VISION - SERVE GOD | SERVE ALL | INSPIRE OTHERS
ServeCity Church was established in 2017 by our founders, G. Andrew & Chantal Beresford, in the Scarborough district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. We are a life-giving church marked by a love for The Trinity, a heart for people and the desire to inspire and equip those in our sphere of influence to authentically live out their purpose. Learn more about us below:
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SERVECITY CHURCH IS:
HARVEST FOCUSED - In the Greater Toronto Area there are approximately 6 million people and about 50% of them do not profess Christianity (roughly 3,000,000 people). Consequently, although there are already hundreds of churches throughout the GTA, the sobering statistics remind us that there is still much work to be done. Hypothetically speaking, if all the congregations that already exist became "mega churches" (which, realistically, will never happen) there would still be millions who are yet to encounter Jesus; hence the need for more churches to be planted. The local church is God's "Plan A;" it's the most powerful vehicle for evangelism on the earth.
ServeCity Church dreams of being a movement that pioneers many fresh, life-giving congregations throughout our city and the nations of the world, inspiring and empowering other ministries to do likewise. Through this desire, we can help reach the millions in our city and around the globe who have never experienced Jesus and His earth-shattering love.
HOME GROWN - God is doing amazing things all around the world and the Greater Toronto Area is absolutely no exception. Our city is known for the Raptors, Drake and Caribana, but, we're not really on the map for God's Kingdom... yet! We're crazy enough to believe that Jesus desires to do something organic in our midst, something that originates here in our city, that will not only impact those in Canada, but also impact the nations of the world. ServeCity dreams of being a part of the church that God is building, which will put the GTA on the map because Jesus is famous here!
MISSION MINDED - Toronto is widely known for being a "mosaic" of beautiful cultures. In fact, statistics show that almost 50% of the population is foreign-born; natives of countries outside of Canada. Therefore, we believe that our city is one of the most- if not the most- strategic places on the planet to reach the nations of the world. The call to make disciples of every tribe and tongue has the potential to be fulfilled in a big way in this context. ServeCity Church dreams of unbiasedly demonstrating the love of Jesus to everyone in our sphere of influence.
GOSPEL CENTRIC - Our biggest motivation for planting ServeCity Church in the Greater Toronto Area is to see lives eternally transformed by Jesus through the power of His love. There is no other message that can eternally shift the trajectory of a person's life, from gloom to glory, like the good news about Jesus. ServeCity Church dreams of being a force through which the Holy Spirit positively impacts the inhabitants of our city and the nations of the world, and shapes the generations hereafter.
CORE VALUES
SACRED SCRIPTURE - Our belief system and practices are founded primarily on the Bible. Consequently, our leaders are committed to the study and expository preaching of God's Word. We strive to teach, preach and practice ministry in a manner that is relevant, practical and most importantly cantered around the good news about Jesus and His love. (Ephesians 4:14; 2 Timothy 2:15; 2 Timothy 3:16, 17; Romans 1:16; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 9:19-22; 1 Thessalonians 1:5; Ephesians 4:15).
HISTORY & TRADITION In order to be relevant, while still remaining anchored to to the ancient Faith, we are committed to continuously deepening of our understanding of Church History and the employment of historic Christian traditions and Creeds, as we are led by The Holy Spirit. We are not to idolize tradition; it instead should serve as a secondary guide, working in harmony with sacred Scripture and galvanizing us with the universal Christian body. (2 Thessalonians 2:15; John 21:25)
PRAYER - We are committed to constant communication with God through personal and corporate prayer as is encouraged by scripture. God is all powerful, all knowing and is present everywhere, simultaneously. Therefore, we as a church are dedicated to interceding on behalf of our city and the nations of the world as God is capable of solving any issue we as humans face (2 Chronicles 7:14; Luke 18:1; Ephesians 6:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; James 5:17).
WORSHIP & ARTS - We are committed to the praise and worship of God with our time, talents and resources. To this end, we strive to glorify God while gathered in our homes, worship facilities and most importantly in our everyday lives. Furthermore, using the arts, we endeavor to honor God, connect His people and engage culture (Ephesians 5:19; Psalms 150; 134:1, 2; Romans 12:1-2).
COMMUNITY - We are committed to following the New Testament church's example of "doing life together." In other words, we as a church, endeavor to live connected in community; serving and building one another up with love and authenticity (John 13:35; Acts 2:42, 46; Acts 4:32-35; Hebrews 10:25; Galatians 6:1, 2).
OUTREACH - Jesus' purpose for coming to Earth, the first time, was to reach and save those who were relationally separated from God, with His love. Before His return to Heaven, He empowered His followers to reach the lost and point them to Himself for salvation. To this end, we are committed to living as missionaries, reaching beyond the four walls of our gathering places to share and show the Good news about Jesus to our city and the nations of the world. Additionally, we are intentional about creating gathering environments where people can come as they are, belong and most importantly be transformed by The Gospel. (Luke 19:10; Matthew 28:19, 20; Matthew 5:16; Acts 1:8; Romans 1:16; 2 Corinthians 2:2-5).
DIVERSITY - We are committed to serving people from all walks of life. It is our desire to positively impact everyone within our reach with the Good News about Jesus and His love. No matter who a person is, what they look like or where they're from, they are welcome at ServeCity and will be treated with love and respect (John 3:16; Galatians 3:28; Matthew 28:19; Acts 1:8; Matthew 25:35-40; Matthew 23:11).
