New Life Churches
|
|
New Life Churches International is a Pentecostal Christian church denomination that was formally established in New Zealand in the 1960s. It was led for many years by Peter Morrow, an Australian evangelist. Early influences date from the 1940s when a series of meetings conducted by overseas missionaries resulted in the planting of congregations in New Zealand and Australia. Some of its early leaders, including Morrow, attended a Bible school in Sydney in 1951. Further evangelistic campaigns and training occurred throughout the 1950s.
In 1960, meetings began in Timaru that led to the establishment of Timaru New Life Centre. The first missionaries were sent overseas in this period. Also many evangelistic campaigns took place throughout New Zealand. Peter Morrow began work in Christchurch in 1962 as the pastor of the church there, which was then known as the Christchurch Revival Fellowship. By 1964, thirteen "indigenous" churches had been established in the South Island. Attention then shifted to the North Island where a number of congregations were planted.
In 1965 the first steps were taken to establish what would later become the Associated Pentecostal Churches of New Zealand, formally launched ten years later. Bible schools were established in Auckland and Christchurch. In 1978 the Christchurch Revival Fellowship renamed itself to the New Life Centre Christchurch, now known as City New Life Church. This church functioned as the administrative offices of the New Life Centres of New Zealand for many years.
The movement continued to grow throughout the 1980s with the establishment of new churches in New Zealand and the South Pacific, and missionaries continued to be sent overseas. In 1987, the New Life Centres of New Zealand changed its name to the New Life Churches of New Zealand. It also formally recognised the apostolic leadership of Peter Morrow and Rob Wheeler. The New Life Churches are now an international movement with affiliates in Australia, Asia and the Pacific. In keeping with Pentecostal congregationalist philosophy, individual churches in the NLCNZ are autonomous and not governed by the central organisation.
External link
- New Life Churches, New Zealand - Official Website (http://www.newlife.org.nz/)
- City New Life Church (Christchurch) - Official Website (http://www.cnlc.org.nz/)
- Rockfire Youth (CNLC) - Official Website (http://www.rockfire.org.nz/)