Christ Community

Journeying together to be an authentic, Christ-absorbed, compassionate community.

But what does this look like?   It really boils down to our values in the following three areas.   We long for these statements not only to describe us as a collective group of people (aka "a church"), but as individuals who are a journeying together in community as a part of our church family.   In other words, they define our church culture. 

Authenticity

Honestly evaluating and investing in our relationship with God as prompted by the Holy Spirit.

Admitting the depth of our brokenness and ongoing need of Christ as our Savior.

Modeling transparency, integrity, and mercy in our personal relationships.

Sharing our hearts and lives with others, actively pursuing peace when conflicts arise.

Christ-absorbed

Seeking Christ first and foremost in every area of our lives through the enabling of the Holy Spirit.

Learning from others how to love Christ more deeply and embrace Him more fully.

Trusting Christ and resting in Him as our source of sufficiency, satisfaction, and identity.

Allowing God's Word, the Bible, to become increasingly more integral to our faith development and life decisions.

Joyfully investing the gifts and resources God has entrusted to each of us for Kingdom-building ministry at Christ Community and beyond.

Compassionate

Allowing the Holy Spirit to soften our hearts and develop in us an unconditional love for people.

Seeing our spheres of influence as a context for mission in living out and verbalizing the message of the gospel in community with others.

Showing good deeds and creating good will as precursors to sharing the good news with people in need of an authentic relationship with Christ.

Looking beyond our immediate context to places where Christ may seek to impact the world through each of us.

Our Beliefs*

God
We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.

The Bible
We believe that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged. Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.

The Human Condition
We believe that God created Adam and Eve in His image, but they sinned when tempted by Satan. In union with Adam, human beings are sinners by nature and by choice, alienated from God, and under His wrath. Only through God’s saving work in Jesus Christ can we be rescued, reconciled and renewed.

Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus—Israel's promised Messiah—was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.

The Work of Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.

The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit, in all that He does, glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ. He convicts the world of its guilt. He regenerates sinners, and in Him they are baptized into union with Christ and adopted as heirs in the family of God. He also indwells, illuminates, guides, equips and empowers believers for Christ-like living and service.

The Church
We believe that the true church comprises all who have been justified by God's grace through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head. The true church is manifest in local churches, whose membership should be composed only of believers. The Lord Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which visibly and tangibly express the gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish the believer.

Christian Living
We believe that God's justifying grace must not be separated from His sanctifying power and purpose. God commands us to love Him supremely and others sacrificially, and to live out our faith with care for one another, compassion toward the poor and justice for the oppressed. With God’s Word, the Spirit’s power, and fervent prayer in Christ’s name, we are to combat the spiritual forces of evil. In obedience to Christ’s commission, we are to make disciples among all people, always bearing witness to the gospel in word and deed.

Christ’s Return
We believe in the personal, bodily and premillennial return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic mission.

Response and Eternal Destiny
We believe that God commands everyone everywhere to believe the gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God will raise the dead bodily and judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to condemnation and eternal conscious punishment and the believer to eternal blessedness and joy with the Lord in the new heaven and the new earth, to the praise of His glorious grace. Amen.

*Adopted by the Annual Conference of The Evangelical Free Church of America, June 2008 

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The Partnership Journey

Three times a year we offer a seven-week class entitled The Partnership Journey, taught by Lead Pastor Alan Kraft and facilitated by Bruce Hoppe, Associate Pastor of Adult Ministries.   The Partnership Journey is designed to help people grow in their relationship with Christ as they become more familiar with the unique DNA of Christ Community. While The Partnership Journey is a pre-requisite for people becoming Partners (aka members), it's not expected that all who participate will necessarily take this step.  It's actually a great way to learn more about who we are.  

Click here to find out more and to sign up for the next Partnership Journey class.