Worship
Worship is central at The Well, because worship is so very important to God. (John 4: 24) Worship that really pleases God is “wholehearted” worship. (Psalm 86: 12)
The Centrality of the Word
The Word of God has a place of prominence at The Well. We believe it to be powerful and able to change people’s lives. (Hebrews 4: 12)
Prayer / Intercession / Prophecy
God’s house is to be a “house of prayer”. We earnestly seek God, His favor, anointing, and direction for our lives, individually and corporately. Special seasons of prayer and fasting are set aside to seek God’s face. Prayer before each service, intercession groups, and corporate prayer are cornerstones. (Mark 11: 17)
The Importance of the Family
The family is very important at The Well. We believe God wants to strengthen our families in these days. (Malachi 4: 6)
Youth
A strong emphasis is placed on raising a future generation who love God and will seek His will in their lives.
Body Ministry
Since all believers are kings and priests unto God, we can expect every member of the Body of Christ to play a vital role in the corporate assembly life. (1 Corinthians 14: 26)
Evangelism
We are committed to winning the lost to Jesus Christ in our cities, communities and in the nations.
Giving
Giving is part of our worship to the Lord. At The Well, our tithes and offerings are brought to the Lord and presented to Him as an act of worship. (Malachi 3: 10)
Order
At The Well, we firmly believe that God moves and operates through the leadership that He has given to us. For this reason, we encourage everyone to join with those leading, in corporate worship and to honor the guidelines defined for the “flow” of the service. (1 Corinthians 14: 40)
A Strong Committed Membership
At The Well, we are a “family”. Families are committed to each other in love. We are committed to strengthen and build up each other in the faith, and to help each other realize their full potential in God.
The Well Statement of Faith
With a basic understanding that the Holy Spirit has been sent into the world, in one aspect, to lead the church into all truth, [John 16:13] we humbly submit to His lead seeking for understanding. As God is taking us from glory to glory our heart is set on learning, not fighting over doctrine. Though our heart is not bent on wars over doctrine we do believe there are certain doctrine that we as Christians must agree on, here is our stand on these basic truths.
Jesus, The Christ
“By Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth,” (Col 1:16). Jesus is not only the Christ, but also the Creator, of all that exist. Jesus is the purpose of God in all creation; He is our heavenly Father’s desire for creation. Our heavenly Father’s desire is to see Him in all things (Ephesians 1:10), even in the face of redeemed man himself (Col 3:9-11). He was before all, not created, but with our heavenly Father from the beginning, the very Word of God (John 1:1-3). Jesus Christ, who pre-existed with God in the form of God, emptied Himself to become fully a man that He might be the propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of mankind (Phil 2:5-11). Through His propitiatory sacrifice made on the cross, all who believe in Him and His sacrifice have their sins remitted and are restored to fellowship with God (Heb 9:11-15). As a result of this grace man also becomes a partaker of His very nature (2 Pet 1:4). Jesus was born of a virgin, by the seed of the Holy Spirit. His virgin birth is a testimony that only the Spirit can beget that, which is Spirit. Those of the new creation are not solely of human origin, but are born from above by the Holy Spirit, partakers of God’s nature by way of Christ dwelling in our hearts by faith (Ephe 3:17). The resurrection of Jesus’ physical body after His crucifixion was literal, as will be the resurrection of both the just and the unjust on the Day of Judgment. “There is one God, and mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 2:5). He is the gateway to God, and the way given by God for restored fellowship and communion not man, doctrine, or spirit can make way for approach to God. It also is a supreme presumption for any person or institution to seek to be mediator for others in place of Christ Jesus Himself (Heb 5:4-6). The apostolic commission was for the church to labor until Christ was formed in His church (Gal 4:19-20). To manifest the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place, representing Him in all things. We consider it the church’s primary focus to love, adore and esteem Jesus in every way. The Well Christian Community is committed to seeking His face, not losing our pure and simple devotion to Christ, as God’s grace would allow us to remain devoted.
Man
We believe that God created man from the dust of the earth, without sin or the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:7-8). The first man, Adam, transgressed the command of God, and as God had warned the process of death entered him and all of his descendants because of that one transgression. Therefore, all have sinned and are worthy of death mans very nature being in opposition with God. Our unrighteousness keeps us from approaching a Holy God; therefore we are in need of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus. Through Jesus, we not only can come before the Throne of Grace boldly, but we may approach it boldly because our confidence is not in us, but in Jesus (Heb 4:14-16).
