Vision & Values
Belmont exists to help people experience, explain, and demonstrate the good news that in following Jesus Christ we know peace and life with God. All that we stand for as a church is summed up in our strapline: “Sharing the Story, Living the Life.” Equipped and empowered by the Holy Spirit, we want to be sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ in our conversations and also living out our faith in acts of love and concern. As God uses us in both of these ways, our prayer is that more and more people will come to know Jesus for themselves as Saviour and Lord and join us in worshiping Him.
Values: WHAT are the principles that guide HOW we do things?
Our core values find practical expression in four commitments: Knowing, Growing, Caring, and Sharing.
We have a commitment to KNOWING God’s Word because we value
Scripture – we believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God and aim to base all aspects of our church life on its teachings (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Our understanding of these teachings is summarized in the Evangelical Alliance’s Basis of Faith (which you’ll find at the end of this page).
Obedience – because Jesus is our Lord, we want to be obedient to all that He commands. Two of those commands play a particularly important role in our communal life as believers: baptism (Matthew 28:19) and communion (1 Corinthians 11:23-25).
We have a commitment to GROWING in God’s truth because we value
Transformation – we want to “be transformed by the renewing of [our] mind” (Romans 12:2) as we meditate on God’s Word, and we want to “live by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16), increasingly demonstrating His fruit – “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23) – as we mature in Christ.
Discipleship – just as Jesus called His original disciples to learn, live, and love together, so we cherish the biblical picture of the church as an interdependent whole – a body in which every member has an important part to play (1 Corinthians 12) – a body which needs to be built up “until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 2:13).
We have a commitment to CARING for God’s people because we value
Love – God is love and calls His worshippers to a life of love based on all that He has done for us in Christ (1 John 4). We aim to love and serve others even when we disagree: “Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:10).
Relationships – our relationships with each other should aim to reflect the unity that exists within the triune God (John 17:20-23). We therefore “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3), and seek to support our leaders (1 Thessalonians 5:12-13).
We have a commitment to SHARING with God’s world because we value
Generosity – we want to be generous with our time, our money, and our attitudes, remembering Jesus’ words that “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
Evangelism – because the Good News of salvation in Christ is the best thing God has given us, we want to share this story with others (Romans 10:13-15; 1 Peter 3:15).
Small Groups, Care & Support
Home Groups
There are quite a few people who come to Belmont. The best way to enjoy the friendship and fellowship that Belmont offers is to join a home group. These are groups of Christians from Belmont who meet a couple of times a month at various locations across the city. They are the primary place where we grow as Christians and are encouraged and challenged to go deeper in our walk with Jesus. That’s why we encourage everyone who comes to Belmont regularly to join a home group.
Pastoral Care
We work to be a friendly, caring church where most day-to-day care for each other is given through home groups. But for many of us there may be times in our lives (such as bereavement, illness or family problems) when we’d appreciate a little extra help and that’s where the Care Team can help out by putting you in touch with someone who can offer support.
Prayer @ Belmont
Prayer is vital for everything we do at Belmont and happens in lots of different ways. After services ask a prayer team member or another Christian to pray with you on any matter large or small. Prayer Thursday meets on Zoom at 7.15am and 1.00pm each Thursday. It’s a group that prays together for Belmont’s ministry at home and further afield. Each week we have a different prayer focus. Come and join us!
Our beliefs
We are members of the Evangelical Alliance and have adopted their statement of belief.
Here is what we believe.
God
The one true God who lives eternally in three persons – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
God’s work in the world
The love, grace and sovereignty of God in creating, sustaining, ruling, redeeming and judging the world.
God’s word, the bible
The divine inspiration and supreme authority of the Old and New Testament Scriptures, which are the written Word of God—fully trustworthy for faith and conduct.
The human race
The dignity of all people, made male and female in God’s image to love, be holy and care for creation, yet corrupted by sin, which incurs divine wrath and judgement.
The Lord Jesus Christ
The incarnation of God’s eternal Son, the Lord Jesus Christ—born of the virgin Mary; truly divine and truly human, yet without sin.
The death of the Lord Jesus
The atoning sacrifice of Christ on the cross: dying in our place, paying the price of sin and defeating evil, so reconciling us with God.
The resurrection
The bodily resurrection of Christ, the first fruits of our resurrection; his ascension to the Father, and his reign and mediation as the only Saviour of the world.
Salvation
The justification of sinners solely by the grace of God through faith in Christ.
The Holy Spirit
The ministry of God the Holy Spirit, who leads us to repentance, unites us with Christ through new birth, empowers our discipleship and enables our witness.
The church
The Church, the body of Christ both local and universal, the priesthood of all believers—given life by the Spirit and endowed with the Spirit’s gifts to worship God and proclaim the gospel, promoting justice and love.
The future
The personal and visible return of Jesus Christ to fulfil the purposes of God, who will raise all people to judgement, bring eternal life to the redeemed and eternal condemnation to the lost, and establish a new heaven and new earth.
