What It Means That Sunridge Is an Independent, Non-Denominational Church in Temecula

If you grew up in the church, it is likely that you went to one that was affiliated with a denomination, such as Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, etc. In the last century, the vast majority of churches were a part of a denomination. A study done in 1984 indicated that only 5% of Protestant Christians attended a church that was non-denominational. However, that percentage has grown in recent years. A 2018 study showed that nearly 22% of Protestant Christians attend non-denominational churches, which is higher than the combined percentages of those attending two largest Protestant denominations (Southern Baptist and Methodist).

For a church, being part of a denomination can have certain advantages. Denominational leadership can step in to help a struggling church when needed. They may provide financial assistance, or they can help fill a leadership void temporarily (like if a lead pastor suddenly passes away or becomes too ill to fulfill his role). Denominational churches can also join forces, so to speak, to take on large projects that would be difficult for a single congregation to complete on their own. Denominations have founded colleges, established humanitarian aid organizations, started publishing houses, created missionary organizations, and more.

But being a part of a denomination has certain obligations that come with it as well. Denominational churches have to pay dues to the denomination to support their work. It is also expected that denominational churches will generally stay in line with the core beliefs of the denomination.

Each denomination has its own theological distinctives. Although most denominations agree on the core tenants of Christianity (Jesus is the Son of God, salvation is only through faith in Jesus Christ, the Bible is the Word of God), they will often differ on things like predestination vs. free will, or how they think the end times will play out, or the Holy Spirit’s role in the modern church. In addition, denominations may have guidelines regarding how sacraments, like communion and baptism, are observed, or how a church service is to be structured.

Denominational churches can be greatly affected by the decisions made by its denominational leaders. When a denomination changes its stance on certain beliefs or practices, it can even cause some churches to break ties. This is why you sometimes hear about churches leaving a denomination, or denominations splitting in two.

Okay, so we’ve talked about denominations, but what about non-denominational Christian churches—like Sunridge Church?

A non-denominational church is simply one that isn’t a part of a denomination. That’s all. You might think this is a very obvious statement, but a lot of people make certain assumptions about non-denominational churches in Temecula that simply aren’t true.

For example, some people will assume that a non-denominational church is one that has no theological statement and no oversight. The fact is that some non-denominational churches have very detailed theological stances—even more detailed than those of some denominations. Most non-denominational churches also have an organizational structure that provides the church with a system of governance and accountability for leadership. Of course, you can also find non-denominational churches in Temecula with very simple statements of faith, or no written statements at all, as well as very loose or non-existent governing structures, but this is not typical.

All of this is to say that no two non-denominational churches in Temecula are the same.

What Type of Non-Denominational Church in Temecula Is Sunridge?

At Sunridge, we have a set of Foundational Beliefs that align us with the majority of evangelical churches throughout the world. We encourage everyone to read them so they can know where we stand in our beliefs about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, as well as what we believe about the nature of humanity and what needs to take place for us to be reconciled to God. All of our core beliefs are supported by Scripture, and we’ve posted the references on the right-hand side of our Foundational Beliefs page so anyone can easily look them up.

Some people may find our core beliefs fairly basic, but this is intentional. By having a statement that doesn’t go into great detail about every possible belief that a Christian could hold, we allow room for people in our church to have differing beliefs on the things that aren’t what we would consider “primary doctrines.” We like what the 17^th Century theologian Rupertus Meldenius once said: “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”

Our non-denominational church in Temecula also has a set of By-Laws that outline how our church is governed. Even though we don’t have a denominational body that oversees our church, our pastors still have accountability in the form of an Elder Board. The current members of our Elder Board, as well as their responsibilities, are listed here.

You may have landed on this page because you are looking for a non-denominational church in Temecula to be a part of. You may have been a member of a denominational church in the past and have decided that it is no longer what you want for you and your family, or you may have certain assumptions about denominational churches that have turned you off to the idea of attending one. We want to encourage you to take the time to research any non-denominational church in Temecula that you might consider joining. There are a lot of great ones in the area, but there are also some with what we would consider to have “fringe” beliefs, or that do things that don’t align with the Word of God.

If you have questions about what Sunridge believes or how our church is structured, we would love to answer them! We intentionally set aside a time every month to meet with people who are new to our church or who are simply checking it out. We call it our “Welcome to Sunridge” event, and it’s open to anyone. We’ll even feed you lunch! If you are someone who has called Sunridge “home” for a while but still have some questions, our leaders are always open to hearing from you as well. You can talk to any of our pastors or elders for clarification about what our non-denominational church believes at any time!