River of Life Church — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Chris Phillips (Senior Pastor) and Miriam Phillips (Co-Pastor / teaching pastor)

Founded 1992

Denomination Non-denominational charismatic

Service Times Sunday worship; military support group ministry sponsoring deployed servicemen and women monthly

Men's Ministry No

Kids Ministry Yes

Website www.rolchurch.com

Pastor Credentials 30 years in ministry; four years as missionaries in Brazil prior to founding the church in 1992; pastor military-support outreach

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)

Verify — no public confession of faith reviewed; assumed broadly evangelical Trinitarian based on charismatic mainstream norms.

Caution

Scripture

Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?

Verify — no doctrinal statement reviewed.

Caution

Men's Discipleship

Intentional formation for men?

Not visibly featured; yellow.

Caution

Soteriology

Faith alone? How is salvation presented?

Charismatic evangelical norms presumed; verify.

Caution

Gender / Biblical Design

Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?

RED at the local level — husband-wife co-pastorate with Miriam Phillips described as 'a dynamic speaker and teacher who delivers the Word of God'; this is a functional egalitarian teaching arrangement that does not match MOOP's complementarian/patriarchal headship rubric.

Husband-wife co-pastor model: Chris Phillips (Senior Pastor) and Miriam Phillips (teaching pastor)

WARNING!

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

Single-family co-pastor model; no plurality-of-elders structure visible.

Caution

Preaching Style

Expository or topical/therapeutic?

Verify content style; charismatic congregations vary widely.

Caution

Mission Clarity

Great Commission central?

Strong missions footprint: 4 years prior service in Brazil, ongoing support for works there; military-family deployment ministry.

Strong

Cultural Alignment

DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?

Multi-cultural framing emphasized; check for prosperity-gospel or word-of-faith markers.

Caution

Accountability Structure

Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?

Non-denominational — no formal confessional accountability.

Caution

Assessment

MOOP attended River of Life Church in Jacksonville, NC during V-22 training at MCAS New River, including an Ancient Paths Seminar there. Adam noted it was 'kinda charismatic but seemed solid.' Founded 1992 by Chris and Miriam Phillips after four years as missionaries in Brazil; the congregation began as Living Water Fellowship in a Henderson Drive storefront and was renamed River of Life Church. The husband-wife co-pastorate (with Miriam credited as 'a dynamic speaker and teacher') is a functional egalitarian arrangement that flags RED on the gender axis per MOOP rubric, even though Adam's personal experience attending was positive. Pastor Chris Phillips has a notable heart for military families in the Lejeune/New River community. Overall YELLOW — solid missional posture and a personal positive impression by MOOP, but the egalitarian co-pastor model warrants the caution flag.

#moop-attended#moop-attended-seminar#ancient-paths-seminar#charismatic#non-denominational#jacksonville-nc#camp-lejeune#mcas-new-river#v-22-training#military-community#egalitarian-co-pastor

MOOP Engagement Tracker

How this church was personally verified by the MOOP directory team:

✓ Visited the facility in person

✓ Attended a worship service

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

Enrichment Notes

[2026-05-16 visited by Adam: Adam visited River of Life outside Jacksonville NC]

No URL sources recorded for this church. Rating based on denominational defaults and/or directory-level metadata.

Transparency note: MOOP ratings are researcher judgments about publicly available theological and ecclesial evidence. They are not infallible. If a church's public posture has changed since our review, or if we've mis-read evidence, tell us — we publish corrections.