Terry Virgo
Encyclopedia
Terry Virgo is a prominent leader in the British New Church Movement, (formerly known as the House Church Movement). He is the founder of the Newfrontiers
family of neocharismatic evangelical
churches, which has grown into an international apostolic network of over 700 churches in more than 60 nations. He is a leading Reformed Charismatic. He is married to Wendy and together they have five grown up children and twelve grandchildren.
on the English South Coast. He was not brought up in a believing home, though he was sent to Sunday school at both a high Anglican church, and a low Presbyterian Church, where he "never heard the gospel." When Virgo was 16 his sister became a believer, and through her he too was touched by God: he "got down on his knees and began to weep." At first he went to a formal Anglican Church, but when he visited Holland Road Baptist Church, he said "the moment I went through the door, I realised that these people had got what I had." The pastor, E. G. Rudman, exercised a great influence on Virgo at a formative stage." Rudman was a supporter of the Keswick Convention
. Virgo was also influenced by Denis Clarke and Campbell MacAlpine.
, Virgo was influenced by the Charismatic Movement
. Having become disillusioned by his experience in traditional UK churches, he sought to direct his church toward what he considered its New Testament "charismatic roots." He was influenced in this pursuit by the teaching of the British Restorationist
Arthur Wallis
, who believed that a return of the charismatic gifts
(such as prophecy
and speaking in tongues
) to the traditional denominations was not sufficient and that a more thorough restoration of church life to a New Testament pattern was necessary. Particular attention was initially given to the "Ephesians 4" ministries of apostle, prophet
, evangelist
, and pastor/teacher, and over time a broader understanding of the nature of church life began to emerge.
Newfrontiers has used week-long conferences, known as "Bible weeks" as an important strategy for growth and the development of its identity. Known originally as Downs Bible Weeks, running for a decade from 1979, they were later called Stoneleigh. The Downs Bible Week ran for a decade from 1979 and gathered up to 20,000 people at its height. Expositional Bible
teaching from its main leaders, or Apostolic Team and lively worship
were major features of the event.
In January 2011 it was announced that Terry would move from Church of Christ the King in Brighton to help lead a Newfrontiers
church in Kingston-upon-Thames, London.
rather than by one person.
, that baptism in the Holy Spirit is a distinct/separate experience from conversion. He thus differs with many evangelicals on this matter, including John Wimber
's tentative view and Wayne Grudem
. Virgo would say that the Samaritan experience in Acts 8 and the Ephesian disciples' experience in Acts 19 make it clear that baptism in the Holy Spirit does not always happen 'automatically' upon conversion.
Regarding the common argument that you cannot get doctrine from narrative passages like in Acts but must rely on didactic portions of scripture like the Epistles, Virgo says, 'that is wrong', and simply quotes 2 Tim 3:16 which says that "all scripture... is profitable for.. doctrine...". He thus differs with 'Third Wave
' charismatics who typically hold that baptism in the Holy Spirit happens upon conversion.
Virgo does not believe that tarrying meetings are necessary (as taught in some Pentecostal circles), he says: 'After the day of Pentecost no one is ever told to wait [for the baptism in Holy Spirit]... The waiting is only until the day of Pentecost...'
which has strongly influenced the Evangelical view ever since. He says: 'We do believe in the ongoing role of apostles and all Ephesians 4 gifts. We do recognize that of course the original twelve Apostles were unique, and that the canon of Scripture is complete. We do see the need however, today, for master builders in helping to establish foundations in local churches and for fathers in the faith." Church historian Derryck Lovegrove has observed that Virgo has "enjoyed a powerful personal hegemony," referring to Virgo's influence both within his own movement, and the wider British New Church Movement.
Newfrontiers
Newfrontiers is a neocharismatic apostolic ministry network of evangelical, charismatic churches founded by Terry Virgo. It forms part of the British New Church Movement, which began in the late 50s and 60s combining features of Pentecostalism with British evangelicalism...
family of neocharismatic evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
churches, which has grown into an international apostolic network of over 700 churches in more than 60 nations. He is a leading Reformed Charismatic. He is married to Wendy and together they have five grown up children and twelve grandchildren.
