Have a look at the following video shown at the Vineyard National Celebration. It shows not only the history of the Vineyard in the UK, but the real heart of what Vineyard is about.

VNC 2011: Celebrate from Vineyard Churches UK & Ireland on Vimeo.

God gave us Isaiah 61:1-4 as the blueprint for Portsmouth Vineyard:-

“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor. They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.”

John Wimber, the founder of Vineyard Churches, said “You don’t join Vineyard, you discover that you are Vineyard“.

Wimber defined the genetic code or DNA of the Vineyard:

The Bible is central to our teaching, faith and life. This has to do with simple life-oriented teaching and Biblical exposition.

Worship has to be our highest priority—not just singing, but not less than that. It has to do with regular corporate worship that is personal, intimate and non-manipulative.

Small groups are the basic structure of the Church; the place of belonging, relationships, self-disclosure, growth, discipleship and practice of ministry.

Spiritual gifts are in every believer—they are to be identified, evoked and exercised for the common good. We must be more gift-based than organisational-based.

Training is fundamental to our being Church—to ‘equip the saints’ for the work of ministry in all its aspects, and also for life itself.

Signs and wonders are a normal and regular part of Church life—to practise the ministry of compassion and power in terms of healing the sick and broken, driving out the demons and doing the supernatural works of God.

Ministry to the poor is very important to God and to the Vineyard—it should be a regular practice of mercy in terms of feeding, clothing, helping, serving, etc.

Evangelism is the call of every believer—to bring others to Christ through friendships, power encounter, and other programmes of outreach. Real Church growth means reaching out into the world and advancing the Kingdom of God.

Other Churches must be loved, respected and worked with, because we are part of the one Body of Christ. We must seek to have good relationships with the broader Church.

Church planting and missions are at the heart of the Vineyard calling. Every Church must have a vision to grow and multiply and to touch other parts of the world. John Wimber always said that the best form of evangelism is planting a new Church.

All of the above is applied without “hype”, manipulation or parental control of people.