KINGDOM SUPPORT - We do not consider ourselves to be in competition with other evangelical churches. Therefore, we are committed to praying for, supporting and serving them as such opportunities arise. In as much, we hope to help maintain unity in Christ's body and advance His kingdom in our city and the nations of the world (John 17:11; 1 Corinthians 12:12-26).
MARRIAGE & FAMILY SUPPORT - We are strong proponents for healthy marriages and families. In fact, we believe that many of the issues our world faces today can be resolved through the strengthening of the family unit. Therefore, we are committed to doing all we can to support the married, those considering marriage, and families in our circle of influence (Colossians 3:18-20; Ephesians 5:22-27).
MINISTRY TRAINING - We are committed to and passionate about helping people identify their God-given gifts, callings and preparing them to walk therein. It is our belief that the future of the Church and its impact is based on our equipping and empowering those in our midst for the work of lay and vocational ministry (Ephesians 4:11, 12).
WHAT WE BELIEVE
THE NICENE CREED
The Nicene Creed, also called the Nicaeno-Constantinopolitan Creed, is a statement of the orthodox faith of the early Christian church in opposition to certain heresies, especially Arianism. These heresies, which disturbed the church during the fourth century, concerned the doctrine of The Trinity and of the person of Christ. This creed goes back partially to the Council of Nicaea (A.D. 325) with additions by the Council of Constantinople (A.D. 381) to combat more heresies. ServeCity Church affirms and accepts this creed as an accurate summary of our fundamental belief system.
“We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation He came down from heaven; he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and was made human. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried. The third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead. His Kingdom will never end. And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life. He proceeds from the Father and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. He spoke through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and to life in the world to come. Amen.”
SERVECITY CHURCH IS AN EXPRESSION OF CHRISTIANITY THAT IS:
Orthodox, but not Eastern Orthodox - To be ‘orthodox’ means to hold to the widely agreed upon and or historic beliefs of a religion. Within the context of Christianity, ServeCity is orthodox in the aforementioned sense of the word. Consequently, we are committed to the historic Christian Fatih and adherence to the various creeds and doctrines that are a result of the first seven ecumenical councils of The Church.
Catholic, but not Roman Catholic - We consider ourselves to be a part of the one, holy catholic and apostolic Church (‘catholic’ referring to the global church). This concept predates what is known officially as ‘Roman Catholicism’ today. Christianity is bigger and older that any one denomination and includes Christians everywhere, who have been baptized in the name of The Father, Son & Holy Spirit. ServeCity is catholic in this sense.
Apostolic, but not Oneness - We confess and believe that this Christian Faith was passed down and preserved, through the ages, by the Apostles of Jesus Christ and their successors. It is not new, novel nor can it be confined to any of the modern denominations that claim exclusivity today. ServeCity is apostolic in this ancient sense of the word and is not to be confused with the so called “apostolic faith” rooted in anti-Trinitarian, “oneness” theology, which originated officially in the early 20th century.
Doctrinal & Praxis Distinctives
Trinitarian - We affirm and accept the doctrine of the Trinity: One God, eternally existent in three distinct, coeternal, coequal persons: God The Father, God The Son and God The Holy Spirit. We believe this to be the unequivocal witness of both Holy Scripture and history. We consider every other view to be heresy.
Sacramentalist - We believe that one of the ways God dispenses His grace to us is through Holy Sacraments (ie. Baptism, The Eucharist, Confession etc.) God uses Sacraments to initiate us into the Christian body, forgive our sins, deepen our relationship with Him and empower us for a faithful life of service.
Charismatic - We believe in submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit, in our worship of God and service to mankind. We further believe that His supernatural gifts and manifestations (ie. prophecy, tongues, healing etc) are still in effect and available for Christians today. When used in an orderly fashion, they can build us up personally, strengthen the Church corporately and win the lost to Christ globally.
Missional - Our desire is to equip and encourage our membership to faithfully carry out Christ’s commission. By God’s grace, we strive to ever-posture our minds and actions around reaching the lost with the Gospel. We believe that this should frame and fuel our gathering and our going.
Credobaptist - At ServeCity we only water baptize those who are able to make a credible profession of faith in the Gospel of Jesus. Although we do not condemn those who practice “Infant Baptism,” we do not baptize babies. However, our pastors do lay hands on and bless the children of parents who are desirous of publicly dedicating them to the Lord, after the similitude of Jesus in Mark 10:13-16.
Soft Complementarian - The Bible outlines distinct and timeless roles for men and women. However, we believe that Scripture is clear that God has chosen to use both genders to accomplish His Gospel purposes. Consequently, we affirm, equip and create opportunities for both men and women to serve in ministry, yet and still honouring the natural and spiritual dynamics that God has designed.
Liturgical - With the hope of remaining connected with the universal Christian body and the historic Faith, we observe general Christian holidays (ie. Christmas, Lent, Easter etc.), follow a liturgical calendar, utilize vestments and ancient books in worship (ie. “Book Of The Gospels,” “The Book of Common Prayer”), recite historic creeds that champion and guard Christianity and read written prayers (in addition to our extemporaneous prayers).