Acts 17:11b
Our Distinctives
The challenge of the Word.
The simplicity of the Word.
Our fellowship is age/family-integrated:
Our worship is family-oriented: families worship together. And as they interact in a worship context, children witness the importance that their parents ascribe worship, observe the degree of reverence that mature Christians have for God, and learn how the family structure and church structure is modeled in Scripture. Even young children develop self-discipline as they learn to sit quietly and respectfully during the service.
A husband and wife present a powerful word picture of His love and relationship with His bride, the church. Our relationship with our children also mirrors our heavenly Father’s relationship with us. These relationships that He has ordained for our edification and the examples set when we all come together are powerful “sermons” in themselves.
The Old Testament assemblies often included everyone, even children (Deuteronomy 31:12-13). Family-integrated just means that we worship together and learn together. Babies and children are welcome in our services and we all work together to encourage one another.
We have realized that separating into age groups in the formative years tends to produce strong peer pressure toward conformity. It also encourages the rejection or deprecation of those younger—the older children begin to look down on those younger. Peer groups also lend themselves to disrespect adults, who are considered obsolete. Our culture certainly does glorify the youth culture rather than reaching for experience and wisdom. The Bible, on the other hand, teaches compassion for the younger with respect and emulation of the older and wiser (notwithstanding discerning godliness in either).
Age-segregated activities can also breed dependence upon teachers rather than parents. The church organization then must find adequate and appropriate teachers for every conceivable group and activity, which becomes increasingly more difficult as the church grows in size. Family-integrated activities, on the other hand, foster community, respect, positive peer pressure, openness, and the responsibility of the parents. Plus we enjoy our fellowship together and see it overflow into our homes.
Although we don’t hold that age-segregated activities are sinful, we feel they are not preferable and choose to be family-friendly and promote family cohesiveness. This is more needful in the 21st century as families are fragmenting, dissolving, and a majority are “dysfunctional”. In fact, family is being defined in our society to be something other than God’s design. As marriage and family mirrors the relationship of Christ and the church, we especially feel that the demise of the family is vastly hurting the church, and therefore society at large.
The body comes together; there are not separate activities for the “
feet” or the “head” (I Corinthians 12:12-27). We recognize that all the body parts learn well together and with feedback from the others. And the learning and growing within the body translates easily back into home life. In fact, it strengthens the home, just as discipleship in the home strengthens the church.
Family relationships:
We believe that men are the heads of their families and must lead their families toward Christian maturity, being responsible to God as their Head. Husbands are the providers and protectors. They must give themselves to their wives as Christ gave Himself for the church. This is a vast privilege and huge responsibility. Wives are to respect their husbands and submit to them. They are to love their husbands and children, be self-controlled and pure, and be keepers of the home, teaching younger women to do likewise. Fathers are not to exasperate their children; children are to honor their parents and obey them in the Lord
We openly teach and encourage this because of Scriptures such as Titus 1:6,
I Corinthians 11:3a, I Timothy 5:8, Ephesians 5:22-33, Titus 2:1-5, & Ephesians 6:1-4.
The church meetings:
The church meets to encourage one another, to fellowship, break bread, pray, sing and share the Word. Every man may bring a hymn, or word of instruction… (I Corinthians 14:26) although only two or three teachings will be given in any service and the others should weigh carefully what is said (I Corinthians 14:29). As in all churches of the saints, women are to learn in submission and quietness (I Corinthians 14:33-35 and I Timothy 2:11-14). However, women are ministers of the Gospel (Romans 16:1-12) and are to instruct younger women (Titus 2), work alongside their husbands in ministry (Romans 16:3), and be fellow laborers with the leadership (Romans 16:6, 12, 13, 15). All her ways need to align with her role as wife, if she is married, for her first responsibility (and that for which she was created) is as helpmeet to her husband (Genesis 2:18-24).
More to come soon.