Holier Than Thou - Churches of Christ

What are the Churches of Christ?

Churches of Christ consider themselves independent, autonomous, non-denominational churches patterned after those of the New Testament. The New Testament word for church is ecclesia (Greek ekklesia, assembly), which means those who are summoned or drawn out to follow Christ collectively. These members make up local assemblies of believers who consider the Bible as their final authority and creed. Its beginnings are of the U.S. Restoration Movement of the nineteenth century. In 1793, a former Methodist from Virginia, James O'Kelly, led a movement to make the Bible the only church creed. In 1802, two former Baptists from New England, Abner Jones and Elias Smith, led another movement to absolve denominational names and creeds and follow only the Bible. In 1804, a Presbyterian preacher from Kentucky, Barton W. Stone, led a movement to make the Bible the only sure guide to heaven. In 1809, Thomas and Alexander Campbell from West Virginia contended that nothing should be bound upon Christians as a matter of doctrine which is not as old as the New Testament. These are examples of separate movements in the United States to bring Christians back to the original church established at Pentecost, the outcome of which were the Disciples of Christ, The Independent Christian Churches, and the more conservative wing of the Churches of Christ (1906), which followed Alexander Campbell's teachings. Today there are over 15,000 Churches of Christ with over two million members, 40 colleges, and 75 orphanages and homes for the elderly. Each church is overseen by a group of local elders selected by its congregation, under which are deacons, ministers, and teachers. The Bible is the central and final authority for all Churches of Christ and where the Scriptures are silent, so are they. More conservative Churches of Christ do not use musical instruments in worship and do not allow women in ministry. Although one of the fastest growing indigenous American churches, with primary growth in the 1920's and 30's, membership plateaued in the 1970's. The states with the greatest membership include Texas, Tennessee, Alabama, Oklahoma, California, and Arkansas.

"But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:14-17)

Firm Foundation - Directory Listing of Churches of Christ

"Churches of Christ can now create a free Firm Foundation home page for their congregation by filling in a simple form. Your home page will appear 24-48 hours later in the directory list."

The Churches of Christ

"We are undenominational and have no central headquarters or president. The head of the church is none other than Jesus Christ himself (Ephesians 1:22-23). Each congregation of the churches of Christ is autonomous, and it is the Word of God that unites us into One Faith (Ephesians 4:3-6). We follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and his holy Apostles, and not the teachings of man. We are Christians only!"

Churches of Christ Australia

"Each local Church of Christ is independent. Its autonomy is respected. However, local churches form a part of a wider network with many other churches. Together they comprise the state and national conferences of Churches of Christ. Through conference, local churches cooperate with other like-minded churches to combine resources, and support the wider mission of the Church in Australia and overseas. Through ministry and mission, Churches of Christ respond to human need. People explore and develop faith and spirituality as it relates to the here and now. We want to share the good news of Jesus through effective evangelism and mission."

Churches of Christ Net Ring

"Would you like to surf sites that are associated with Churches of Christ? Are you a member of a Church of Christ and have a Web Site? Does your church have a Web Site you would like to promote? Why not consider the Church of Christ Net Ring? For surfers, a Net Ring is a great way to surf only sites with a common theme or purpose. In this Net Ring, all of the sites are church of Christ sites. The surfer can surf site to site by means of a navigation bar which links all the sites into a "Ring". Joining a Net Ring is great way to increase traffic to your site. And not just random hits -- hits from people actively seeking information about a topic that your site provides, in this case, Church of Christ Web Sites. Users like Net Rings because rings pull related sites together into easily explored groups."

