One of the most puzzling things I read as a new Christian were Jesus’ words, “Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I’ve come to divide people against each other.” Luke 12:51 Wow, I thought Isaiah had prophesied that the messiah would be a “Wonderful counselor, mighty God…prince of peace”?  Why would Jesus say such a thing?  Like all of scripture we must seek to understand it i...

From the Pastor's Heart:The Government May be Shut Down but the Church is Open!Vision 2:28 is all about helping unchurched people find their way back to God. This Sunday we can all be even more tangible by bringing non-perishable foods to help feed our neighbors who are suffering due to the US Government Shutdown. The list of food is available below from our strategic partners. You can also click ...

From the Pastor’s Heart: God’s Dream for Christ ChurchVision 2:28 is about God’s Dream for our Christ Church family, community and for the world… “Then, after doing all those things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. Joel 2:28So Vision 2:28 has a powerful double meaning as this ver...

Life change is happening all around us at Christ Church! Julie and I dreamed as a young couple about being a part of a healthy New Testament Church that cared passionately about reaching those who have yet to belong to Christ. Our students just got back from Fusion Weekend with over 90 students attending and over 26 decisions for Jesus Christ!  On September 28,  Mt. View had 12 baptisms and over 1...

Our One Year Bible Reading speaks directly to our CC Mission this August: “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable… 9 Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. 10 Love each other with genuine...

Dear Christ Church family, If there is any week of the year that the doors of the church should be wide open it should be Holy Week. Don't Miss the Journey this week as each worship service will build on the next to prepare us for the joy and wonder of Easter Sunday! Here is the schedule for all campuses: Maundy Thursday: We will experience the Seder Meal at our Mt. View and Statesville campuses a...

From The Pastor’s Heart:  The Greatest, and the Most Broken Commandment  “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me.” Deuteronomy 5: 6-7This is the foundation of all the Ten Commandments and the “Greatest Commandment” which Jesus declares in Matthew 22: 37-38.  This is also the most broken commandment not only...

A Wesleyan Understanding of Fasting and Prayer John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, preached and printed a sermon based upon Matthew’s account of Jesus’ teaching on fasting and prayer. The Sermon is Sermon XXVII Upon Our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount.  The scripture is Matthew 6: 16-18.  The essence of the sermon is not to make too much of fasting nor should it be ignored.   Fasting can be a means ...

Jesus said, “Anyone who does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” Mark 3: 35 There are so many exciting studies and events being offered at Christ Church to encourage us to “do God’s will” so we may indeed be called a sister or brother of Jesus Christ and God’s family.Friday, February 21 at 6:30 p.m. Celebrate Recovery 20th Celebration at the Mt. View CampusSaturday, March 1 at 9 a.m. ...

Our planning team, staff and volunteers are going all out to share the Greatest Story Ever Told—The Birth of Christ through these Celebrations…Christmas Fest Celebration December 14 from 4PM-8PM:5PM and 6:30PM - A Christmas Play by our CCKids telling the story of Jesus’ birthJourney to Bethlehem HayrideInflatables, games, great food, s’mores, and a visit with St. NicholasA Ride on CC’s Polar Expre...

We have so much to be thankful for and I want to thank you as worshippers of Christ Church for the following: CC has kicked off our 500 Plus Campaign with 537 persons agreeing to invite one person per week to attend worship. This would mean 32,320 invites over the next 60 weeks! So far this year we have witnessed 58 baptisms with more scheduled before the end of the year! So far we’ve had 46 perso...

Gratitude—Our Motivation and Drive for “Operation 500 Plus” on November 17The least valued of all the virtues is one of the most impactful - “Gratitude”!In Luke 17 we find Jesus encountering ten lepers. Jesus heals all ten lepers, then we read these sad words, 17 Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine?Now before we are too harsh on the nine lepers who didn’t return, we recal...

Our series Caring Enough To Ask has centered on this one primary question….Do we really care for our neighbors, our friends, our family members, acquaintances whom we meet everyday in our community?  Do we care about their current well being and do we ultimately care where they are going to spend eternity? On November 17,  your Campus Pastors of Christ Church will be calling forward 500 Plus perso...

"So fear the Lord and serve him wholeheartedly. Put away forever the idols your ancestors worshiped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River …But as for me and my family,  we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24: 14-15What is Joshua Sunday?  Two Sundays ago we preached on “Authentic Christianity”.  What does it mean to truly live for Jesus?  For over 25 years the lay leaders of Christ Church and past...

This is such a powerful statement in Paul’s letter to the Corinthian Church and to Christ Church.  The campus pastors and I can genuinely say that the worshippers of Christ Church have been “…living by God’s power” since our summer season began:Our Ghana Medical Mission Team planted three new churches in Shama, Ghana, giving medical care to 607 people and baptizing 95 persons in three villages. We...

I love birthday parties! It is a joy to celebrate new life!  Last Sunday hundreds of persons at all of our campuses came forward to receive God’s Word spoken over them:·You are wonderfully made in the image of God.  (Psalm 139)·You are a Royal Priesthood—God’s own possession.  (I Peter 2:9)You are the Light of the World. (Matthew 5:14)So many wept as they received these powerful words which God ha...

As we enter into May we cannot go further without giving God thanks for the past five weeks of seeing the Holy Spirit move among us at Christ Church.  Easter week we witnessed historical attendance with 6,126 persons worshipping our Lord Jesus Christ and affirming the power of the Resurrection to transform lives!  We celebrated 19 baptisms in the month of April and several persons joining the Chri...

Recently I cast vision for our Leadership Team at Christ Church. Our key text for our 2024 Leadership Retreat was from Exodus 2:24-25, “God heard their groaning, and he remembered his covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He looked down on the people of Israel and knew it was time to act.”   God heard the cry of the many and took action through One leader! God values the “One”.  In Luke 1...

When Jesus witnessed the religious leaders allowing scams in the house of God he turned over the tables of the money changers and said, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer, but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”   This is why Christ Church has maintained a high commitment to not allow fundraising at any of our campuses.  We believe that it is more vital to teach tithing and give of...

Merry Christmastide to each of you! Yes, you may have taken down the tree and put away the decorations, however the Christian Church has celebrated the 12 Days of Christmas for centuries as we believe the Incarnation of God is a big deal and worth celebrating until January 6.  We want to let you know some key information and updates: We have had 60 baptisms so far in 2023 with three more scheduled...