheaters (see the story of Jacob in Genesis 27 and 32), murderers (David in 2 Samuel 12), adulterers (an unnamed woman in John 8:1-11), and even those who had turned away from God earlier (Samson in Judges 16 and 17). Today every person is offered forgiveness in Christ with the opportunity for a fresh start (Jeremiah 3:12-14; 2 Corinthians 7:8-11).

What is the purpose of my life?
There are two answers to this question. First, God invites us to experience a personal relationship with Him. That invitation is offered to every human on earth. Second, God wants each of us to use our abilities and opportunities to help others. These purposes are different for each of us.

As part of traditional Christianity, we understand that God created all people with the same intention: Each one should have a loving relationship with God that will last for eternity (John 3:16; 1 John 1:3). When we have such a relationship, God intends for us to become more loving, patient, and self-disciplined; in short, we are on a journey toward a God-shaped life (2 Corinthians 3:18; Galatians 5:22-23; 1 John 3:2).

In addition, God gives each person special abilities designed to help others. For example, some are able to teach others about God, some are able to help with physical needs, and some are especially effective in counseling or leadership (Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11).

What does Redland Nazarene believe about God?
As part of the Christian community, we understand that there is one God, who has always existed and will always exist (Deuteronomy 6:4). We believe that He is creative (Genesis 1; Isaiah 40:25-26) and holy (Leviticus 19:2; Isaiah 5:16, 6:1-7) and that His purposes are carried out in this world (Jeremiah 29:11; Acts 1:6-7).

We also understand that God's nature is "three-fold": Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 13:14). This concept of God's three-fold nature, the Trinity, was understood by the early Christian Church as the best way to explain what they had experienced. They knew from their Jewish roots that there is only one God, but they also knew that Jesus acted as if He were God. In addition, the Holy Spirit, empowering the church as promised by Jesus and the Old Testament, seemed to have all of God's power as well. Thus they understood that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are parts of the one God who has always existed. We embrace this belief borne out by God's Word.

Who is Jesus Christ?
The New Testament writings state that Jesus of Nazareth was born to a Jewish family during the early days of the Roman Empire. He was killed by the Roman occupation forces and truly rose from the dead. Then He joined God the Father in heaven.

While those of different faiths consider Him a great religious teacher, the followers of Jesus understood that He was more than just a teacher. He forgave sins (Mark 2:1-12; John 8:1-11); He spoke as if He had always existed (John 8:58); and one of His followers addressed Him as God (John 20:28). His death was more than a simple execution; His death makes it possible for humans to have a restored relationship with God (Colossians 1:21-23). In His continued life with the Father, He still cares for us humans (1 John 2:1-2).

Redland Church of the Nazarene agrees with other Christians that Jesus is God. He is distinct from God the Father, known to the Jewish nation at the time of Moses (Deuteronomy 1:31; Proverbs 3:12). He is also distinct from the Holy Spirit, who has empowered Christians since the earliest days of the Church (Acts 2:4, 33). The Holy Spirit continues the work of Jesus through His followers today (John 16:13-15).

While He is God, He is also human. Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary when the power of the Holy Spirit came upon her (Luke 1:26-35). In Him, the nature of God and the nature of humanity are united in one Person (Colossians 1:19-20).

What do you believe about the Holy Spirit?
Before Jesus died, He told His followers that He would leave them. He also promised that they would receive "another Counselor" who would be with them forever (John 7:37-39, 14:16). After His death and resurrection He told His followers that they would receive power through the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:8). He then left His followers (Acts 1:9).

Days later, Jesus' followers did receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4, 18, 32-33). The Church immediately recognized the presence of the Holy Spirit as being equivalent to God's presence (Acts 15:8-9; Ephesians 3:14-19; 1 John 3:24).

What do you mean by "salvation"?
We, like other Christians, use the term "salvation" to mean turning from wrong actions, receiving God's forgiveness, committing ourselves to God, and living as God directs.

Salvation is from the word "save." Jesus declared that He came to "save the lost" (Luke 19:10). When a pagan Roman jailer wanted to become a Christian, he asked, "What must I do to be saved?" (Acts 16:30). When talking to a religious leader, Jesus said that God intended to "save the world" through His life (John 3:17).

