The Old Testament was like a teacher, showing us God’s holiness, our sinfulness, and pointing forward to Christ through laws, sacrifices, and prophecies. Now, under the New Testament, we follow Christ and the teachings of His apostles as our pattern for salvation, worship, and daily living. In short, we try very hard to model our Christian life on the church described in the New Testament. Do we h
ave a creed or statement of beliefs? Because we take the whole New Testament as our guide we try not to make short lists of things to be believed-short lists are always incomplete. We prefer to talk and teach about what’s found in the Bible. But here are some answers to questions you may have. Jesus of Nazareth is a historical man who lived in the first century AD in Israel. We believe that He is the Son of God and the promised Messiah (Christ) of the Old Testament. He was crucified as a payment for our sins, died, was buried, and was raised up alive, proving His claims. He promised that whoever believed in Him and followed his teachings would be made right with God. As a church we exist to tell people about Jesus and to live out his teachings. The Church of Christ is a group of people, not a building or an organization. It includes all Christians in all places and times that have obeyed the Gospel. Our local church is a group of Christians who gather here. The Bible writers compared the church to a family and also called it the body of Jesus Christ. How Do I Become a Christian? In the early years of Christianity, those who are called Christians had done five things. They heard Jesus’ message about who He is and believed it. They "repented" of their previous life, this is, they responded with deep determination to change their lives and live for Him in the future. They confessed their belief before witnesses and were immersed in water for the forgiveness of sins (“baptism”). We encourage anyone today to do these same things to become a Christian. How is your church organized? In New Testament times, each local congregation was independent, under the oversight of a group of leaders. The terms shepherds, pastors, elders, presbyters, overseers and bishops were all used for these leaders. Here we generally use the term "elders", and they are aided by deacons, or servants, as demonstrated in Acts 6. There was no overall structure or organization tying local congregations together, though we do try to connect with local congregations when and where we can. What can we expect? We believe there should be biblical authority for everything we do, and we pattern our worship on the practices of the first century church. So, when you come to worship with us, there will be biblical lessons using book, chapter, & verse, there will be praying, there will be an observance of the Lord's supper, there will be giving of our means, and there will be acapella singing (without the accompaniment of musical instruments).
