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WHO WE ARE.png

A BEAUTIFUL MOSAIC

Life Church NJ is a beautiful mosaic of historic Christian traditions—threads of Protestant conviction, Evangelical zeal, Reformed clarity, Baptist practice, and Charismatic vitality—woven together and held firm by one center: the Gospel work of Christ on our behalf mediated through the Word of God.

We look to the Word of God as our final authority and practice, yet we see the broader trend of evangelical churches in America today and their lack of appreciation or outright hostility towards tradition. Thus we receive the wisdom of the global, historic church while testing everything by Scripture. The result is the hope that our church reflect a family rooted in the Gospel, shaped by sound doctrine and confession, alive to the Spirit, leading to eagerness to love our neighbors.

CONFESSIONAL DISTINCTIVES

“Confessional distinctives” are the core theological convictions that your church confesses that make it distinct within the broader Christian family.

WE ARE PROTESTANT

We gladly stand in the Protestant stream: the Bible alone is our final authority; we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, to the glory of God alone. We affirm the priesthood of all believers—there is no mediator between the Christian and Christ—and we order our life together around the plain teaching of Scripture, fellowship and the breaking of bread, the preaching of the Word, the ordinances of the Church, and to fervent prayer.

WE ARE EVANGELICAL

Everything we do flows from the Gospel—the good news that Jesus saves sinners. We emphasize the personal conversion (the New Birth / John 3) of the believer, calling people to respond to God’s grace through faith in Christ, while we prioritize discipleship, and mission. Evangelical for us means Bible-centered, Christ-exalting, cross-shaped living that seeks the lost and builds the church locally and globally. All of Christ in and for all of our lives.

WE ARE REFORMED BAPTIST CONTINUATIONIST

Reformed

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We embrace a unique blend of confessional theology combining what we see to be the closest adherence to Scripture as we see it (2 Tim. 3:16). We lean towards a Historic Reformed theology which prioritizes God’s sovereign grace in salvation (election, effectual calling, justification, adoption, sanctification, and perseverance) [Eph. 1:4-5, Rom. 8:30]; the beautiful covenantal storyline of the Bible all leading to Jesus Christ; union with Christ as the heart of the Christian formation and identity; and the 5 “solas” of the Reformation: Scripture alone, grace alone, faith alone, Christ alone, to God’s glory alone.​​​​

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Baptist

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By “Reformed Baptist,” we mean Reformed theology expressed in a Baptist church. We practice believers’ baptism by immersion (Matt. 28:19–20) as a public confession of faith and entrance into the visible church, and we pursue Church Partnership (Acts 2:42) with clear commitments and convictions for the growth of the Body. We observe two ordinances (sacraments)—Baptism (periodically) and the Lord’s Supper (Monthly Communion)—as Christ’s commands for the church; communion is a regular, reverent means of grace for nourished faith and renewed repentance and not merely a symbol but sacred. (1 Cor. 11:23–26)​​​​

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Continuationist

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We joyfully affirm that the Holy Spirit continues to minister and distribute gifts for the building up of Christ’s church today (1 Cor. 12–14; Eph. 4:7–16). As Reformed Baptists, we receive His guidance through the learning, training, and mediation of the Word of God, and we practice all gifts under the sufficiency and final authority of Scripture—emphasizing the ordinary means of grace (Word, prayer, ordinances) as primary, while welcoming the Spirit’s extraordinary helps as submitted to the Word, yet fully real. The Spirit never speaks differently to Christ and the Word, thus this submission is warranted in Scripture and accommodates our fallible discernment as we grow to become all that God has called us to be. At Life Church, we cultivate a culture of teachability, authority and prayer. We believe for healing and encouragement as well as God's instruction through hardship. We practice humble prophetic & Spirit-guided encouragement (submitted for weighing by the Pastoral staff), corporate fasting, and the laying on of hands—always for comfort, upbuilding, and the authorial impartation for mission.

WE ARE NON-DENOMINATIONAL

By “non-denominational,” we mean a locally governed church not under a larger denominational affiliation. Our doctrine and practice are drawn directly from Scripture and joyfully aligned with historic, orthodox Christianity (e.g., the Apostles, Niceno-constantinopolitan creed, Athanasian Creeds). We value local autonomy with real accountability. This posture lets us be nimble in our methods while staying anchored in essentials. Non-denominational for us does not mean isolation or high-brow attitude; it means rooted and responsible freedom along with intentional connection with other like-minded and doctrinally aligned churches.

WE UPHOLD & SUBMIT TO BIBLICAL VALUES

We hold on to the Bible’s core moral values and we desire to conserve & preserve them in a country and culture that desires to either abandon them or manipulate those who abide to them. We hold to these values because they are directly commanded in Scripture and they are good for people and honor God. 

 

Scripture shows the Christlike way to live that leads to real flourishing: 

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  • Every life is precious, unborn or born. 

  • Marriage is between one man and one woman

  • Our bodies as male and female are good gifts to be stewarded with holiness.

  • Sex is wonderful, but belongs only in marriage

  • Work and integrity matter for any people

  • We care for the poor, broken and the marginalized

  • We fight for the freedom to worship the one true God. 

  • We pursue holiness, moral integrity, & Biblical justice.

  • We live as “salt & Light” in every sphere of life.

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These aren’t just “stances”: they’re a way of life rooted in God’s Word—and they sum up the Christian pattern of life.

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