Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was and Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ‘This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ Matthew 22:36-39
Jesus made it clear we are to love God and love people.
The great commandments underpin many of our values. They form our identity – they shape our DNA. We are not saying we are better than any other church. What we are saying is that this is who God has called us to be.
Loving God
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Church should be a people that love God and express it.
We value:
- Being Christ Centred: Because we have a relationship with Jesus we want Him to be at the centre of everything.
- The Presence of God: We value our relationship with God and we want God to be present whenever we meet. We put an emphasis on worship because worship brings us into the presence of God. We know that without the presence of God nothing we do will be effective. We want to be a people marked by God’s presence.
- Being Spirit Led: We want to live in relationship with God, God gives us His Spirit to guide us and lead us in everyday and church life. We want to be a people led by the Holy Spirit.
- The Bible: We believe the bible to be spoken by God. In our love relationship with God we want to hear what He says. In our practices we want to be biblical. That’s why our values come from the bible.
Loving People
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Love for one another
Church is not about a building or meetings its about God’s people, his family, in loving community.
We value:
- Relationships: Healthy relationships are as important as our activities. In anything we do it’s important that the people in the teams have good relationships. It’s not just about getting the job done; it’s also about how we get the job done.
- Every member ministry: Because we are a body. It’s not about full-time people leading everyone; we believe that everyone has a part to play. The church can only function in all its potential as every member does its part. God has given everyone a significant function. Our style of church is that we really want to encourage people to take initiative. Over the last few years’ members of the church have started a lot of initiatives.
- Team leadership: A team leads our church. Tim Mitchell is our senior leader and he leads a team of 4 other leaders to pray, seek direction and plan. We look to serve the church and not rule over it.
Loving those outside the church
Our neighbours are not just inside the church they are also outside of the church. Church is a place where lost, lonely and broken people find a family, a place to find involvement, purpose and equipping.
We value:
- Unity: The church is bigger than Christian Life Centre. We seeking unity and to serve the wider church, rejoicing in its diversity. We feel we are called to serve the churches in the city and help other churches when we can. We work together in projects around the city. Our heart is to see the church in Hereford grow and for every congregation to do well.
- Being Inclusive: We are open to and value people from all races, backgrounds, age groups, and abilities. Our heart is to be a church of all age groups and backgrounds.
- Community: We value our place in the community. We believe that the church is placed in the community to be salt and light. We aim to serve people, especially those that are poor and needy with the compassion & mercy that are part of God’s character.
- Generosity: Our gifts are not our own. We use them to serve others. We have amazingly gifted people and we want to share the gifts God has given us.