‘There is one Body and one Spirit…there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of us all…’ Ephesians 4:4-6

In non-essential beliefs — we have liberty

‘Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters… Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls… So then each of us will give an account of himself to God… So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God.’ Romans 14:1,4,12,22.

In all our beliefs — we show charity (love).

‘…If I hold in my mind not only all human knowledge but also the very secrets of God, and if I have the faith that can move mountains — but have no love, I amount to nothing at all.’ 1 Corinthians 13:2

Our essential beliefs

The Bible is God’s word to all mankind. We believe it is inspired by God and that it is fully trustworthy as God’s truth, without error. We accept the scriptures as the revealed will of God and the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice for all who follow Christ.

God is the creator and ruler of the universe and the one who redeems, saves, or rescues mankind from sin and its consequences. He has eternally existed in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He lived a sinless human life and performed many miracles during his ministry. He voluntarily paid for our sin by taking our place on the cross, and dying for us. He rose from the dead after three days to demonstrate his power and victory over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven’s glory and will return again to earth to establish universal peace and reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

The Holy Spirit begins a great work in the lives of those who accept Christ. The Spirit convicts them of sin, confirms their righteousness, and dwells within them. No one becomes a follower of Christ without this gracious work of the Holy Spirit. We also believe in the promise of the Father: the infilling of the Holy Spirit. With this infilling comes the power for life and service, spiritual gifts and their uses in the work of the ministry.

Salvation is God’s free gift of freedom from sin. Man can never make up for his sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by accept God’s free offer of forgiveness in Jesus Christ, God’s Son, can man be saved from sin’s penalty. Salvation is received as a person repents before God and puts their trust in Jesus who has died for their sins. Eternal life begins at the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.

Thousand Hills Hilversum started its first public worship service on Sunday, 16 April, 2006. Back then, Thousand Hills was called Hilversum International Christian Center (HICC). On 21 May 2006, Thousand Hills celebrated its Grand Opening in the Zuiderkerk – the building where Thousand Hills Hilversum still meets today. The new name Thousand Hills is inspired by Psalm 50:10.

Although Thousand Hills Hilversum started in 2006, the original vision was born in June 2004, when Sebastiaan van Wessem and Robby Bradford organised a musical tour in the Netherlands.

One day during the tour, they went to Hilversum, Sebastiaan’s hometown, and quickly realised that it was a very cosmopolitan town, home to many different nationalities, international companies and international schools. It was while driving through Hilversum that God opened their eyes to the need for an international church there as well.

In September 2005 the Van Wessems, together with the Bradfords and a church planting team, began to meet at the the Bradfords’ home. The group rapidly started increasing week by week, and there was soon a committed core group of supporters who were willing to help launch Thousand Hills Hilversum. We soon outgrew the Bradfords’ living room and moved to a wooden chapel bordering the woods around Hilversum.

Over time, thanks to various events and publicity, our website and above all, God’s leading, the original core group began to grow, and by the time Thousand Hills Hilversum officially opened its doors in April 2006, it had a regular attendance of 60 people. Just a month later, and we relocated to our current location in the Zuiderkerk, a beautiful church building dating to the early 1920s.

But Sebastiaan’s and Robby’svision was never just to plant one church, but to found a whole church planting movement. That’s why, in September 2007, Thousand Hills embarked on its first church planting project: helping to set up the New Day International Church in Almere. At the same time, Sebastiaan also initiated the start of a Europe-wide church planting network called Europe Advance.

In the past two years a vision has emerged in the hearts of Thousand Hills’ key leaders under the leadership of Sebastiaan to become a multi-site church; a church that meets in several locations, yet shares one name, one vision and one leadership team. It is our desire to help found other communities of believers in various cities, both in the Netherlands, and beyond, through the multi-site vision. We’ve already taken the first step on this road with the start of Thousand Hills The Hague in 2010.

The story of Thousand Hills is an example of what God can do when believers from all over the world work together in unity to let the light of Jesus shine in their communities. Even so, we know we’re only at the beginning of this journey with Him. Will you join us on our journey?

‘Lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest’ (John 4:35)

Your Story

Would you like to share your experience of God with the rest of the church community? We encourage you to share YOUR story with us via Facebook.

To be a life-giving church that loves God, loves people and impacts lives for Jesus.

Our Mission

To exalt God by sharing the Gospel, leading people to Jesus and connecting them to the local church; to equip believers and help them grow in faith and spiritual maturity; to reach out and serve in the church and the world.

Core Values

Exalt – because God deserves all the glory
To have a lifestyle of worship with Jesus as the focus of our lives; to worship together in the dynamic presence of the Holy Spirit, who leads us into a first-hand encounter with Jesus (John 4:23-24).

Connect – because we are the body of Christ
To connect to God and one another in a spirit of grace, love and care; to welcome people from all nations, races and backgrounds into our church (Revelation 7:9-10; Ephesians 2:22).

Grow – because God has great plans for us all
To grow in personal faith and Christ-like maturity by applying God’s Word to our lives; to commit ourselves to equipping believers, multiplying leaders and starting new celebrations, sites and churches (Acts 1:8; 2 Tim. 2:2).

Reach – because the world needs God’s love and grace
To lead people to Jesus by sharing the Gospel with the world around us in a relevant way (Matthew 28:18-20).

Serve –  because Jesus came to serve
To show God’s love in practical ways by serving all people both in the church and the world with the gifts that God has given us (Mark 10:45).

Multi-site

Thousand Hills is a multi-site church. This vision is inspired by our fourth core value: multiplication. Multiplication means that we have a desire to grow, to invest ourselves in others and to be a part of something greater than ourselves, sharing our gifts and talents, and inspiring others to grow and develop. Multiplication also means that we want to plant new churches to participate in God’s mission of reaching out to a world in need of grace and a relationship with Christ.

Thousand Hills in Hilversum, The Hague and any future sites together one church with one vision, one strategy, and one name. Some of the ministry-related activities and office support will be centralised for the whole church, to make organisation – and multiplication – easier.. However, the ministries that directly serve the people in the local sites are led by local leaders. Each site has its own Site Pastor, staff and volunteers. The Site Pastors work closely together with the Lead Pastor to inspire each other, share encouragement, vision and ideas, and give direction to the church.

Some reasons why we’re embracing the multi-site approach:

1) The model allows us to be ‘missional’ as a local church. Being ‘missional’ means that we look beyond our walls, engaging ourselves in God’s greater mission of reaching out to the world.

2) Church planting is in our DNA! It’s the reason Thousand Hills Hilversum was first created, and we want to embrace our responsibility of planting other communities of faith.

3) A multi-site vision allows us to reach a broader geographical area

4) The multi-site vision doesn’t limit us to large expensive buildings. When a church becomes too large, it’s a perfect reason to start a new site!

5) We increase our visibility using a common name, enabling us to communicate more clearly with the outside world.

6) As a multi-site church, we can serve as a training centre for future local pastors, church planters and staff members, as well as volunteers who are eager to serve in a local church.

7) The multi-site vision helps us to increase the number of international churches in our country more rapidly, allowing us to better serve the needs of the growing international community that has found its home in the Netherlands.

Thousand Hills team

Pastoral lead team

Local staff

Elders

Ministry leaders