I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
Psalms 91:1-2 The history of JRVCC started in late December of 1984 when two groups of believers conducting separate Bible studies decided to merge. The Laroya family and a team from the Grace Bible Church joined the group led by another team from the Calookan Christian Church holding its meeting at Mrs. On Februa
ry 1985, the first joint fellowship of the Resort Village Christian Church—or RVCC, as it was originally called—was held. Although there was no official “pastor” then, the number of souls being won to Christ was increasing, hence the need for a larger place of worship. It was two years after the first joint service that the church was given the right to use an open space in BF Resort Village at the corner of Carnival Park and Onelia Jose Streets. The building then was made of wood and has nipa leaves for walls. Depending on the direction of the rain and wind during rainy months, the congregation held its service on the dry part of the church. It was another two years before a more permanent structure made of concrete was put up. The TransitionYears
In 1993, Pastor Arlan went to Singapore to attend the Cell Church Conference, a seminar on the cell group system, and upon his return, introduced the concept he learned. It was not an easy task to transition from a programs-based structure to a cell-based church. People by nature are resistant to change, and it took three years before a complete turn-around was made, starting with four cells initially.
1995 saw the changing of the name of the church to Jesus the Rock of Victory Christian Church or JRVCC. Though everything seems to invite change, the cell leaders, however, were not experiencing the same success. Discouragement among cell servants was evident and morale was low. In June 1996, some brethren from the Faith Baptist Church of Singapore came over to visit and supervise the cells in place. Their experiences and encouragement seem to infuse a new energy among the cell servants. The Touch of God
1997 was a challenging year for the church. The church experienced visitations from God, felt His touch, and He has revealed Himself in many ways. He has freely given gifts, delivered many from bo***ge, and has laid a vision for His church. With these, the church came up with its first-ever vision-mission statements. Leading up to the millennium and thereafter saw families leaving the church, with some migrating to other countries. But there were new faces, some of which are products of the cells. In 2004, the name of the church was changed from “Church” to “Community”, thus now becoming Jesus the Rock of Victory Christian Community. As a “community of believers”, we believe that the church should not remain just another building in the city busy only on Sundays, but also a center of activities on other days as well. We should not confine ourselves to providing merely spiritual direction, but also educating people and helping them uplift their economic conditions. Interviews and interaction with people from an informal settlers community lead us to believe that these people need to regain their spirituality and their dignity. We believe that our gates should be open to others seeking to fill the vacuum in their hearts, and coming out fulfilled in their quest for truth. We made the decision that we will not be merely a dot in the map of the city but the city a part of a growing church as God leads us and we follow boldly in faith. Steps in Faith
In 2007, we took a step of faith in pursuit of our pastor’s vision of offering free education to the less fortunate of our community, and as a means to spread the gospel. The Lord used a Christian-Korean businessman to help set up the school and initially finance its operations. The school ministry is now on its third year and enrollees have come even from outside of BF Resort Village. Although financing the school’s operations is a major concern, we are strengthened by the commitment of the teachers and their dedication to the work of God. Not a few souls have received Jesus as their Lord and Savior and are now active members of the church. In 2008, we planted the first cell church outside of Las Piñas in Cabuyao, Laguna. The church is composed of two active cell groups, and fast growing in size. The home church continues to support JRVCC-Cabuyao by sending teams regularly each week to help facilitate the cells and the worship services. The Pastors
1986 through 1989 saw Pastors Fred Lea, Lito Sese and Ramon Soriano leave the church to answer God’s call to work with other ministries. In May 1989, Pastor Arlan Laroya himself responded to God’s call to tend His flock and is now the Senior Pastor of JRVCC. Pastor Edward Cortes was ordained in 2005, the first to be ordained under the leadership of Pastor Arlan. Jojo Dumlao is the acting-Pastor of JRVCC-Cabuyao. Twenty-five Years
In 2010, the church will be celebrating its 25th Anniversary. We are of expectant hearts that the Spirit of God will move mightily and sweep the church into new heights in faith! We believe that we will experience spiritual breakthroughs from henceforth, from the individual, the family, and the whole church. We will indeed be a community of believers, reaching out to the lost beloved of God. And when the time comes, we will hear those comforting and gracious words from God, “Well done, good and faithful servant…”
