The North Church exists to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples through Jesus Christ.

We desire to treasure Christ in all of life. We desire to help others experience the joy of knowing Jesus. We count everything as loss in comparison to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord (Phil 3:8). Therefore, we seek to make disciples who will in turn become disciple-making disciples. We seek to establish disciples of Jesus who grow to be oaks of righteousness, and together we serve as a garden city that shines the light of the glory of Christ for the sake of our neighbors and the nations.

• The Congregational Affirmation of Faith unites us.

• The elders teach in accordance with The North Church Elder Affirmation of Faith.

• Our Membership Covenant is how we explicitly and publicly commit to one another as members.

• Our Relational Commitments help us relate to one another in a way that honors God.

• To know what the elders believe about Biblical manhood and womanhood & ethnic harmony, see Manhood & Womanhood Affirmations & Denials, and Ethnic Harmony Affirmations & Denials.

How We Started

The North Church in some ways began in 1871, 2002, and 2023. The church was originally planted as the First Swedish Baptist Church in Minneapolis in 1871. It later changed its name to Bethlehem Baptist Church. In 1980 the church hired a biblical studies professor from Bethel University by the name of John Piper. He served for over three decades as the church grew exponentially. In 2002 Bethlehem sought to address their growth by establishing the North Campus in Mounds View, 12 miles north of downtown Minneapolis. Later in 2006, the South Campus was established and we were “one church on three campuses.”

While God blessed that season of growth, the elders also began recognizing some of the deficits of a multisite model. So in 2020 we introduced the 20/20 Vision that transitioned from one central preacher to one preaching pastor at each campus, and allowed for more campus autonomy. Then in 2022 the elders proposed, and the congregation affirmed, our Multiply initiative to become three independent churches. That vision came to fruition on February 1, 2023 when The North Church was formally established as an independent church (with over 20 years of history).

Where We Are Now

Today, we are a church family located along Interstate 35 and Highway 10 (across from the Mermaid Event Center). As we look to the future, we endeavor to treasure Christ in all of life. Our mission is to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples through Jesus Christ.

We fulfill our mission by making mature disciples of Jesus who will in turn be disciple-making disciples. We aim to establish our people as oaks of righteousness so that we collectively serve as a garden city that provides respite to the weary, hope to the lost, and truth to the confused. Together, we seek to shine the light of the glory of Christ to our neighbors and to the nations by proclaiming Christ in word and deed. We hope you will join us in pursuing this mission of treasuring Christ in all of life.