What are we saved from?
Some scriptures promise salvation from other people and their evil intentions (Psalm 18:3). More often, God's Word promises salvation from the evil that is widespread throughout the world (Isaiah 45:22; Acts 4:12). Many times in the scriptures God offers to save us when this world is destroyed (Joel 2:31-32; 1 Peter 4:18). However, the most common use of the word may be "saved from the punishment we deserve" (Romans 5:9; 1 Corinthians 15:2; 1 Timothy 2:4).

What do you believe about living a holy life?
Nazarenes, with other Wesleyans, believe in entire sanctification, when God's transforming work is complete and God's divine love that inhabits the Christian cleanses all sin from the heart (Romans 6:6, 1 Thessalonians 5:23).

After we are born anew, we need the fullness of God's Holy Spirit in our hearts (Romans 8:6-8). When we make a complete commitment to Him, He cleanses our spirit, fills us with His perfect love, and gives us the power to live a holy life in obedience to Him (Romans 8:5, 9-11).

Sanctification is God's will for all believers (1 Peter 1:15-16). Through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, God enables believers to live a holy life and empowers them for life and service (Acts 1:8) .

We distinguish between a pure heart that is obtained in an instant through the infilling of the Holy Spirit and a mature character that is the result of growth in grace.

What is baptism?
Baptism has been a Christian symbol since the time of Jesus (Matthew 3:1-6). It involves applying water to Christians to symbolize their death to the old way of life (Romans 6:3-4) and their new life God provides (Galatians 3:26-27). Baptism, a sacramental "means of grace," seals one's intention to follow God (Acts 2:37-41, 8:35-39, 10:44-48). The Bible never defines how much water was applied or how. Therefore, we consider immersion, sprinkling, and pouring all to be acceptable methods of baptism.

We also understand baptism to be a symbol of the new relationship God establishes with His people. Because of this, some of our church members choose to have their young children baptized as a symbol of their intention to raise their children in God's Church and their hope to see that their children choose God's ways when they are older.

What is the Lord's Supper?
On the last night Jesus spent with His disciples, He shared bread and wine with them as part of the Passover meal (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). This sharing of the bread and wine is known as Holy Communion or the Lord's Supper.

When Jesus shared the bread and wine with His disciples, the bread symbolized His body, and the wine symbolized His blood (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:17-20). The disciples understood this to mean that He was giving up His life (body and blood) for their benefit. The earliest records of the Church show that His followers regularly shared bread and wine together, reminding themselves that Jesus had died for them (1 Corinthians 10:14-16) and will come again.

When we offer the Lord's Supper today, all believers are invited to participate regardless of membership in the church. We celebrate the Lord's Supper once a month in our "Family Worship Service". This is usually the first Sunday of the month and our children do not go into Children's church that week, but worship together with their parents.

Does your church take official positions on social or political issues?
We understand that Christians are expected to oppose evil and promote good. In our complex world, we also understand that few issues are completely evil or completely good.

We express our opposition to underlying evils such as dishonesty (Leviticus 19:11; Romans 12:17), slander and vengeance (2 Corinthians 12:20; Galatians 5:15; Ephesians 4:30-32; James 3:5-18; 1 Peter 3:9-10), and sexual immorality (Exodus 20:14; Matthew 5:27-32; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Galatians 5:19; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-7).

We also affirm our support for good actions, such as helping those in need (Matthew 25:35-36; 2 Corinthians 9:8-10; Galatians 2:10; James 2:15-16; 1 John 3:17-18), being courteous and helpful (Romans 12:13; Galatians 6:2, 10; Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:12-14; Titus 3:2; 1 Peter 2:17; 1 John 3:18), and honoring God (Exodus 20:3-6; Deuteronomy 5:7-10, 6:4-5; Mark 12:28-31).

To learn more about the challenge of abortion and the response of the Church of the Nazarene, click here.

To learn more about the challenge of homosexuality and the response of the Church of the Nazarene click here.

Rather than taking official stands, on most issues we encourage our members to apply God's principles and act accordingly. All Christians are promised God's guidance when we truly seek it (John 16:13; 1 Corinthians 2:16; James 1:5).