What to Expect

Our live worship time starts at 10:30 AM every Sunday. We also have Bible Study at 9:00am before the service. Coffee and light refreshments are available before and after worship. We invite you to come and check us out in person. Of course you can check us out online anytime!

We know it can be so hard for many of us to come into a new group to check out what they are like.  What will they be like?  How will I know if they are being truthful about who they are?  Will they like me?  Will I fit in?  I have not been to church in years, will they accept me as I am?  I'm not so sure about this church thing or what the gospel is all about.  Is that ok?

So, here’s what you can expect

What is the worship like?

The best way to describe our worship is Ancient/Future. We are a confessional church, which means we hold to the historic creeds of the church as well as to the Reformational confession called the Westminster Standards. We believe that the church is not autonomous, floating out in the world without a tether as they seek to make their own way. We believe that the same Holy Spirit who was poured out at Pentecost has persevered his true church throughout the ages is the same Holy Spirit at work in the church today… and he doesn’t change. Newer doesn’t mean better. We hold to the ancient truths of the faith, as faithful men have handed them down to other faithful men.

Yet, we also believe that our worship should be comprehendible to anyone who walks in the door. This doesn’t mean we water down the truth… far from it! But we do seek to use language that isn’t “insider language.” So many churches feel like the Latin Mass of the Catholic Church, when no one but the priest speaks Latin. That benefits no one!

We love old hymns and new hymns. But, everything we sing is vetted and tested against Scripture. Gordon Fee once said, “Show me what a church sings, and I’ll show you what a church believes.” Expect to find a mix of old traditional standards and new hymns that both share deep theological truth.

We also believe that in worship, God speaks to us in His word and sacraments, and we respond to him in song, prayer, giving, and obedience. Worship is a conversation between the church and it’s Savior. It is a renewing of our covenant vows with God, as he promised to be our God, and we his people. This is sometimes called “liturgical worship.” You are not a spectator to worship; you are part of the conversation.

The pastor preaches exegetical and expository sermons. That simply means that we go through whole books of the Bible verse by verse, and he shows us what the Scriptures are saying. He doesn’t try to implant other ideas into the text. We believe God’s word is sufficient, and God knows what we need to hear better than we do.

What about my children?

We have recently started a children’s church for any parents who would want that to be available for their children. We always have at least two background-checked adults who lead the children’s church time. Right before the sermon, the pastor will invite any parents who want their children to participate to dismiss their children to follow the children’s church leaders to their room. They will be gone during the sermon, and will come back in for the last song, the benediction, and the doxology (and the Lord’s Supper when applicable). Our children’s church aims to help instill sound doctrine through catechisms and Bible teaching so that they will be equipped to sit under the preached word more effectively. However, there is no obligation to send your children to children’s church! If you want your children to be with you during the sermon, we encourage that as well!

 The scripture teaches us of an intergenerational family, both young and old, worshipping together. There is no better way for a child to learn what it means to worship and hear God’s word proclaimed than to watch their mom and dad worship and hear God’s word. What children know is “caught” more than “taught.” Jesus said, “Let the children come to me. Do not hinder them. For to such belongs the Kingdom of God.” We believe the children of believers are just as much part of the covenant community as grownups, and we are obligated as believers to bring them alongside us. It’s ok if they wiggle and squirm and make noise. God made kids to wiggle… let them wiggle! We have coloring books and crayons if that would help them during the service. But, we encourage you to participate in worship boldly with your children beside you. Explain things they don’t understand. All of this has a more meaningful impact on your child’s spiritual development than someone else taking them to another room.

 If your children do get a little too fussy for your liking, we have two dedicated rooms for children. We have a Nursing Mother’s room which is just for mothers and infants who are still nursing. We are working to make this room comfortable for moms and their littles to get a quiet place they need. We also have a wiggle room for small children who really need to burn off some energy. Feel free to take them in there to burn off some energy, but do try to come back in! We will also be putting in screens that will broadcast the worship service in each of those rooms so that parents who feel like they need to go back there don’t feel like they are missing everything that is going on.

 We love all the children God has brought to our church, and want to serve you and them to the glory of God.

 What Should I Wear?

Clothes, preferably. We have no expectation for your style of dress!

Should I take Communion?

We celebrate Communion (also known as the Lord’s Supper or the Eucharist) on the first Sunday of every month. We believe it is the Table of our Lord Jesus Christ—it is not a Presbyterian Table. So, if you have professed true saving faith in Jesus Christ, and you believe the truth of the Gospel (that you are a sinner saved by grace alone), and you seek to live faithfully and obediently under the reign of Jesus, we invite you to share in Communion with us.

When we take Communion, the pastor explains the institution of the sacrament and then fences the Table. All this means is that he invites all true believers to the Table, and asks those who don’t believe to not receive the bread and wine, but to receive Christ. Everyone comes down to the front to receive the bread and cup, and brings it back to their seats. The pastor then invites us to take first of the bread, and then of the cup. We do that all together because Communion is done in community!

All the bread we use is gluten free so that everyone can partake who is able. We also have a choice between wine and grape juice for those whose conscience doesn’t allow them to drink the wine.

Do you have other programs?

One thing you will quickly learn about us is that we are seeking to intentionally un-program the church. Many times, “programs” get in the way of what God promised to work through—the word, the sacraments, prayer, and the fellowship (or shared-life) of the church. We call these things the “ordinary means of grace.” We call them that because they are the things that God ordinarily uses to bring people to saving faith and greater obedience to him. God doesn’t need our good ideas. He has given us all we need.

That being said, any events we have are meant to foster those things which are essential to the life of the church. We also want to equip the members of Christ Community with the tools they need to do the work of the gospel where they live, work, and play. We have monthly church socials where we just get to be together in a fun and loving community. Every other Wednesday we have “Theology on Tap” that meets at Annie’s Tap House. This isn’t a class or a teaching session. We gather together to have an open discussion about a certain topic for that meeting. So don’t expect your schedule to be filled up with things you “have to do.” We want you to focus on the ordinary means of grace!

Our goal in all of our ministries is to bring the gospel of grace to bear on our real lives.  We work hard to make it possible for all to do so. We know we all come from different places in life and we have different perspectives.  We not only think this is ok, but we encourage each of us to bring our perspectives into our community.  We often say that the most mature believer knows they need Jesus the most. This undercuts pride and promotes authentic humility.  It also means that all of us acknowledge that we need a deeper walk of faith. None of us "have arrived!"  We are all on a journey.  Trust us, you are not alone if you believe you have more questions than answers. And we invite you to bring all of that in the doors with you. Jesus calls us to bring our burdens to him, and for the church to bear one another’s burdens. Don’t try to hide it away, bring it to Jesus.

If you have any other questions, reach out to Pastor Jeremy at pastorjeremy@christcommunitygf.com.