Church of Christ Links Warehouse

"Thousands of souls around the world today earnestly endeavor to practice pure, unadulterated, New Testament Christianity. One might say that they practice non-denominational or predenominatitonal Christianity! Strictly speaking, they are neither Catholics nor Protestants. Hence, these Christians are just Christians and not Lutherans, Episcopalians, Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, Nazarenes, Mormons, Adventists, Pentecostals, etc. Individually, they are just Christians (Acts 11:26; 26:28; 1 Peter 4:16). Collectively, they have been baptized by one Spirit into one spiritual body or church. "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body ..." (1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 1:22-23). Several descriptive terms for that one body appear upon the pages of the New Testament: "church of God" (1 Corinthians 1:2), "churches of Christ" (Romans 16:16), "house of God" (1 Timothy 3:15), "the church" or "kingdom" (Matthew 16:18-19; Acts 2:47; Colossians 1:13), "temple of God" (1 Corinthians 3:16), etc. These souls worship God today exactly the way Christians in the first century worshipped God. Then and now, these souls follow New Testament instructions to know how God wants to be worshipped. Therefore, their worship every Lord's Day (Revelation 1:10) consists of preaching or teaching and communion (Acts 20:7), freewill giving according to one's purpose and prosperity (2 Corinthians 9:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2), singing (Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16) and prayer (1 Corinthians 14:15). Since these Christians rely solely on the New Testament for their authority in religion, they recognize local congregational organization with biblically qualified elders (1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9) to lead them (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; Hebrews 13:17; Acts 20:28). They also appoint biblically qualified deacons to serve them (1 Timothy 3:8-13), ministers to proclaim the Word of God (Romans 10:13-15; 2 Timothy 4:1) and train teachers to edify them (Hebrews 5:11-14). Likewise, these Christians look to the New Testament for instruction in Christian living (Romans 12:1-2) and Christian service (Mark 16:15-16; Titus 3:1). They fellowship each other based on their mutual respect for and abiding in the doctrine of Christ (2 John 9-11; 1 John 1:3) and "... have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them" (Ephesians 5:11). Noting the singularly new names that ascribe praise to Jesus Christ, these souls commonly refer to themselves individually as "Christians" (Acts 11:26) and collectively as the "churches of Christ" (Romans 16:16). We invite you to visit the church of Christ in your community and step back into primitive, Bible-driven Christianity. Some denominations also wear biblical names though they otherwise do not practice primitive Christianity and sometimes congregations of the churches of Christ stray from their biblical moorings. Therefore, it is in your best interest to compare closely what anyone teaches or does religiously to the Bible to ensure that it is biblically correct and pleasing to God (1 John 4:1). If we don't see you in a pew near us, we look forward to seeing you in the heavenly habitation!"

Church of Christ North

"We were the 5th church in the world on the internet, therefore giving North a major presence in the world. It is our intention to present God, not ourselves, to all who will see. As you can see on the main page, we offer a Free Gospel CD to anyone, anywhere in the world who wants to hear it. This Ministry actually took off on December 1, 2000. As of December 13, 2003, we have successfully presented the gospel to nearly 43,000 people. This is a PowerPoint presentation, presenting the Gospel, that will play on a computer with or without the PowerPoint software. God has been good to us with this Ministry. With His guidance and support, we will teach thousands more in the future."

The Churches of Christ Online

"Our purpose is to unite members of the worldwide community of churches of Christ in a greater level of communication, Christian fellowship, spiritual renewal, global evangelism and congregational effectiveness... Our desire at Churches of Christ Online is to offer positive, balanced, Bible-based, Christ-centered resources and materials to help churches of Christ around the world begin to reach out together in an intensive, focused and passionate effort to reach our world for Christ... We want to see churches of Christ around the world begin to reach out together in an intensive, focused and passionate effort to reach our world for Christ, and get plugged back into God's power source of prayer. Let's put aside any differences we may have in our fellowship and come together in a united effort to share one vital message, the Gospel of Jesus Christ; his death, his burial and his resurrection from the dead, and how people can come back into a right relationship with God through new life through His Son. And let's be committed to excellence in every ministry of the church, and seek new ideas and new methods to share the unchanging Gospel of Jesus Christ with a lost world. 1 (Corinthians 9:21-23)"

ConcernedMembers.com

"There are thousands of Churches undergoing hostile takeovers and being changed into a venue of "Holy Entertainment" by the "community church" movement. No one here will admonish anyone for worshipping God in what ever manner they believe to be correct. However, when someone subverts an existing Church by secrecy and deceit against the principles of it's founders and members... ...WE HAVE A PROBLEM! The below listings are links to various church member sites where the members discuss what's happening at their church, and learn about the problems causing division and take-overs."

The Examiner

"During the eight years of its publication, The Examiner was distributed free and had readers internationally. Primarily, it examines doctrines peculiar to the Church Of Christ, the Christian Church, and the Disciples of Christ (churches of "The Restoration Movement"). Published January 1986 through November 1993, 6 times a year. Editor: Charles A. Holt. Publisher: Truth & Freedom Ministry, Inc., Chattanooga, TN (USA)."

