The Church of Christ

The word church means "assembly" or "called out," describing not a building, but a group of men and women striving to serve God and "preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). The Bible teaches that upon becoming a Christian, one becomes a member of the church (Acts 2:47). In a universal sense, the church is comprised of all Christians (Matt. 16:18; Col. 1:18; 1 Cor. 12:13), and in a local sense it is comprised of Christians meeting in a particular location (Rom. 16:16; 1 Cor. 1:2).

What We Believe

The following list of beliefs is not exhaustive, yet it sets forth some basics. You will notice that each point is accompanied by Scripture references (as is the rest of this site). If you open your Bible and read these passages you will find that they are accurately quoted and applied. We practice the admonition given by the apostle Paul, "Prove all things; hold fast what is good" (1 Thess. 5:21).

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ came to this earth as the one true God, manifested in the flesh (John 1) to live a sinless life (Heb. 4:15) and ultimately sacrifice Himself for our sins (Rom. 5:8-9; John 3:16). Through His death He has provided access to the gift of eternal life for all who believe in, love, and obey Him (Heb. 5:9). He is the head of the church and, as our head, we yield to His instructions concerning our purpose, work, and worship (see below), as given in the Bible. "For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body" (Eph. 5:23, see also Eph. 1:22-23; Matt. 28:18 and Deity of Christ).

The Truth

The truth is knowable and absolute. Though this is not a popular doctrine in the world, we hold to Scriptural teachings on this subject. "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:31-32). The Bible encompasses God's truth (John 17:17).

The Bible

The Bible is the inspired Word of God. By inspired we mean that the actual words and thoughts are from God. "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God... knowing this first that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit" (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:20-21; see also Inspiration of the Scriptures). The Bible is our standard of authority, in which we strive to live according to "...the pattern of sound words..." contained therein (2 Tim. 1:13).

Salvation

Every person who has committed a sin is in need of salvation (cf. Isa. 59:2; Rom. 3:23; Rom. 6:23), which is available to all those who submit to Jesus Christ. God does not show partiality, therefore all are given the same conditions of pardon (Acts 10:34-35). "We believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved..." (Acts 15:11) and "He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him" (Heb. 5:9). Salvation comes through an obedient faith in Jesus Christ (cf. Rom. 5-6; James 2:14-26). See What is a Christian?.

How We Worship

The Bible teaches that "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:24). This statement gives us the basics of worship:

Our worship must be directed to the proper audience, that is God.
We must worship with the proper attitude.
We must worship according to the truth, the Word of God (John 17:17).

The acts of worship practiced by the church, as described in the New Testament, include singing (Eph. 5:19, Col. 3:16, Heb. 2:12), prayer (Acts 2:42; Phi. 4:6), partaking of the Lord's Supper (Acts 2:42, Acts 20:7), giving (1 Cor. 16:1-2), and preaching (Acts 20:7).

A Cappella Singing

Song books are located in the racks in each pew (bench seat). Each song in the book has a corresponding number that the song leader will call out prior to singing.

Where is the piano?

What many people will notice during the service is the absence of mechanical instruments. This is because all references in the New Testament regarding music in worship (Matt. 26:30, Acts 16:25, Rom. 15:9, 1 Cor. 14:15, Eph. 5:18-19, Col. 3:16, Heb. 2:12, James 5:13) do not mention mechanical instruments. Since God has left it out, so do we. Instead, we are to speak to one another and make melody in our hearts (Eph. 5:19).

What about the Old Testament?

Sometimes an appeal is made to the Old Testament, in order to seek approval for using mechanical instruments in worship, however, the Bible makes a clear distinction between old and new covenants (cf. 2 Tim. 2:15). The old covenant, as written in the Old Testament, was made with the nation of Israel (The Jews; Ex. 20; Deut. 5) and served to bring them to the knowledge of Christ (Gal. 3:24-25). Neither Jews nor Gentiles (non-Jews) are obligated to keep the old law today (Acts 15:24). We are now part of a "better covenant" (Heb. 8:6) as foretold by the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 31:31). Christ has "made the first obsolete" (Heb. 8:13), "having nailed it to the cross" (Col. 2:14). He has put His new covenant into effect (Heb. 9:16-17), which does not authorize the use of mechanical instruments in worship.

Prayer

Several men of the congregation will be called upon to lead prayers during the service. Through prayer we are able to praise, honor, petition, and give thanks to God. (Phi. 4:6) We are to pray fervently with faith (Matt. 21:22; Mark 11:24; Jas. 5:16).

The Lord's Supper

The Lord's Supper is a memorial instituted by Jesus on the night of His betrayal (Matt. 26:26-29) and we observe it in memory of His death (1 Cor. 11:24-25). The emblems are unleavened bread (symbolizing His body) and fruit of the vine (symbolizing His blood) (1 Cor. 10:16). During this portion of the service, trays containing the bread will be passed, followed by trays of small cups containing grape juice.

The First Day of Every Week

The churches of Christ partake of the Lord's Supper the first day of every week. For on this day Christ was resurrected from the dead (Matt. 28), and the church established (Acts 2). The first is "that day" of which Jesus spoke concerning His coming kingdom (Matt. 26:29; cf. Acts 2:42). It was this day that the disciples came together (Acts 20:7) every week (1 Cor. 16:2) for this very purpose (1 Cor. 11:17-29). If any other day, at any other frequency was acceptable, then Paul, hurrying to get to Jerusalem (Acts 20:16), would not have waited seven days in Troas to assemble with the disciples (Acts 20:6).

In addition to the day and frequency, the Lord's Supper should be taken in a proper state of mind. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul exhorts us to "let each man examine himself, and let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup" (1 Cor. 11:28).

Giving

A collection is taken the first day of every week (1 Cor. 16:1-2) in order to support the work of the church. This is an opportunity to give back a portion of what we have been blessed. A member of the Lord's body should give as "he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Cor. 9:7). After the Lord's Supper, collection plates will be passed to receive these offerings. Visitors are not expected to give, so feel free to pass the plate on to the next person.

Preaching

God desires all to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4), and preaching is what allows this to happen (Rom. 10:14-17). It is the preaching of God's Word that convinces, exhorts and rebukes (2 Tim. 4:2), edifies, and applies the Bible to our everyday lives.

The Invitation

At the close of the sermon, the preacher will explain what the Bible teaches is necessary for one to become a Christian, and extend an invitation to come to the front of the auditorium to anyone who wishes to do so, as a song of encouragement is sung. If anyone does respond to the invitation, they will be baptized during the service. There also may be members of the church who come forward requesting prayers, in which a prayer will be offered on their behalf.

Additional information:

Who Are These People?
Introducing The Church of Christ
The Divine Pattern of Acceptable Worship Part 1 and Part 2

Content

Meeting Times

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