Nexus Church Review

This Sunday I am venturing into a Pentecostal church – Nexus Church in Everton Park.

Like many of these churches, Nexus Church doesn’t explicitly self-identify as Pentecostal. Most just identify as ‘non-denominational’ (not part of a major group such as Catholic, Anglican, Uniting).

So, I hear you ask… how do I know that it’s a Pentecostal church? Well let’s play a game… look up your local mega-church’s website and identifying the signs with me:

• Does the church have a catchphrase name with a logo created by a graphic designer? Hillsong, Nexus Church, Majestic and Hope-City are all examples from Brisbane.
• Are there images of a well lit stage with a full band and an adoring crowd? This is not a special event you’re looking at, this is their Sunday morning service.
• Is there a ministry team that is led by a husband and wife couple? Sometimes they are both pastors or maybe just the husband is a pastor and the wife is pictured to affirm their devotion to the traditional concept of marriage.
• Read their ‘About – Beliefs’ section and count the number of times the Holy Spirit is referred to. If it’s more than once, then it’s probably a Pentecostal church. Pentecostals emphasise baptisms by the Holy Spirit and believe speaking in tongues is evidence of this.
• Does the phrase “the Bible is God’s Word. It is accurate, authoritative and applicable” appear? This reflects their belief in Biblical inerrancy and as such they read the Bible literally. It’s also been copied directly from the Australian Christian Churches’ website (a Pentecostal organisation): https://www.acc.org.au/about-us/.

The Sunday Experience

I’ve slept in and missed the 8:30 am service. But good news! This church is youth orientated, so they also have a 10:15 am service that I’ll make.

I arrive and as I walk towards the church I can see a hive of activity at the entrance. There’s a McDonald’s style playground full of children; coffee orders are being shouted over the crowd from the “Alley” cafe and a hundred or so people are chatting. It’s the changeover between the 8:30 and 10:15 am services.