about us
learn about the vision behind the netOur Mission & Vision
Our vision is to connect people to small groups of faith and love
Oneanother.net is a website that allows people to connect to small groups and small groups to connect to other groups. It is run by Acacia Projects, a NZ-based, registered, independent charity, and the small group network is known as the Acacia Faith Network. We are not a denominiation or institution. We offer no governing structures, no control, no restrictions or mediation; we have no methods to follow, and we request no payment for our services.
We are simply here to love and serve.
Our vision is to connect small groups together. It is to provide an online place where people wanting to know God can connect with small groups where they can experience the love of God through His people.
We believe God is calling His people into small groups that will finally fulfill Jesus’ desire that we would be known in the world by our love for one another.
It is not hard. It is love. And it is what we are designed for.
Why Small Groups?
Our call is to love another, and no-one can love a crowd. Big meetings can carry a sense of energy or excitement, but they do not create an atmosphere for love. Why? Because love is like a conversation–it flows in the greatest measure in the smallest numbers.
If we are to love one another, our focus must be placed on our small groups. Our vision needs to be on building a growing family rather than creating a successful organization. The Early Church intentionally met in homes, not because they could not afford a building, but because they gathered to love one another. Our call is to do the same.
“Love is not a choice… It’s not an option. It’s not a recommendation. It’s not a suggestion. It is a commandment…So if we don’t do it, what are we? In one simple word, we are disobedient. So we have two options. We can either love one another the way Jesus loved us and be obedient, or we can fail to love one other and be disobedient. But remember, this is not a suggestion. It is not a recommendation. It is a commandment.”
– Derek Prince
Our Beliefs & Values
Essentials
We believe that Jesus is the Word who is both with God and is God.
We believe that the Scriptures are true and that Jesus became a man, lived among us, and then died upon the cross to take away our sin and give us victory over our selfishness. We believe He was raised to life on the third day and that He ascended into heaven and is returning in glory and power.
We believe that Jesus died not only to get us into heaven, but to restore us into our design of love. We believe that anyone can receive God’s forgiveness, be filled with His Spirit, and enter into a life of love through God’s grace. Because grace is a gift, we can only receive grace through faith–the simple confidence of the heart that accepts the blessings of God without trying to earn them.
We believe that faith is primarily expressed not by what we believe, but by our love for one another.
Love
“A new command I give to you, that you love one another.” – John 13:35
Is it possible to follow Jesus and not obey this call of love? Is it possible to obey the call of love and not meet in small groups?
The command to love is not just a suggestion or religious instruction; it is the reason for our creation. God’s whole design for life is summed up the first commands: to love God with our entire being and love one another. Love is more than a philiosophy, it is life itself. We have a vision for all Christains everywhere to become defined by the love of God.
Unity
Love is the perfect bond of unity. When we love one another, we will naturally be united with others who have the same heart to love. It is this common focus on love that allows us to connect with diverse people, who hold diverse beliefs and still find a unity of heart and soul.
Liberty
We believe in interpreting the Bible through the commands that every word depends on: loving God and loving others. But we recongise that the Bible supports a host of diverse views on different subjects within the framework of love. We believe in giving people freedom in “non-essentials”, not letting differing opinions or theological views create division or distract from our call to love.
We are at the beginning…
This project is in its infancy. If you woudl like to learn more about the project or how you or your group can be involved, please contact us! We would love to connect.