OUR MISSION & VISION
The mission of Vision Church is to draw people to Jesus Christ, disciple them in God’s Word, and deploy them to serve Christ. The result is that Vision Church is Christ-centered, inwardly strong, and outwardly focused. Through this our vision is to become a Revival Center for the Nations.
OUR STORY
In the year 2022, a small but passionate group of believers came together to establish Vision Church in the city of Haverhill, Massachusetts. What began as a humble gathering of just a few people meeting in a living room quickly blossomed as family members, friends, and neighbors were drawn to the powerful preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Day by day, the Lord added to their number, with new converts being saved and joining the congregation. As the church continued to grow, the dedicated members of Vision Church have remained steadfast in their commitment to developing strong Christian leaders who are equipped to carry out The Great Commission. Through their unwavering faith and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, this vibrant community of believers has set its sights on blessing the nations through missionary work, powerful evangelistic crusades, and compassionate outreach to those who are incarcerated or in need within their local community. Vision Church's ultimate vision is to reflect the boundless love of Christ in all that they do, sharing the life-transforming message of salvation and making disciples for the Kingdom of God. With deep roots planted firmly in Haverhill, this young but dynamic church body is poised for incredible growth and impact as they continue to follow the leading of the Lord.
SENIOR PASTORS
Pastors Jesus and Jeneschya Sanchez exemplify the transformative power of faith through their remarkable life journeys. Raised in the city of Lawrence, Massachusetts, Jesus faced early struggles with drugs and gang involvement, leaving him feeling lost. However, a profound encounter with the Lord ignited a spiritual rebirth. After surrendering to God’s mercy and immersing himself in Scripture, he dedicated his life to serving others. A graduate of Mizpah Bible Institute and North Point Bible College, Jesus uplifts souls through music, preaching, mental health advocacy, and ministering to those behind bars, embodying the grace of God in his mission to bring hope and healing. Jeneschya's journey is equally inspiring. Navigating the challenges of the adoption system, she often felt alone, yearning for the love and stability of a family. In her darkest moments, she discovered Christ's transformative love, leading her to embrace God's will and fill the void in her life. As a beloved pastor, she has held various leadership positions, including serving on the church board, and graduated from Mizpah Bible Institute. Her commitment to missionary work has taken her around the world, sharing the message of hope and salvation. Together, the Sanchez family leads Vision Church with unwavering dedication, reminding their community that even in the darkest times, the light of God's love can illuminate a path toward a brighter future. Their lives stand as a testament to the redemptive power of faith and the calling to serve others.
STATEMENT OF FAITH
The Bible, both Old and New Testament, is God’s inspired Word, without error in its original writing, the complete revelation of His will for the salvation of men. The Word of God is a “living and powerful” resource that serves as the believer’s final authority for Christian faith and living. In 2 Timothy 3:16-17 we see that the Scriptures were inspired or “breathed by God”—that is, the breath or Spirit of God infused the minds of the writers with His perfect will and truth. The end result of this inspiration is that the Bible reveals the truths which God wants His people to know and communicate to the world. (Hebrews 4:12; 1 Peter 1:23-25; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Isaiah 46:11; Romans 10:15)
We believe in one God, Creator of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally existing simultaneously in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 3:16-17; Genesis 1:26; 1 John 5:6-7; Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 18:19; Mark 12:29; Isaiah 43:10; 11, Matthew 28:19; John 14:16- 20; Acts 10:36-38)
Man was created in the image of God to know Him and be like Him. For God said, “Let us make man in our image and after our likeness.” Through an act of man’s own free will, he fell from grace and became sinful in his entire nature and action. Man’s only hope of redemption is through the free gift of grace given by God through His son Jesus Christ. (Genesis 1:26-31; Genesis 3:17; Romans 5:12- 21).
We believe that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus. The blood of Jesus, shed on the cross, provides the only way of salvation through the forgiveness of sin. Salvation occurs when people recognize and confess their sin and place their faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus as sufficient payment for their sin. Salvation is a gift from God, and it cannot be earned through our own efforts. (John 3:16, 6:44, 65; Eph 2:8-9; Gal 2:16, 3:8; Titus 3:5; Rom 10:9-10; Acts 2:21, 3:19, 16:31; Heb 9:22; I John 1:9-10)
By the power of the Holy Spirit we strive to obey the command, “Be ye holy, for I am holy.” We believe that sanctification is the work of God’s grace by which the believer is separated from sin and becomes dedicated to the pursuit of God’s righteousness. Sanctification is both instantaneous through God and Christ and progressive through man’s obedience to the Holy Spirit and the Word. The result of sanctification is the purification from sin by both the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit. (1 Peter 1:15-16; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; John 17:17; Romans 8:34)
All believers are entitled to and should ardently expect and earnestly seek the promise of the Father, the baptism in the Holy Spirit and fire, according to the command of our Lord Jesus Christ. This was the normal experience of all in the early Christian church. With it comes the enduement of power for life and service, the bestowment of the gifts and their uses in the work of the ministry (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4,8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31). This experience is distinct from and subsequent to the experience of the new birth (Acts 8:12-17; 10:44-46; 11:14-16; 15:7-9). With the baptism in the Holy Spirit come such experiences as an overflowing fullness of the Spirit (John 7:37-39; Acts 4:8), a deepened reverence for God (Acts 2:43; Hebrews 12:28), an intensified consecration to God and dedication to His work (Acts 2:42), and a more active love for Christ, for His Word, and for the lost (Mark 16:20).