Atonement
Those who trust in Jesus Christ have access to the Throne of Grace by His sacrifice and by His sacrifice alone (Heb 4:14-16). Good works offered for the purpose of acceptance, standing or approval are therefore an affront to the cross by which all of these things were gained for us by Jesus. Good works are not offered for His approval, but for His joy and glory, and must be offered through His Son in obedience to Him (Eph 2:8-10). Therefore, the goal of our service is obedience and not sacrifice (1Sam 15:22-23).
The New Birth
Believing in our hearts that Jesus is the Son of God and in His propitiation made for our salvation results in a regeneration and renewal that constitutes our new birth into new creations (Rom 10:8-13). Although immediate perfection is not realized, we by faith do journey from Glory to Glory believing God to transform us into Christ image (2 Cor 3:18). Being born again implies a new beginning not an ending (2Cor 5:14-17). Our belief is that if we trust God and obey Him He is able to make us what we could never be, transforming us by His power and process not by our striving. It is true that we may be able to change our outward behavior for limited periods of time, but only God can change mans heart and nature and this He must do.
Faith
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb 11:1).
In essence faith is when those things we can’t see with our natural eye become a reality or (substance) to us. Though we can’t see them with our natural eye the eyes of our understanding (heart) are illuminated (Eph 1:15-21). True faith opens the door for men to release trust, belief, confidence, expectation and full persuasion. All humans came into this world with a measure of faith (Rom12: 3). Where we use this faith is up to us. God’s desire is that we release our faith in Him and not ourselves for hope and assurance. True faith should point us to Him, not other men. Paul the apostle said, “and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of mans wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but the power of God” (1Cor 2:4-5).
The Authority of Scripture
We understand that there are many practices and doctrines that are considered orthodox which do not contradict the scriptures, but which are not directly addressed in God’s Word. We are committed to giving liberty in the belief and practice of these teachings, but we will endeavor to maintain the simplicity of the biblical testimony and its stated practices as we are given grace to perceive them. We do not accept any spiritual experience as having come from the Holy Spirit that doesn’t have a precedent in scripture. We do not accept any revelation, vision, dream, prophecy or discernment as truth, which contradicts Scripture, or cannot be verified by it. We do not believe that any other writings have the same authority as the Holy Canon of Scripture (2Tim 3:16-17)-(2Pet 1:16-21).
The Lord’s Supper
We acknowledge the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of Jesus and as a testimony of our communion [common-union] with Him in His body, the church (1 Cor 11:23-29). We consider it a holy ordinance, but we do not accept the teaching that communion is for the purpose of remitting sins, which Scripture testifies is based solely in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross (Heb 9:25-28). We also understand that this ordinance is practiced in remembrance of Christ finished work on the cross. The body, which was for us, carried away our sins. The cup entered us into a new covenant, a covenant of life (1 Cor 11:23-25). This life comes as a result of Him abiding in us by faith. Our belief is that if we have become partakers of His body and Blood [life], see (Lev 17:11), our lives should reflect what they were given on our behalf to do. To take away our sins and enter us into a newness of life, thus partaking in a worthy manner, not denying with our lives, the very thing Jesus said He’s done for us (Rom 6: 4-11).
Water Baptism
We believe that water baptism should be by emersion and accomplished immediately after commitment to the Lordship of Jesus and His atoning sacrifice for sin ( Acts 2:38-39). This ordinance is a personal and public statement of faith in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ on our behalf. It is a commitment to lay down our lives to be one with, or identified with Him in His death, burial and resurrection (Rom 6:4-6).
Baptism of the Holy Spirit
We believe that the “Baptism with the Holy Spirit” is an additional impartation, which may be subsequent to regeneration, but done by the Lord Himself (Math 3:11). This baptism is accompanied by speaking in tongues as the sign (Acts 2:4 10:44-46 19:6), and a new revelation of Christ’s nature and life within as the evidence. We believe that this gift is available to all who believe, but not essential for salvation or regeneration. The purpose of this baptism is to impart spiritual power to the believer to be a witness (Acts 1:8).
The Present Ministry of the Holy Spirit
We believe that ” Jesus is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb 13:8) and that His ministry through the church by the Holy Spirit has not changed from the beginning. Jesus stated, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you” (Jn 16:7). We accept all gifts of the Holy Spirit as stated in (1 Cor 12:8-10) and seek them diligently as another means of edification for the church.
The Second Coming of Jesus Christ
We believe in the literal, physical return of the Lord Jesus Christ to take authority and rule on earth (Acts 1: 9-11). We believe that those who are alive at His return shall be translated up to meet Him in the air. Those who have died in the faith will be resurrected and precede those who are alive in being changed and caught up to be with Him (1 Thess 4:13-18). For those of us who believe and are justified by faith in Christ, His sacrifice on our behalf assures a resurrection and eternal fellowship with God. Those who are not justified face resurrection of eternal Judgment (Jn 5:28-30).
