Welcome to the world of hipster Christianity.

Permalink Reply by RoyW on October 8, 2010 at 8:08am

May God bless the old ladies. Without them, we would not be here. They may be at the place where they need as much cool as they can get but they are still going to church and doing all they can. Wicus, I know you know this, but without those old ladies that church would not be there. We have much to be grateful to all those who have blazed the trail for these young wippersnappers. They certainly deserve some respect. God bless each and everyone of them.

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Permalink Reply by RoyW on October 8, 2010 at 8:10am

O, and God bless the young wippersnappers as well.

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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on October 8, 2010 at 11:59am

Ron,

You are too knid. Some don't think we are nice even sometimes ... or at least that I am not :-)

Woe to be me ...... :-)

Lord Bless,
LT
TheNET Coordinator

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Permalink Reply by Carla on November 9, 2011 at 7:50pm

I just saw this comment 'even the Moderators are nice sometimes'.. geee.. umm. Thanks.... I think. :-)

not often nice.... but sometimes. :-D

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Permalink Reply by Amanda on November 8, 2011 at 9:18am

Ron, I am in between churches right now and am seeking a home church. I had one that I left August 2010 where I was a member close to four years in a denomination that I have been associated with since I was 19.

I feel kind of in limbo. There are a few things that I want as I seek a church now--a few different things that never really mattered that much to me before but do now. I would like to find a church that has small groups and one that has a women's Bible study in addition to regular Sunday meetings of the whole congregation for worship.

I have found one close to home that has the small groups and the Bible study but it seems to be "different" and I wanted to run it by you to see what you think. Should I give it a try? It's different because it wants to be culturally relevant.

Their Mission:
Passion for God, Passion for People....PEOPLE MATTER MOST!!

One of their values is "Our faith is characterized by how we put it into action in every aspect of our lives."

They do believe the Bible (both the Old and New Testament) is the infallible Word of God. They say: "It is our only rule of faith and practice. We have no other creed, no other doctrine. We believe the 66 books of the Bible are:

"…able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15).

"…inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16)."

They teach the trinity.

Here is their teaching for Salvation:

We believe a person is saved by God's love and mercy, by God's grace. Nothing man can do would earn him the salvation of God. It is a free gift from God attained through faith (Ephesians 2:8). In receiving this gift of grace, an individual will respond in faith (James 2:14-26)

•Hear the Gospel (Romans 10:17)
•Believe in Jesus (John 3:16, Acts 16:31)
•Repent of one's sins (Acts 2:38, 17:30)
•Confess Jesus as Lord (Romans 10:9-10)
•Baptism (immersed) into Jesus (Acts 2:38, Romans 6:3-6, 1 Peter 3:21)
•Live and Love by the example of Jesus (Matthew 25:31-46, Philippians 2:12)

They say they are: "striving to become the kind of church described in the Bible. An Acts 2 church, reaching all kinds of people, inviting them to the Journey with God."

No organ though and no hymnal. They have a praise and worship team that provides music and you are told to relax and you don't have to sing. You can sit, stand, sing along or just listen and enjoy.

They remain open at the end of every service and anyone with questions about God, the bible, church and what it means to become a follower of Jesus is asked to come to "The Dwelling". Individuals will be there to pray with you and offer encouragement.

They have a cafe that is open every Sunday morning and offers a relaxed and casual atmosphere. Seating is available for you to sit and converse with others. Or you can take your coffee with you throughout the building.

Does this sound like true worship?

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Permalink Reply by David Velasquez on November 8, 2011 at 10:06am

Amanda,

The Church you described sounds like you are describing a Church I visit regularly. I visit many churches and among them is one that by your description, sounds just like the one I visit. I like it. It's a hip church, but it remains faithful to sound doctrine in the primary doctrines with a heart for the unsaved.

It's true worship is God is being glorified through it all.

Could you cut and paste their statement of faith for us to review?

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Permalink Reply by Ron Payne on November 8, 2011 at 11:21am

Hi Amanda,

I agree with David... Every Church I know and attended has a statement of faith to which members must keep to.

Failing which "things" and doctrine can change at the whim of any member who appears to be the Leader at any given moment in time. I am sure that they must have some form of Constitution or Statement of faith that they apply. Failing which they need some direction.

It is all very well for a Church to say: "We believe the Bible and the Bible alone." The question of course is: "Yes, but by whose Interpretation of the Bible." Jehovah Witnesses make the same claim of Believing the Bible and the Bible alone.

