About

Our leadership, vision, values, and beliefs

Our Leadership

Travis Snode, Trustee

Travis and his wife Teri were been involved in church planting in the UK from 2004-2022. Travis now serves as the General Director of Vision Baptist Missions in Dawsonville, Georgia, USA. Travis helps oversee and carry out the work of VBM.

Jonathan VandenHurk, Trustee

Jonathan has served as pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire since 2013. He and his wife Natalie are grateful for God’s blessings on their church. Jonathan helps oversee and carry out the work of GBM.

James Wilson B:W
James Wilson, Trustee

James has served as pastor of Derry Baptist Fellowship in Derry, Northern Ireland since 2013 and has a real vision to reach the UK and Ireland with the gospel. James helps oversee and carry out the work of GBM.

Our Vision

Our vision is to glorify God by spreading the gospel, making disciples, planting churches, and training leaders.

  • Spreading the gospel involves sharing the good news of Jesus Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection with all people. We seek to do this through various means of evangelism.
  • Making disciples involves teaching the Bible to people so that they come to faith in Jesus Christ, get baptised, and become committed followers of Jesus Christ who can teach others also. We seek to do this through individual and group Bible studies and other means of training.
  • Planting churches involves evangelising an area and organising like-minded disciples into local assemblies who are committed to one another and to carrying out the Great Commission. We seek to do this through targeted evangelism, special meetings, regular group Bible studies, and mobilising churches and individuals to focus on special areas of gospel need.
  • Training leaders involves equipping faithful men and women who can teach others also. We seek to do this through specialised, life-on-life training and mentoring.

Our Values

While we rejoice in everyone who preaches the gospel of Jesus Christ, we are primarily focused on starting and growing churches with the following values:

  • Evangelical Churches that value the Biblical gospel of salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone.
  • Baptist Churches that value the historic Baptist distinctives of the sole authority of the Bible, the autonomy of the local church, the priesthood of every believer, the two ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s supper, individual soul liberty, saved church membership, the two church offices of pastor/elder/bishop and deacon, and the separation of church and state.
  • Dispensational Churches that value a literal interpretation of Scripture, a distinction between Israel and the church, and a view of salvation that it has always been by grace through faith and is provided for all.
  • Expositional Churches that value faithfully teaching the Bible in an expositional manner.
  • Great Commission Churches that value the importance of making disciples of all nations and sending missionaries around the world.

Our Beliefs

1. THE BIBLE - We believe that the BIBLE, consisting of the Old and New Testaments alone, is the WORD OF GOD, and that it is divinely inspired. We believe in the plenary, verbal inspiration, that it is the only complete and final revelation of the will of GOD to man, and the supreme, infallible authority in all matters of faith and conduct. We use the King James Version (Authorised Version) for all teaching and preaching in English. II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20,21; Mark 13:31; John 8:31,32; John 20:31; Acts 20:32

2. GOD - We believe in the Trinity, the unity of the Godhead. There are three persons: The FATHER, The SON, and The HOLY SPIRIT. They are equally perfect in every divine quality, and execute distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of redemption. (A) We believe in GOD the FATHER (B) We believe in JESUS CHRIST (C) We believe in the HOLY SPIRIT. Genesis 1:1,26; John 1:1,3; Matthew 28:19; John 4:24; Romans 1:19,20; Ephesians 4:5,6

3. THE FATHER - We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love. We believe that He infallibly foreknows all that shall come to pass, that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. Luke 10:21,22; Matthew 23:9; John 3:16; 6:27; Romans 1:7; I Timothy 1:1,2; 2:5,6; I Peter 1:3; Revelation 1:6

4. JESUS CHRIST - We believe in Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit. We believe Jesus Christ is God. We believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, and teachings. We believe in His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people, and personal visible return to earth. Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38; John 1:1; 20:28; Romans 9:5; 8:46; II Corinthians 5:21; I Peter 2:21-23; John 20:30, 31; Matthew 20:28; Ephesians 1:4; Acts 1:11; Romans 5:6-8; 6:9,10; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 9:28; I Timothy 3:16