Early life
Virgo was born and raised in BrightonBrighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
on the English South Coast. He was not brought up in a believing home, though he was sent to Sunday school at both a high Anglican church, and a low Presbyterian Church, where he "never heard the gospel." When Virgo was 16 his sister became a believer, and through her he too was touched by God: he "got down on his knees and began to weep." At first he went to a formal Anglican Church, but when he visited Holland Road Baptist Church, he said "the moment I went through the door, I realised that these people had got what I had." The pastor, E. G. Rudman, exercised a great influence on Virgo at a formative stage." Rudman was a supporter of the Keswick Convention
Keswick Convention
The Keswick Convention is an annual gathering of evangelical Christians in Keswick, in the English county of Cumbria.- History :The Keswick Convention began in 1875 as a catalyst and focal point for the emerging Higher Life movement in the United Kingdom. It was founded by an Anglican, Canon T. D....
. Virgo was also influenced by Denis Clarke and Campbell MacAlpine.
Ministry
As a young pastorPastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
, Virgo was influenced by the Charismatic Movement
Charismatic movement
The term charismatic movement is used in varying senses to describe 20th century developments in various Christian denominations. It describes an ongoing international, cross-denominational/non-denominational Christian movement in which individual, historically mainstream congregations adopt...
. Having become disillusioned by his experience in traditional UK churches, he sought to direct his church toward what he considered its New Testament "charismatic roots." He was influenced in this pursuit by the teaching of the British Restorationist
Charismatic Restorationism
The British New Church Movement is a neocharismatic evangelical Christian movement associated with the Charismatic Movement of the 1960s, although its origin both predates the Charismatic Movement and has an agenda that goes beyond it. It was originally known as the "house church movement", a name...
Arthur Wallis
Arthur Wallis (Bible teacher)
Arthur Wallis : itinerant Bible teacher and author. Through his teaching and writing, most notably his book The Radical Christian , Wallis gained the reputation of ‘architect’ of that expression of UK evangelicalism initially dubbed ‘the house church movement’, more recently labeled British New...
, who believed that a return of the charismatic gifts
Spiritual gift
In Christianity, spiritual gifts are endowments given by the Holy Spirit. These are the supernatural graces which individual Christians need to fulfill the mission of the church. They are described in the New Testament, primarily in , , and . also touches on the spiritual gifts...
(such as prophecy
Prophecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
and speaking in tongues
Glossolalia
Glossolalia or speaking in tongues is the fluid vocalizing of speech-like syllables, often as part of religious practice. The significance of glossolalia has varied with time and place, with some considering it a part of a sacred language...
) to the traditional denominations was not sufficient and that a more thorough restoration of church life to a New Testament pattern was necessary. Particular attention was initially given to the "Ephesians 4" ministries of apostle, prophet
Prophet
In religion, a prophet, from the Greek word προφήτης profitis meaning "foreteller", is an individual who is claimed to have been contacted by the supernatural or the divine, and serves as an intermediary with humanity, delivering this newfound knowledge from the supernatural entity to other people...
, evangelist
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
, and pastor/teacher, and over time a broader understanding of the nature of church life began to emerge.
Newfrontiers
The network of churches that related to Terry Virgo originally used the name Coastlands, and then New Frontiers International, finally settling on Newfrontiers. By the end of the 1990s Newfrontiers had had become the largest Apostolic network in the UK. William K Kay believes that significant numbers of Baptist churches joining the movement, and avoiding scandals and other negative events contributed to this hegemony.Newfrontiers has used week-long conferences, known as "Bible weeks" as an important strategy for growth and the development of its identity. Known originally as Downs Bible Weeks, running for a decade from 1979, they were later called Stoneleigh. The Downs Bible Week ran for a decade from 1979 and gathered up to 20,000 people at its height. Expositional Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
teaching from its main leaders, or Apostolic Team and lively worship
Worship
Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity. The word is derived from the Old English worthscipe, meaning worthiness or worth-ship — to give, at its simplest, worth to something, for example, Christian worship.Evelyn Underhill defines worship thus: "The absolute...
were major features of the event.
In January 2011 it was announced that Terry would move from Church of Christ the King in Brighton to help lead a Newfrontiers
Newfrontiers
Newfrontiers is a neocharismatic apostolic ministry network of evangelical, charismatic churches founded by Terry Virgo. It forms part of the British New Church Movement, which began in the late 50s and 60s combining features of Pentecostalism with British evangelicalism...
church in Kingston-upon-Thames, London.
Plurality of Elders
Virgo believes that the New Testament models that churches should be governed by a plurality of eldersPlurality (church governance)
In Christianity, the term plurality refers to a system of church government or ecclesiastical polity wherein the local church's decisions are made by a committee, typically called elders...
rather than by one person.
