It has been associated with the "Signs and Wonders" movement,[2]: 199 the Toronto blessing,[2]: 222 the Kansas City Prophets[2]: 160 and a particular style of Christian worship music.
In 1977, John Wimber, an evangelical pastor and teacher on church growth, founded a Calvary Chapel in Yorba Linda, California.
This is not to be interpreted as an absence of a common belief structure; rather, the primary reasons for the absence of such a declaration were: According to text in the official Vineyard Statement of Faith[16] released in 1994, an effort to create a common Statement of Faith had been underway since 1983, but took 10+ years to complete because: "On one hand, we felt obliged to set forth our biblical and historically orthodox beliefs; on the other hand, we wanted to describe the values and priorities that make the Vineyard unique within the context of Evangelicalism.
Its musicians include Samuel Lane, Brenton Brown,[21] Brian Doerksen, David Ruis, Cindy Rethmeier, Scott Underwood, Andy Park, Kevin Prosch, Anabeth Morgan, Tim Brown, Joshua Miller, Tina Colón Williams, Kyle Howard, Casey Corum, Ryan Delmore, Darren and Jessie Clarke, Nigel Briggs, Nigel Hemming, Jeremy Riddle, Kathryn Scott,[22] and many others.
A leader within the Causeway Coast Vineyard, in Northern Ireland, Mark Marx, started a branch of the church called 'Healing on the Streets'.
[24] This organisation made promises to cure medical conditions through faith healing, first on the streets of Coleraine and then training other churches.
[27] The Evangelical Alliance policy arm is led by Peter Lynas, who is also Chair of the Causeway Coast Vineyard board.
[29] Mark Marx and Causeway Coast Vineyard founder Alan Scott have now moved together to Dwelling Place, California.
[30] The founder and trustees of the Causeway Coast Vineyard in Northern Ireland have been the subject of a number of internal and external investigations.
Founder Alan Scott has been accused of having a messiah complex,[31] and in 2023 several of his family members had to resign from leadership positions in the church following historic allegations of spiritual abuse.
In this, respondents alleged that Alan Scott had appeared ‘all knowing’ and that he had told them God would tell him if anybody spoke about him, even in their own homes, and that he knew people's sin by looking at them.
[39] In September 2024, the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland stepped in and have decided to run another investigation into the Causeway Coast Vineyard.
[42] The Chairperson, Peter Lynas, is also works for Evangelical Alliance,[43] a controversial lobby group who have been criticised for their conservative stance on a range of issues.
[44], [45] In January 1994, the Toronto Airport Vineyard Church, a member of the association, experienced an outbreak of physical manifestations (such as laughter, weeping, and shaking) that it claimed were the work of the Holy Spirit.
[46] Large numbers of Christians from numerous countries visited the church to experience the phenomena and take them back to their home congregations.
[46] A leading critic was Hank Hanegraaff who wrote a book, Counterfeit Revival, which charged the church with promoting heresy.
[51] Steve Morgan's qualifications as a pastor have also been questioned because of his arrest in 1987 for allegedly committing aggravated criminal sodomy against a teenager in November, 1986.
[53] Steve Morgan had originally planted Vineyard Community Church of Carbondale, Illinois in 1995 after hearing John Wimber speak at a conference.