Worship is central at The Well, because worship is so very important to God. (John 4: 24) Worship that really pleases God is “wholehearted” worship. (Psalm 86: 12)
The Centrality of the Word
The Word of God has a place of prominence at The Well. We believe it to be powerful and able to change people’s lives. (Hebrews 4: 12)
Prayer / Intercession / Prophecy
God’s house is to be a “house of prayer”. We earnestly seek God, His favor, anointing, and direction for our lives, individually and corporately. Special seasons of prayer and fasting are set aside to seek God’s face. Prayer before each service, intercession groups, and corporate prayer are cornerstones. (Mark 11: 17)
The Importance of the Family
The family is very important at The Well. We believe God wants to strengthen our families in these days. (Malachi 4: 6)
Youth
A strong emphasis is placed on raising a future generation who love God and will seek His will in their lives.
Body Ministry
Since all believers are kings and priests unto God, we can expect every member of the Body of Christ to play a vital role in the corporate assembly life. (1 Corinthians 14: 26)
Evangelism
We are committed to winning the lost to Jesus Christ in our cities, communities and in the nations.
Giving
Giving is part of our worship to the Lord. At The Well, our tithes and offerings are brought to the Lord and presented to Him as an act of worship. (Malachi 3: 10)
Order
At The Well, we firmly believe that God moves and operates through the leadership that He has given to us. For this reason, we encourage everyone to join with those leading, in corporate worship and to honor the guidelines defined for the “flow” of the service. (1 Corinthians 14: 40)
A Strong Committed Membership
At The Well, we are a “family”. Families are committed to each other in love. We are committed to strengthen and build up each other in the faith, and to help each other realize their full potential in God.
The Well Statement of Faith
With a basic understanding that the Holy Spirit has been sent into the world, in one aspect, to lead the church into all truth, [John 16:13] we humbly submit to His lead seeking for understanding. As God is taking us from glory to glory our heart is set on learning, not fighting over doctrine. Though our heart is not bent on wars over doctrine we do believe there are certain doctrine that we as Christians must agree on, here is our stand on these basic truths.
Jesus, The Christ
“By Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth,” (Col 1:16). Jesus is not only the Christ, but also the Creator, of all that exist. Jesus is the purpose of God in all creation; He is our heavenly Father’s desire for creation. Our heavenly Father’s desire is to see Him in all things (Ephesians 1:10), even in the face of redeemed man himself (Col 3:9-11). He was before all, not created, but with our heavenly Father from the beginning, the very Word of God (John 1:1-3). Jesus Christ, who pre-existed with God in the form of God, emptied Himself to become fully a man that He might be the propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of mankind (Phil 2:5-11). Through His propitiatory sacrifice made on the cross, all who believe in Him and His sacrifice have their sins remitted and are restored to fellowship with God (Heb 9:11-15). As a result of this grace man also becomes a partaker of His very nature (2 Pet 1:4). Jesus was born of a virgin, by the seed of the Holy Spirit. His virgin birth is a testimony that only the Spirit can beget that, which is Spirit. Those of the new creation are not solely of human origin, but are born from above by the Holy Spirit, partakers of God’s nature by way of Christ dwelling in our hearts by faith (Ephe 3:17). The resurrection of Jesus’ physical body after His crucifixion was literal, as will be the resurrection of both the just and the unjust on the Day of Judgment. “There is one God, and mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 2:5). He is the gateway to God, and the way given by God for restored fellowship and communion not man, doctrine, or spirit can make way for approach to God. It also is a supreme presumption for any person or institution to seek to be mediator for others in place of Christ Jesus Himself (Heb 5:4-6). The apostolic commission was for the church to labor until Christ was formed in His church (Gal 4:19-20). To manifest the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place, representing Him in all things. We consider it the church’s primary focus to love, adore and esteem Jesus in every way. The Well Christian Community is committed to seeking His face, not losing our pure and simple devotion to Christ, as God’s grace would allow us to remain devoted.
Man
We believe that God created man from the dust of the earth, without sin or the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:7-8). The first man, Adam, transgressed the command of God, and as God had warned the process of death entered him and all of his descendants because of that one transgression. Therefore, all have sinned and are worthy of death mans very nature being in opposition with God. Our unrighteousness keeps us from approaching a Holy God; therefore we are in need of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus. Through Jesus, we not only can come before the Throne of Grace boldly, but we may approach it boldly because our confidence is not in us, but in Jesus (Heb 4:14-16).