Google Directory - Churches of Christ

Society > Religion and Spirituality > Christianity > Denominations > Churches of Christ

International Churches of Christ

"The International Churches of Christ are a family of Christian churches whose members are committed to living their lives in accordance with the teachings of Jesus Christ as found in the Bible. We read and strive to abide by the entire Bible and hold it to be inspired and inerrant. We expect every member to be a disciple of Christ as defined in his teachings. The International Churches of Christ were built on the revolutionary but Biblical conviction that every person must first make a decision to become a disciple and then be baptized. The Biblical Greek word for church is "ecclesia," which means "the called out." Today we are an international family of churches that is rapidly spreading to all nations around the world. We have been called out from religious mediocrity, spiritual error, atheism and agnosticism--into a meaningful, vibrant relationship with God. Our congregations now reflect the diversity of the cities and nations where we have planted churches. Worldwide, people of all races, ages,and cultures weekly attend our worship services. These services are true celebrations, for the life of a disciple of Christ is the most joyful one we know."

New Testament Church

"The Church of the New Testament, consisting of those who are "called out," is not and never was intended to be a denomination among denominations. We bear the name "Church of Christ" because the Church belongs to Christ (Matthew 16:18, Acts 20:28), and because the Scriptures authorize such a name to identify the congregations of believers (Romans 16:16). Despite the existence of a multitude of denominations today, the Bible teaches that Christ established only one Church (Ephesians 4:4, Colossians 1:18). The Church holds the same mission held by Christ when He came to this earth: to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10)."

Restoration Movement

"These pages are for your reading and viewing pleasure and feature historical texts, pictures, resources for historical research and links to other relevant pages dealing with the Restoration Movement. This nineteenth-century unity and restitution effort by Barton W. Stone and Thomas and Alexander Campbell spawned several distinct religious groups: the Churches of Christ, the Christian Churches, and the Disciples of Christ. The wider historical context also includes the Christian Churches of James O'Kelly and the Christian Connexion of Elias Smith and Abner Jones. The Restoration Movement pages seek to accommodate the historical heritage of all of these religious traditions."

TheRestorationMovement.com

"Is it possible to read your Bible, and from your reading, see that in the New Testament there is a Church that Jesus established? Is it possible to see in the Bible, that God set forth His standard of acceptance in salvation, worship, church organization and daily living? Is it possible to follow the teachings of God, revealed in the New Testament, to direct our lives in the same way as He did first century Christians? The answer to all the questions above is a resounding, Yes! For since the writing of the New Testament, men and women of all walks of life have studied their Bibles, and seen how one, even to this day, can become a Christian the way those in New Testament times became Christians. They have seen how one can establish the Church of the New Testament and emulate its structure, worship, and activity. Someone has rightfully expressed that we should always remember to stop and show appreciation for the bridges we have crossed. For the Christian this is especially true! Not only are we to be thankful for the work of the apostles and early church workers in the 1st century A.D., but we should also remember the value of all those since who have directed others to give up the shackles of religious error, only to take on the truth revealed in God's Word. This website is dedicated to the many men and women who have struggled in the Restoration Of New Testament Christianity, to take us back to the Bible, and to let it be our only standard of faith and practice."

Reveal

"REVEAL is an organization of former members of the International Churches of Christ and its predecessor religious movements, the "Boston Movement", or Boston Church of Christ, and the "Crossroads Movement", or Crossroads Church of Christ. We also work with family members and friends of ICC members, although (at least at present) we are all former members ourselves. Our purpose is to bring the ICC into the light of day -- to provide accurate, detailed and complete information about its beliefs and practices. By providing this information, we hope to give people the tools they need to assess the ICC and their involvement in it... REVEAL maintains a WWW site containing all kinds of information about the ICC. The site contains first hand accounts of life in the ICC by former members, theological analyses of ICC beliefs, psychological analyses of ICC practices, information on thought reform and how abusive churches implement thought reform, and other useful material. It also contains lists of former members and others who are willing to talk about their experiences with others, bookstores and other businesses which stock helpful printed material, exit counselors and therapists which work with current and former members, clergy with experience working with former members, and retreats and rehabilitation centers which work with people who have been in the ICC or other abusive groups. In addition, REVEAL maintains an extensive set of links to other WWW-based information about the ICC and cults."

The Seeker

"The Seeker Series is a ten lesson Bible study designed to help non-Christians discover the will of God for their lives. Help will be available to all who request it."

Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement Resources

"The Purpose of the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement Resources: To provide access to research tools such as electronic bibliographies, searchable databases, and texts related to the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement that are not available any where else on the Internet; To provide links to other sources of information on the Internet about the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement."

"For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." (Romans 15:4)