Reformed Theology
Terry Virgo is a Calvinist. He said, 'Anyone in newfrontiers would know how much we treasure these doctrines. I am not sure that someone would feel they couldn't join us if they were not reformed. We have never said you have to be reformed to belong. But it is widely known and understood outside our circles that we are reformed and charismatic. That's how people see us. I have often said that I don't know how people who don't fully believe in the sovereignty of God can sleep peacefully at night.'Spiritual Gifts
Terry Virgo is a charismatic and thus believes that miraculous gifts such as prophecy and healing are for today. In an interview he said, 'We feel we are a bit unique in the emphasis on both the charismatic and yet also reformed theology which we hold dear. Often reformed teachers have tended to be cessationist and often Charismatics have tended to be Arminians - so we have been unusual...We do have excellent fellowship with Sovereign Grace Ministries led by C.J. Mahaney and certainly we have a great deal in common with them.'Baptism in the Holy Spirit
Terry Virgo believes, as did Martyn Lloyd-JonesMartyn Lloyd-Jones
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones was a Welsh Protestant minister, preacher and medical doctor who was influential in the Reformed wing of the British evangelical movement in the 20th century. For almost 30 years, he was the minister of Westminster Chapel in London...
, that baptism in the Holy Spirit is a distinct/separate experience from conversion. He thus differs with many evangelicals on this matter, including John Wimber
John Wimber
John Richard Wimber was a musician, charismatic pastor and one of the founding leaders of the Vineyard Movement, a neocharismatic Evangelical Christian denomination which began in the USA and has now spread to many countries world-wide.-Life and ministry:John Richard Wimber was the son of Basil...
's tentative view and Wayne Grudem
Wayne Grudem
Wayne A. Grudem is a Protestant theologian and author. He was born in 1948 in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin and married Margaret White on June 6, 1969 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin...
. Virgo would say that the Samaritan experience in Acts 8 and the Ephesian disciples' experience in Acts 19 make it clear that baptism in the Holy Spirit does not always happen 'automatically' upon conversion.
Regarding the common argument that you cannot get doctrine from narrative passages like in Acts but must rely on didactic portions of scripture like the Epistles, Virgo says, 'that is wrong', and simply quotes 2 Tim 3:16 which says that "all scripture... is profitable for.. doctrine...". He thus differs with 'Third Wave
Third Wave of the Holy Spirit
The Third Wave of the Holy Spirit is a Christian theological theory first introduced by C. Peter Wagner to describe what he believed to be three historical periods of the activity of the Holy Spirit in the 20th century and beyond...
' charismatics who typically hold that baptism in the Holy Spirit happens upon conversion.
Virgo does not believe that tarrying meetings are necessary (as taught in some Pentecostal circles), he says: 'After the day of Pentecost no one is ever told to wait [for the baptism in Holy Spirit]... The waiting is only until the day of Pentecost...'
Water Baptism
Terry Virgo teaches believers baptism in contrast to infant baptism, and that water baptism should be done by immersion rather than by sprinkling.Apostles
Terry Virgo, along with many British New Church Movement leaders, believes the Bible teaches that the ministry of an apostle is for today, and did not end with the death of the first Apostles. He thinks the widespread belief amongst Evangelicals that apostles are no longer for today is largely a result of the Reformers opposition to the Roman Catholic notion of apostolic successionApostolic Succession
Apostolic succession is a doctrine, held by some Christian denominations, which asserts that the chosen successors of the Twelve Apostles, from the first century to the present day, have inherited the spiritual, ecclesiastical and sacramental authority, power, and responsibility that were...
which has strongly influenced the Evangelical view ever since. He says: 'We do believe in the ongoing role of apostles and all Ephesians 4 gifts. We do recognize that of course the original twelve Apostles were unique, and that the canon of Scripture is complete. We do see the need however, today, for master builders in helping to establish foundations in local churches and for fathers in the faith." Church historian Derryck Lovegrove has observed that Virgo has "enjoyed a powerful personal hegemony," referring to Virgo's influence both within his own movement, and the wider British New Church Movement.
Books
Virgo is the author of 14 books, including No Well Worn Paths, God's Lavish Grace, Does The Future Have a Church?, and The Tide is Turning.External links
- Terry Virgo's web site & blog
- Page on Terry Virgo at newfrontier's website
- Terry Virgo's home church
- Interview with Terry Virgo on Grace by Mike Reeves
- Interview with Terry Virgo on Church by Mike Reeves
- Interview with Terry Virgo
- Dave Aldous interviews Terry Virgo
- Terry Virgo preaching on Grace
- More of Terry Virgo's sermons
- Terry Virgo preaching in Cambridge