Remember the Acts Chapter 2 Church, never had the Pauline Epistles. I fullly understand what they mean by an Acts Chapter 2 Church. But I honestly believe that there is far more edification in the rest of the N.T. that one can be proud of and realise that there is more to attain than just feeling Joyful every Sunday. Rather the Church should look forward to and promote the growth found in the rest of the N.T. Believe it or not, the O.T. has just as much edification and joy that also fits into the N.T. church.

From experience, I have found that an Acts 2 type church is very alive, happy and clappy. But membership is inclined to rise and fall depending what people are looking for. In fact I enjoy visits when going there.... (A few mouthfuls of desserts after a heavy meal always helps.) But there is a need for "Doctrinal Glue" to keep a Church together in unity and strength..

Yes! Let's look at their Constitution. From some of the points you made they look pretty sound

You friend and Brother in Christ

Ron.

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Permalink Reply by RoyW on November 8, 2011 at 11:41am

Amanda,

You mentioned "no organ." Do they have other instruments? I don't think there is anything that says we need an organ but there is plenty to indicate we need instruments.

Roy

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Permalink Reply by Amanda on November 8, 2011 at 2:29pm

Roy,

They are instrumental and have a worship and praise team (a band and singers).

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Permalink Reply by Amanda on November 8, 2011 at 2:47pm

Ron,

I suppose they wouldn't mind if I posted what they believe here. I did go out to vote today and then I met with the pastor of this church. He talked to me for a long time. He does not teach eternal security. I posted what he teaches about salvation in my initial post and baptism by immersion is part of that process.

The atmosphere inside the building is like a club. There is a coffee bar and there are sofas as well as individual chairs, no pews, no hymnals, low lighting. It has 250 members and several worship services because of space--they need a bigger building. The median age of members is 37. Very diverse group though--doctors, homeless, married, singles, anybody, everybody.

The pastor said they do not just "have small groups" but are a church of small groups which meet at different times and different places. A womens' Bible study is meeting tonight at 7 but I guess I won't go since I am just learning about them for now. They are doing a Beth Moore Bible study and I like Beth Moore and have completed one of her Bible studies once before but that was on my own.

They meet for worship at 6pm on Saturday and 10am on Sunday. They do that he said because many people do shift work in their secular jobs and can't make it to Sunday morning worship. My husband has to work Sundays a lot. They are very active in the community and have even started a free medical clinic and some of the doctors who are members have volunteered their services at the clinic. They have free yard sales and things like that.

BELIEFS:

The Bible is our final authority.

-We strive to be culturally relevant.

-People matter most - to God, and to us.

-Our faith is characterized by how we put it into action in every aspect of our lives.

-We are a mission driven church where every action is driven by the passion to bring others to Christ and to make somebody's day better tomorrow than it was today.

-We are a gift based, volunteer driven church that insists on - and thrives with - member involvement; purposefully aiming for every person to become a fully developed follower to Christ.

-We believe that everyone was created for a purpose and has been given gifts to be discovered, developed and deployed, to support God's plan.

Our Beliefs
Bible

We believe the Bible (both the Old and New Testament) is the infallible Word of God. It is our only rule of faith and practice. We have no other creed, no other doctrine. We believe the 66 books of the Bible are:

"…able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15).

"…inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16).

God

We believe Scripture when it declares, "…in the beginning God" (Genesis 1:1). We understand this to mean God is eternal in nature. Nothing made God. He always has existed; and always will. We believe there is only one true God who, in the beginning, created the sun, the moon, the stars, and the planets. He created our world and everything in it (John 1:3). He created man in His image to enjoy fellowship with God for all eternity.

Jesus

We believe that Jesus is "…the Christ, the Son of the Living God" (Matthew 16:16). He is God (John 1:1), in the flesh (John 1:14), who came from heaven to redeem fallen man. He is the Messiah, the Savior of the world, who died on a cross to save us from the penalty of sin. Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through me" (John 14:6).

Holy Spirit

We believe the Holy Spirit is the indwelling presence of God who marks us as Christians (Ephesians 1:13). He is given as a gift to all who repent and are baptized (Acts 2:38). He empowers us to accomplish works of service.

(1 Corinthians 12:7). He is the Helper sent by God that we might walk in such a way to bear faithful witness (John 15:26-27). Through Him we are able to bear godly fruit in our lives (Galatians 5:22).