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The Church of the Nazarene is a Protestant, Evangelical church in the Wesleyan tradition. Sounds impressive doesn't it? Well, actually those are just some big words used in church circles to help define us. But what do they mean?
Protestant-To be Protestant means to be a part of the Christian tradition initiated by a Catholic monk, Martin Luther, in the 16th century. The Protestant tradition arose in response to certain teachings within the Catholic tradition that Luther believed to be incompatible with the Bible. He "protested" against some of these teachings by posting 95 theses on the front door of the Wittenberg Catholic Church in 1517.
Evangelical-Further, to be Evangelical means to emphasize the biblical teaching of a personal relationship with God through his son Jesus Christ. It is a personal relationship that comes through a decision to receive God's gift of forgiveness and to allow Him to be the leader of your life. To be Evangelical also means to hold in high regard the command of Jesus Christ as he departed the earth to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit"(Matthew 28: 19). We believe that a choice to have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ is the most important decision a person can make and that all people should be given the opportunity to make that choice!
Wesleyan-Finally, to be Wesleyan means that we align ourselves with the strand of Protestant Christianity based on the biblical interpretation and practice of the 18th century Anglican minister, John Wesley. John Wesley was a pastor and preacher in London, England who taught, among other things, that God's grace is sufficient to reach to all people and to change them completely from the inside out. Wesley is also well remembered for his fervency in leading people into a relationship with Jesus Christ and for organizing these new believers into small groups. These groups helped each person to grow in their faith with the accountability and support of others. Because of their emphasis on a disciplined Christian life, Wesley and his early followers became known as "methodists" which gave rise to the early Methodist church. |
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