Gather with us to worship at 9:00 AM each Sunday at the Youth for Christ Building. 1400 N. College St, Auburn, AL.
Our Story
God has been at work in our community for a long time. The story of Vineyard Auburn is the weaving together of multiple stories God has been telling.
One of those stories is the story of Auburn itself. Auburn is rapidly growing, and on pace to reach a population of 100K in the next decade. Auburn is home to Auburn University, where almost 30K students from many nations have come to spend these highly formative years of their lives. Auburn has a rich spiritual heritage, and for generations has had countless men and women praying for the growth of God’s kingdom here. Like many growing cities, while the population is on the rise, people’s connection to Jesus, the gospel, and the church is on the decline. Auburn is an increasingly plentiful harvest that needs new and fresh expressions of the gospel and the church.
In 2018, Josh and Jennifer Yates, along with their family, moved to Auburn to work and serve at First Presbyterian Church of Opelika. First Pres had and has a longstanding desire to be a church that plants churches. With Josh’s background in campus ministry, a love for people, and a vision for church planting, this vision of planting a new church in Auburn for Auburn began to take root.
Through countless hours of prayer and discernment, Vineyard Auburn was born, with a hope and desire to bring the transforming power of the gospel to bear on all the places people live, learn, work, and play. In July of 2023, the Yates family were launched to plant Vineyard Auburn, along with a handful of families from First Pres and other churches in the area. Vineyard Auburn is a plant of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC).
Josh Yates, Lead Pastor
Our Name: Why 'Vineyard Church Auburn'
In John 15, Jesus shares a foundational paradigm for the way his church is supposed to think about their identity and mission. He gives them the image of a Vineyard. Throughout the Bible, God often refers to his people as his vineyard. We belong to God. We are his special people. We draw our life and everything from him. As his vineyard, we are called to bear fruit that honors him and provides a feast our neighbors can enjoy, so that they join us in ‘tasting and seeing that the Lord is good’.
"I am the true Vine … Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." - Jesus in John 15
In Christ,
In Auburn,
For the World.
We believe that our true and deepest identity is as children of God, united to Jesus Christ by faith. The call on each of us is to rest deeper and deeper into the grace, love, and life that God has given us in Jesus Christ.
We also believe that just as God has placed us In Christ, he has placed us in Auburn. Our hope is to bring the life changing power of the gospel to this city, to all the places where we live, learn, work, and play.
We also believe that what God is doing in us and in Auburn is part of something much bigger. God is at work around the world, redeeming a people ‘from every tribe, tongue, language, and nation’. This world-wide story of redemption sets the foundation for all that God is doing here at Vineyard Auburn.
Learning to
Abide, Love,
and Welcome.
We believe the work of the gospel is both internal and external. The gospel shapes who we are and how we relate with the people and world around us. As a branch stays connected to and draws its life from the vine, we are called to ABIDE in Jesus and experience the life sustaining and life changing power of the gospel.
As the gospel changes and shapes us to look and live more like Jesus, we learn to LOVE one another the way that Jesus loved us, by laying down his life to love and serve others. The primary fruit of the gospel in our lives is a life of love. Love for God that overflows into a life of love for one another.
Jesus is the ultimate hope for every human heart and need. As Jesus works in us, he also works through us, as we WELCOME our neighbors to draw near, and to taste and see that the Lord is good.
Our Convictions
TRUTH: The Bible is Truth, and is the sole authority and foundation for the church and our lives.
GRACE: The gospel is the good news about who Jesus is and what Jesus has done. Further, the grace we receive in Jesus shapes everything about who we are and how we live.
DISCIPLESHIP: The call of the gospel is to a whole-life pursuit of beholding and becoming like Jesus
MULTIPLICATION: The mission of the church is to multiply disciples of Jesus through evangelism and the planting of new churches
BLESSING: The church is called to be a conduit of God’s blessing to our city and the world
Our Values
PRAYER: We are a people who embrace weakness and dependence. The gospel frees us to admit our weakness and inability, and invites us to lean into the power and sufficiency of Jesus. We do this as we pray for ourselves, for one another, and for the city and world where God has us.
PRESENCE: We are a people who practice faithful presence in the footprint of our lives. A life of love is a life that shows up for the places and people around them.
GENEROSITY: We are a people who embody radical generosity. The gospel is the good news that God generously spent himself for our sake. In response, we view every facet of our lives as a resource for the sake of God’s kingdom, for the sake of others.
FEASTING: We are a people who share our lives and share our tables. The life of the gospel is a life of deep sharing and fellowship as we welcome one another around our table. The practice of inviting others to gather around our tables cultivates hope, joy, and anticipation of the life to come.
WITNESS: We are a people who live as winsome witnesses. As the gospel takes root in our lives, it manifests itself in bold and winsome witness to who Jesus is and what he has done, in us and for the world.