5. THE HOLY SPIRIT - We believe in the person of the Holy Spirit who came forth from the Father and Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify, and empower all who believe in Jesus Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Christ, and that He is an abiding helper, teacher and guide. John 14:16,17,26; 15:26,27; John 16:9-14; Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; Galatians 5:22-26

6. MAN - We believe that all men by nature, choice and practice are sinners, but that "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." We believe, therefore, that those who repent of their sins and by faith receive Christ as Lord and Saviour will rejoice forever in God's presence, and those who refuse to receive Christ as Lord and Saviour will be forever separated from God. John 3:14,16; 5:24; John 5:30; 7:13; 8:12; 10:26; Romans 9:22; II Thessalonians 1:9; Rev. 19:3,20; 20:10;14,15; 21:18; Psalm 51:7; Jeremiah 17:9; James 1:14; Romans 3:19; 5:19; Proverbs 28:13; I John 1:9; John 3:16; John 1:13; II Corinthians 5:17; Romans 8:1

7. ETERNAL STATE - We believe in a literal Heaven, the eternal home of the redeemed. We believe Heaven to be the literal place where the saved will live forever in the eternal bliss and blessings of God. We believe in Hell, the Christ-less eternity for the lost, where there will be burning and tormenting for those without salvation, who have refused to receive the gospel and Jesus Christ as Lord. We believe that Hell, unbelievers, Satan and all the fallen angels shall be cast into the lake of fire to be tormented day and night forever. Matthew 13:41-43 Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-24; John 14:2; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Revelation 21-22

8. SALVATION - We believe salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, justification, sanctification, and glorification. There is no salvation apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ as Lord. Genesis 3:15; Exodus 3:14-17; 6:2-8; Matthew 1:21; 4:17; 16:21-26; 27:22-28:6; Luke 1:68-69; 2:28-32; John 1:11-14,29; 3:3-21,36; 5:24; 10:9,28-29; 15:1-16; 17:17; Acts 2:21; 4:12; 15:11; 16:30-31; 17:30-31; 20:32; Romans 1:16-18; 2:4; 3:23-25; 4:3ff.; 5:8-10; 6:1-23; 8:1-18,29-39; 10:9-10,13; 13:11-14; 1 Corinthians 1:18,30; 6:19-20; 15:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20; Galatians 2:20; 3:13; 5:22-25; 6:15; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-22; 4:11-16; Philippians 2:12-13; Colossians 1:9-22; 3:1ff.; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 2 Timothy 1:12; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 2:1-3; 5:8-9; 9:24-28; 11:1-12:8,14; James 2:14-26; 1 Peter 1:2-23; 1 John 1:6-2:11; Revelation 3:20; 21:1-22:5.

9. BAPTISM - We believe in baptism by immersion after salvation with no merit for salvation in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost (Spirit). We reject infant baptism and any form of sprinkling for infants or adults. Baptism is an outward expression of our faith in Jesus Christ and simply a public testimony of what God has done by His grace. Romans 6:1-5; Acts 8:36-38; Acts 2;41; Matthew 3:16; Matthew 28:19-20.24; John 14:2; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Revelation 21-22

10. THE CHURCH - We believe in the local church, consisting of a company of professing, born-again believers in Jesus Christ, immersed on a credible confession of faith, and associated for worship, work and fellowship. We believe that to those local churches we are committed, for perpetual observance of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's Supper, and that God has laid upon these churches the task of proclaiming to a lost world the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, and the enthroning of Him as Lord and Master. Its scriptural officers are pastors/elders and deacons. While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the offices of pastor and deacon are limited to men as qualified by Scripture. Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:42; Romans 6:3-5; I Corinthians 11:23-26; Ephesians 2:19-22; Ephesians 5:19-21; 1 Timothy 2:9-14; 3:1-15; 4:14; Hebrews 10:23-25.

11. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHURCH AND STATE - We believe that every human being is responsible to God alone in all matters of faith; that each church is independent and autonomous and must be free from any ecclesiastical or political authority; therefore, Church and State must be kept separate as having different functions with each fulfilling its duties free from the dictation or patronage of the other. Matthew 22:21; Mark 12:17; Luke 20:25; Acts 5:29; I Timothy 2:5; Romans 13:1-7; 14:7-9,12

12. SPIRITUAL GIFTS - We believe that spiritual gifts are given to the church for the express purpose of winning the lost and edifying other believers. The Holy Spirit is given to each believer upon acceptance of Christ and His purpose is to exalt and bring people to Christ. Speaking in tongues was the least important of these gifts and was given as a sign for unbelieving Jews. That is why we do not teach or practice speaking in tongues. John 7:37-39; 14:17; Acts 2:38; 1 Corinthians 1:22; 3:16-17; 6:19-20; 12-14

13. ETERNAL SECURITY - We believe in the eternal security of all blood-bought individuals or believers and that such inheritance is incorruptible, and undefiled, and that each believer is kept by the power of God and nothing can separate us from Him, ourselves included. We believe that believers can lose the joy of fellowship with God, can grieve God and can quench the Spirit of God in him or herself, but not lose his/her salvation. John 3:16; 5:24; 6:37-39; 10:27-30; Romans 8:35-39; Philippians 1:6; Titus 1:2; 1 Peter 1:5; 1 John 5:11-13; Jude 24

14. WORLD EVANGELISM - We believe that the apostolic office ceased with the death of the Apostles. We believe that it is to His church that He promised continual existence to continue the work He started until He comes again. We believe that the ministry of reconciliation is committed to every believer and all are saints/priests of God. The Lord Jesus Christ has commanded the preaching of the gospel to all nations. It is the duty and privilege of every follower of Christ and of every church of the Lord Jesus Christ to endeavour to make disciples of all nations. Matthew 16:18; 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:18-21; 1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6; 5:10

15. SECOND COMING - We believe in the literal return of Jesus Christ to the clouds to take all saved people from the earth before the beginning of the Tribulation period. We believe in his bodily/visible return with his saints at the close of the Tribulation period to rule and reign for a thousand years on earth. We believe that unbelievers will face God and be judged at the Great White Throne Judgment according to their works, not for salvation, but for their proper and rightful places in the lake of fire. I Thessalonians 4:13-18, Revelation 4:1, Matthew 16:27; Mark 14:62; John 14:3; Acts 1:11; Phil. 3:20; Thessalonians 4:15; II Timothy 4:1; Titus 2:13; I Corinthians 4:5; I Corinthians 15; II Thessalonians 1:7-10; Revelation 20:4-6,11-15

16. BIBLICAL SEPARATION - We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Saviour and Lord; and that separation from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices and associations is commanded of God. II Timothy 3:1-5; Romans 12:1-2, 14:13; I John 2:15-17; II John 9-11; II Corinthians 6:14-7:1

17. MARRIAGE - Sexual intimacy is a gift from God and is to be enjoyed exclusively within the context of marriage. Marriage is, by definition, heterosexual and between one man and one woman. Marriage ultimately serves as a type of the union between Christ and his Church. Genesis 2:23-24, Matthew 19:5-6, 1 Corinthians 7:9, Ephesians 5:31-32

18. ECUMENICALISM - We believe that doctrinal purity is essential to gospel harmony and that the Bible commands us to not partner with someone who is preaching another gospel, or teaching contrary to sound doctrine. Romans 16:17-18; II Corinthians 6:14-18; 11:1-4; Galatians 1:8-9; Ephesians 4:14-15; 5:11; Philippians 3:1-2; Colossians 2:8; II Thessalonians 3:14; I Timothy 1:3; 6:3-5; II Timothy 3:5,13; Titus 1:10-14; 3:9-11; II Peter 2:1-3; 3:17; 2 John 7-11; Jude 3; Revelation 2:2,6,14-16,20-23