Atonement
Those who trust in Jesus Christ have access to the Throne of Grace by His sacrifice and by His sacrifice alone (Heb 4:14-16). Good works offered for the purpose of acceptance, standing or approval are therefore an affront to the cross by which all of these things were gained for us by Jesus. Good works are not offered for His approval, but for His joy and glory, and must be offered through His Son in obedience to Him (Eph 2:8-10). Therefore, the goal of our service is obedience and not sacrifice (1Sam 15:22-23).
The New Birth
Believing in our hearts that Jesus is the Son of God and in His propitiation made for our salvation results in a regeneration and renewal that constitutes our new birth into new creations (Rom 10:8-13). Although immediate perfection is not realized, we by faith do journey from Glory to Glory believing God to transform us into Christ image (2 Cor 3:18). Being born again implies a new beginning not an ending (2Cor 5:14-17). Our belief is that if we trust God and obey Him He is able to make us what we could never be, transforming us by His power and process not by our striving. It is true that we may be able to change our outward behavior for limited periods of time, but only God can change mans heart and nature and this He must do.
Faith
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb 11:1).
In essence faith is when those things we can’t see with our natural eye become a reality or (substance) to us. Though we can’t see them with our natural eye the eyes of our understanding (heart) are illuminated (Eph 1:15-21). True faith opens the door for men to release trust, belief, confidence, expectation and full persuasion. All humans came into this world with a measure of faith (Rom12: 3). Where we use this faith is up to us. God’s desire is that we release our faith in Him and not ourselves for hope and assurance. True faith should point us to Him, not other men. Paul the apostle said, “and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of mans wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but the power of God” (1Cor 2:4-5).
The Authority of Scripture
We understand that there are many practices and doctrines that are considered orthodox which do not contradict the scriptures, but which are not directly addressed in God’s Word. We are committed to giving liberty in the belief and practice of these teachings, but we will endeavor to maintain the simplicity of the biblical testimony and its stated practices as we are given grace to perceive them. We do not accept any spiritual experience as having come from the Holy Spirit that doesn’t have a precedent in scripture. We do not accept any revelation, vision, dream, prophecy or discernment as truth, which contradicts Scripture, or cannot be verified by it. We do not believe that any other writings have the same authority as the Holy Canon of Scripture (2Tim 3:16-17)-(2Pet 1:16-21).
The Lord’s Supper
We acknowledge the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of Jesus and as a testimony of our communion [common-union] with Him in His body, the church (1 Cor 11:23-29). We consider it a holy ordinance, but we do not accept the teaching that communion is for the purpose of remitting sins, which Scripture testifies is based solely in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross (Heb 9:25-28). We also understand that this ordinance is practiced in remembrance of Christ finished work on the cross. The body, which was for us, carried away our sins. The cup entered us into a new covenant, a covenant of life (1 Cor 11:23-25). This life comes as a result of Him abiding in us by faith. Our belief is that if we have become partakers of His body and Blood [life], see (Lev 17:11), our lives should reflect what they were given on our behalf to do. To take away our sins and enter us into a newness of life, thus partaking in a worthy manner, not denying with our lives, the very thing Jesus said He’s done for us (Rom 6: 4-11).
Water Baptism
We believe that water baptism should be by emersion and accomplished immediately after commitment to the Lordship of Jesus and His atoning sacrifice for sin ( Acts 2:38-39). This ordinance is a personal and public statement of faith in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ on our behalf. It is a commitment to lay down our lives to be one with, or identified with Him in His death, burial and resurrection (Rom 6:4-6).
Baptism of the Holy Spirit
We believe that the “Baptism with the Holy Spirit” is an additional impartation, which may be subsequent to regeneration, but done by the Lord Himself (Math 3:11). This baptism is accompanied by speaking in tongues as the sign (Acts 2:4 10:44-46 19:6), and a new revelation of Christ’s nature and life within as the evidence. We believe that this gift is available to all who believe, but not essential for salvation or regeneration. The purpose of this baptism is to impart spiritual power to the believer to be a witness (Acts 1:8).
The Present Ministry of the Holy Spirit
We believe that ” Jesus is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb 13:8) and that His ministry through the church by the Holy Spirit has not changed from the beginning. Jesus stated, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you” (Jn 16:7). We accept all gifts of the Holy Spirit as stated in (1 Cor 12:8-10) and seek them diligently as another means of edification for the church.
The Second Coming of Jesus Christ
We believe in the literal, physical return of the Lord Jesus Christ to take authority and rule on earth (Acts 1: 9-11). We believe that those who are alive at His return shall be translated up to meet Him in the air. Those who have died in the faith will be resurrected and precede those who are alive in being changed and caught up to be with Him (1 Thess 4:13-18). For those of us who believe and are justified by faith in Christ, His sacrifice on our behalf assures a resurrection and eternal fellowship with God. Those who are not justified face resurrection of eternal Judgment (Jn 5:28-30).