The Great Commission is a mandate given to all believers by Jesus Christ which says: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19–20; 24:14; 26:13; Mark 14:9; 16:15–18; Luke 24:46–49; John 20:21–22; Acts 1:8; Romans 1:8; Colossians 1:6) We believe that the fulfillment of the Great Commission is accomplished through the public statement of the gospel of Jesus Christ and by witnessing to the unsaved in order to win disciples for Him and the church. The message is the Good News that Jesus died for our sins, and was resurrected according to prophecy, and that as the reigning Lord now offers the forgiveness of sins to all who repent and believe. (2 Corinthians 5:14–15; Matthew 5:16; 1 Peter 2:9; Philippians 2:15– 16; 1 Peter 4:10–11)
The church is the collective body of Christ, made up of individual born again believers in Jesus. Each believer is an integral part of the church and his or her name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2:47; 1 Corinthians 11:18; 14:19, 23, 28, 33, 34; 15:9; Ephesians 1:22- 23; Colossians 1:24; Revelation 3:5)
The purpose of the local church is to fulfill the great commission (Section G), edification, and worship. Edification involves the building up of a person’s faith and dedication to Christ through preaching and teaching of the Word of God; fellowship through group interaction; and love through the application of the teachings of Jesus Christ. Worship involves, but is not limited to, blessing of God through music, prayer, communion, tithes and offerings, and giving ourselves for service. (Deuteronomy 12; Psalm 134; Psalm 147:7; Acts 17:22-31; Acts 20:33-35; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; 12:12; 2 Corinthians 4:5; Ephesians 4:1-12; Jeremiah 26:2)
Divine healing is both physical and spiritual in nature. The central focus of divine healing is in the person of Jesus Christ. He is the center and source of all healing gifts and miracles from God. All that we are and have is provided for in the atonement of Jesus Christ including the privilege of petition for divine physical healing. However, this privilege does not guarantee a physical healing. Vision Church of Jesus Christ – Constitution & Bylaws – Revised July 1st, 2022 Page 10 of 33 The ultimate spiritual healing was done when Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins and we became born again. His righteousness at the moment of our salvation covered our sins and we have been spiritually healed and saved from the penalty of death. (Numbers 21:5-9; Isaiah 53:4-5; Matthew 8:16-17; John 3:14-15; 1 Peter 2:24; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
The resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in Christ and their translation together with those who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord is the imminent and blessed hope of the Church (1 Thessalonians 4:16,17; Romans 8:23; Titus 2:13; 1 Corinthians 15:51,52).
The second coming of Christ includes the rapture of the saints, which is our blessed hope, followed by the visible return of Christ with His saints to reign on the earth for one thousand years (Zechariah 14:5; Matthew 24:27,30; Revelation 1:7; 19:11-14; 20:1-6). This millennial reign will bring the salvation of national Israel (Ezekiel 37:21,22; Zephaniah 3:19,20; Romans 11:26,27) and the establishment of universal peace (Isaiah 11:6-9; Psalm 72:3-8; Micah 4:3,4).
All people will be judged and stand before the righteous judge Jesus Christ and give account for their lives. True born again believers in Jesus Christ will not be judged by their works but receive crowns as rewards. Those people who have not been saved will be judged based on their own works and inability to live a sinless life apart from Christ. (Psalm 19:9; Romans 14:10-12; Romans 2:5-6; 2 Peter 3:7-15; Ezekiel 38:22; Revelation 2:23; Matthew 13:36-43; 2 Corinthians 5:10; 2 Timothy 4:6-8; James 1:12; 1 Peter 5:4; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9)
There will be a new heaven and a new earth after the end of the millennial reign of Jesus Christ and after the final Judgment, wherein righteousness dwells. (Isaiah 65:17; 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21-22:5)
WATER BAPTISM Following faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the new believer is commanded by the Word of God to be baptized in water in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. (Matt 28:19; Acts 2:38; Mark 16:16; Acts 8:12, 36-38; 10:47-48) COMMUNION Following Jesus’ command in Luke 22, communion is a unique time of reflection and worship in the presence of God when the elements of bread and juice (the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ) are taken in remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. (Matt 26:26-29; 1 Cor 10:16, 11:23-25 niv) MARRIAGE It is God who created both man and woman, and it is God who designed and blessed the first marriage and family. We affirm that marriage is defined in the Bible as a sacred covenant between one man and one woman, instituted by God and publicly entered into before God, and that children are a gift from God. We affirm that there are two genders, male and female, and only two genders, as designed by God and as determined at birth and affirmed through science. “But at the beginning of creation God made them male and female. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” – Jesus, Mark 10:6 (Gen 1:27-28, 2:18, 2:24; Deut 22:5 esv; Ps 127:3 nlt, 139:13-16; Jer 1:5; Rom 1:26-27; Lev 18:22; 1 Cor 6:9-10; 1 Tim 1:3-17)