We believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God and is relevant and neccessary for practical godly living and success.

We believe that an essential part of living a successful and victorious Christian life is being baptised, filled and led by the Holy Spirit.

We value the tangible presence of God in our lives as a source of God’s grace, comfort and refreshing. We believe that there should be a distinctive touch of God on our services and ministries. God must be seen and felt, and Jesus must be at the centre of all our services.

We value, honour and make great the name and character of our God through exciting, dynamic, energetic and contemporary praise and worship.

We value all people on the basis of the great commandment – to love our neighbour as ourselves. We value relationships that unite people regardless of age, race, gender, social standing or economic level. Sexual purity in romantic relationships is essential for building godly lives. Everyone should be plugged into church life through relationships, not programmes. We should cultivate friendships with non-believers so as to reach and love our community. We encourage and value respectful relationships between people and their leaders as one of the keys to a healthy, united church. Being online, though practical and safe, can never substitute for building real, in-person relationships in the kingdom.

We believe that character is more important than gifting, and that a godly life brings honour and respect to the church of God, and increased influence in the world. True believing should affect our behaviour, and believers should be people of the highest integrity, honesty and trustworthiness in family, business and social spheres.

Prayer is a means of empowering ourselves and accomplishing the will of God on the earth. We have prayer meetings, prayer in our services, prayer in Connect Groups and prayer as a lifestyle that permeates every activity of life.

We believe in doing the very best for God in every aspect of our lives and ministries. God’s people and facilities should reflect the God of excellence whom we serve. This is encapsulated in the following phrases: “finding a way to win”and “only the best for God”. Punctuality is also a value that reflects excellence.

We believe that all members should be faithful financial partners with their local church so as to empower and equip us for ongoing impact. We believe that money is an essential ingredient of an effective and influential church.

We believe in strong marriages and healthy families, as they are the foundation of a godly nation. We provide a course to prepare couples for successful marriages. We help strengthen and restore families and marriages through preaching, teaching and pastoral care. We provide help, spiritual support and encouragement for single parents and those in broken homes.

Rivers is a non-racial, non-sexist, fully integrated church. We believe that a truly South African and global church should include all nationalities and race groups, and have both men and women serving in ministry.

We believe that our church should be both large and healthy. Our goal is to reach and help as many people as possible, integrating them as totally committed disciples of Christ who have made a partnership commitment to serve in this church. One of the signs of health is increase. The church that is not reaching out is passing out. We have a sense of warmth, family and community despite large numbers. Community is an attitude and a value rather than a product of a small church.

At Rivers, all age groups have a part to play in the life of the church. Our young people are not the church of tomorrow but the church of today.We include young people in all ministries so that they learn to carry spiritual responsibility from a young age. We are raising and developing their gifts and abilities so as to have godly young people and a steady flow of emerging leaders. Our unique Kidszone ministry centre bears testament to the fact that we are serious about the next generation.

We believe that our church should make a significant social contribution to the world’s poor. We help poor and underprivileged communities in many practical ways so as to lift the level of their lives. We believe that we are blessed to be a blessing to others and that faith without works is dead. The Rivers Foundation and Connect Groups are our key avenues for showing compassion and giving financial aid and service to the poor.We believe in community upliftment.

Our conferences as well as our Discipleship College equip believers to be successful and fruitful in their personal, family, business and spiritual lives, with the RiversNetwork being a resource to the wider body of Christ.Conferences create an intensive opportunity to inspire believers as well as pastors from other churches. OurResource Centre provides carefully selected resources to direct and shape the Rivers culture and equip people for success.

Emotional: Jesus came to bind the brokenhearted and restore dignity and purpose to every human being. We believe that God heals and restores lives and marriages as we follow Him, serve Him and sit under the teaching of the Word. God also works through the wise counsel and loving care of our trained pastoral team.
Physical: According to the promises of God, every believer is entitled to believe for physical health and wellness.This can come through the prayer in services, the laying on of hands or the appropriation by the believer of theWord of God.

We believe that our church must always be reaching out at every opportunity to introduce people to Christ. We always try to keep open the circle of our fellowship with a friendly, accepting attitude that welcomes and includes newcomers. We have a connection time in all services so as to build a bridge to newcomers. A response time at the end is the most important part of our service as the opportunity to welcome and receive people into the body of Christ.

We believe that attenders should become disciples who grow into fully devoted followers of Christ, who stand through trials and serve the purposes of God. Every believer has a God-given gift that they need to discover and offer inservice for the enriching of the body of Christ. We encourage attenders to become partners and fully committed members who serve God with their time, talent and treasure. It is a biblical principle that ALL people are involved and serve in their local church, not just the salaried staff.

We believe that our daily lives and service to God should be accompanied by a spirit of fun, celebration and joy. A large, ever-expanding life can be lived to the full without over-indulgence and sin. Our church services and ministry are accompanied by a sense of fun, humour, celebration and community, whilst not losing the true spirit of worship and honouring God. 

We believe our nation can overcome its weaknesses and develop to reach its true potential. The church should be supportive, loyal and patriotic. While not overlooking the issues, negative and critical talk should not be part of our vocabulary. We should speak well of our nation and its leaders, always highlighting the possibilities and potential as our church endeavours to play a part in building the nation.