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» Why we are here
adventure. purity. compassion
Life is often complicated and messy, but those of us who have been encountered by Jesus Christ have a clarity about life that helps us to navigate the complication and mess. One thing we are very clear about at New Community is that God, in Christ, came to earth as a man, died in our place, rose again to life, and now reigns in heaven. We are also very clear that one day this Jesus will return to judge the earth and gather all his people to himself. Between these two points of clarity - that Jesus now reigns in heaven and one day will return to earth - we need to work out how to live in a complicated and messy world. At New Community we focus on three things that give us a vision for how to do this:
1. Adventure: a people on a mission
Acts 1:7-8 "He said to them: It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Between Christ's ascension to heaven and his return to the earth, his people have been given the task of being witnesses to his story. Because of what Jesus has done for us we have a story to tell. To make this story known, we need to have a sense of adventure. We do not want to be a static, inwardly focussed church. We do not want to tie everything down and make everything safe. We want adventure to be hardwired into all that we do.
2. Purity: living holy lives
Titus 2:11-14 "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self- controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope- the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good."
How we live matters to Jesus and the way that we live will always reflect what we believe. At New Community we want to help one another believe the truth about Jesus - truth is important to us - and we want our lives to reflect what we believe. We are not into rules and regulations, but we are into living in a way which is pleasing to our God and Saviour. This means we are relaxed about things such as how people dress, but we are serious about how we behave. We don't want to do anything that dishonours the name of Jesus.
3. Compassion: doing the works of the kingdom
Matthew 25:40 "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."
It is our conviction that the church should not shut itself away from the troubles of the world. The sound of war, famine, sickness and death should rattle in our ears. But rather than provoking us to despair, this sound spurs us into action. While we wait for Christ's return we are to do the works of the kingdom of God. This means we offer support and care to fellow believers who are suffering because of their faithfulness to the name of Jesus. It also means we are not blind to the social needs in the communities around us. Through New Community we want the love and grace of God to be made known to those who are sick, oppressed, poor and treated unjustly.
» Our Mission
Our mission as a church is to make Jesus known. We believe that the good news about Jesus is the best news any man, woman or child can receive. We have experienced God at work in our lives and long for others to share this experience - the amazing grace of God.
New Community sees its primary mission field as the London Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham. Together, these four Boroughs have a population of nearly one million people. There are many wonderful and exciting things about the area where we live, but there is also a great need for the truth of Jesus to be made known. There are many God-honouring churches in this area, but still the vast majority of people do not have a relationship with Jesus. Our desire is to communicate the message of Jesus as effectively as we can and to as many people as possible, building a church that reflects the diversity of our local communities.
We also recognise our responsibility beyond our local communities and so support and assist mission in other parts of London, the UK, and overseas. We do this through prayer, giving money, and sending people.
» Our Core Values
We believe that God is Sovereign . We believe God is the ultimate power in the universe, that he made all things, sees all things, knows all things and has authority over all things. In our own lives we acknowledge His supremacy. We know that we have only come to know Him by Him graciously knowing us.
We believe a sovereign God is worthy to be loved with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and that in this giving of ourselves to him we find our ultimate happiness.
We also believe that People Matter . People matter enough to God for Jesus to come and live on this earth as one of us and even die for us.
We aim to reflect God's love for people by loving one another as He loves us. This value must be reflected in all our relationships with one another, and with those outside the church. It is because people matter that New Community will never become an introspective organisation. Our desire is to be people who bring the life of Christ to our local communities.
» Vision & Values
We regularly run a Vision & Values course for those interested in becoming members of New Community (see the 'Events' page for future dates of this course). Here you can download five short mp3 files that sum up the course:
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We meet on Sundays...
10.00am - 12noon
Crown Woods School, Riefield Road,
Eltham, London SE9 2QN. Map
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