Values & Mission

What we believe

On this page you will learn more about out ministries values, mission and strategy. We encourage you to learn more about our community and what we believe. If you have any questions please click the Contact Us button below to send us a message.

Our Mission and Strategy

… To lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

…To create a church where people live with a renewed sense of hope and expectation and recognize that with God all things are possible.

Core Convictions

1. There are always new ways of doing church. We will experiment with everything and won’t fear change or challenging the status quo.
2. We have a Kingdom-mindset where we embrace all cultures and generations.
3. Our vision is written in ink, but everything else is penciled in
4. We will strive to be a Five-Star Church.
5. We will always serve the poor and less fortunate, and support local and global missions.

Our History

A small and committed group of faithful believers

In the late 1940's, a small and committed group of faithful believers gathered together in the city of San Bernardino to found, what was known then, as White Rose Church. Led by the church's founder and chief visionary, Lee Leslie Carter, these faithful believers, strengthened by prayer, worked with their bare hands, sweat and tears to build the church's first location. During Pastor Carter's tenure, the church would experience strong membership growth and impact the community in a myriad of ways.

New families joining the church and new ministries developed

Upon his retirement in the late 1970's, Pastor Carter would pass the pastoral mantle to Hardy Johnson, Sr., one of the ministers on Pastor Carter's staff. Under Pastor Hardy Johnson's leadership, the ministry of the church would continue to expand, with new families joining the church and new ministries developed. With his innate charisma, charm, character, and commitment to community service, Pastor Hardy Johnson became one of most well-known pastors in the San Bernardino area and received many accolades for his community initiatives and involvement.

New growth and development

After almost twenty years as senior pastor, Pastor Hardy Johnson welcomed his son Steven D. Johnson Sr. to become the church's next senior pastor in 1993. For the next twenty years, Pastor Steven D. Johnson Sr. relied upon his extensive managerial and theological training to help lead the church towards new growth and development. Several programs began under his leadership, including the establishment of a youth center and an after-school program. During his tenure, the church would also retire its debt obligation and ceremonially burn the mortgage.

The church in the 21st century

In July of 2013, Pastor Steven D. Johnson II was called to be the church's fourth pastor. A graduate of More house College, Duke University and the University of Redlands, Pastor Steven D. Johnson II brings a unique and dynamic amalgamation of leadership skills, business acumen and theological training. He has been charged with leading the church in the 21st century to higher heights in order to make maximum impact on local communities for the glory of God.

The House of Hope Church continues to grow

Today, the House of Hope Church continues the church's core evangelical mission of leading people to Christ while serving and strengthening our local communities. The church is multi-cultural and multi-generational and believes that the authentic church of Jesus Christ should be a place of faith, hope, love, fellowship, reconciliation, outreach and community empowerment.

What We Believe

We believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God, written by holy men of old and has been given to offer guidance, teaching, wisdom, precepts, revelations and a faith system in order for us to live our lives on earth pleasing and acceptable to our God.

We believe in an eternal triune God who created the universe and who is manifested in three persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

We believe that God revealed himself in his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, who is both divine and human in nature, and suffered, died, and rose from the cross to cleanse our sins and offer salvation to all who believe in Him. 1 Corinthians 15:3

In accordance with Acts 1: 8, we believe in the Sanctifying power of the Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, which has been bestowed upon God’s creation to empower believers for God’s purposes throughout the world. The Spirit nurtures, develops, teaches and rebukes God’s children in order to perfect them into righteousness. John 14:26

We affirm that man has been created in the image of God and was originally designed to be like God in word, thought, and deed. Due to Adam’s disobedience in the Garden of Eden, man became perverted in nature and was consequently disjointed from the will and work of God. Because of His unending grace, God sent Jesus Christ into the world to serve as a mediator of a new covenant – to reconcile man back to God. Hence, we affirm that justification is available to those who believe in Jesus Christ.

We affirm that faith in Jesus Christ is the first step of any relationship with God. We believe that we are justified by faith in Jesus Christ alone, and that faith is a necessary first-step towards performing good works for the Kingdom of God. John 3:16

We believe in the sacrament of baptism. We believe, according to Scripture, that every believer must be born again through baptism. We encourage each person in the body of Christ to be baptized.

We believe that Jesus commanded that we “remember him” through the intake of bread and wine. The Bible says that after Jesus took the bread and the cup in his hands, he commanded his disciples to “do this in remembrance of me.”

We believe that Heaven is God’s holy sanctuary where God and Jesus, angels and elected saints currently reside. We believe, according to Jesus’ teachings, that heaven is a reward given to those who live righteously before God while on earth.

We believe, as attested to in scripture, that hell is real, and that those who are not saved by the blood of Jesus Christ, will spend eternity in hell upon their death. Furthermore, we also believe that hell is wherever God is not, thus, some forms of behavior on earth are precursors to hell.

We believe that Christ has ascended into heaven, sits at the right hand of God, and will return at an appointed time to judge the living and the dead, and to usher the righteous into Heaven.

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