About North Warren church of Christ
-
For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified" (1 Cor.2:2)
Just as the crucified Christ was the center of Paul’s preaching, so is the Lord Jesus the center of the North Warren church of Christ. The church was purchased by the shedding of his blood (Acts 20:28) and is both his bride (Eph 5:25) and his body (1 Cor 12:27). To speak of the church apart from Jesus would be like a bride without a groom, a body without a life, or a sheep without a shepherd.
The New Testament does not picture a churchless Christ or a Christless church; rather, as he and the Father are one so are we one with him (John 17:21). He is our Savior (Matt.1:21), our Lord (Phil. 2:11), our model (Phil.3:14), and our glory (Col.1:27).
Jesus Christ is the center of our faith, our worship, our life, and our hope.
OUR FAITH
The process of becoming a Christian, conversion, centers on the person and work of Jesus, who he is, what he has done, and what he requires. As we learn of his claim to be the Christ, the Son of God; as we study the character of his life that is consistent with that claim; as we observe the compassion he felt for all who he met and touched; and especially, as we see his obedience to the commands of his Father, so are we, as sinners, drawn to believe him, love him, and obey him: "And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men to myself" (John 12:32).
That obedient faith focuses on Christ in every detail. When we repent of our sins, we are turning from our own way to the Lord and his way (Luke 13:3). When we confess our faith in him, we proclaim to the world that he is the Christ (Matt.10:32). And when we are baptized for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38), we are united with him in his death, burial and resurrection (Rom. 6:3-4).
While the conversion process puts us into Christ (Gal. 3:26-27), it is the Lord himself who adds us to his body, the church (Acts 2:47). He is the center of our faith, the heart and core of our salvation from sin (Eph.5:23).
OUR WORSHIP
Jesus is also the center of public worship at North Warren. In each element of worship the Lord is the object of our praise and adoration. When we sing hymns and spiritual songs such as "Victory In Jesus," and "Christ We Do All Adore Thee," we pay tribute to the greatness of our savior (Eph.5:19). When we pray to our gracious Father, we do so through and in the name of Jesus (John 14:6, 13).
Biblical preaching declares the "unsearchable riches of Christ" (Eph.3:8): "Him we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, that we may present every man complete in Christ" (Col. 1:28). Jesus is our message! (Acts 8:35). When we give we reflect the sincerity of our love for him (2 Cor. 8:8). And when we partake of the Lord’s Supper each week, we look inward as we examine ourselves, and we look forward to the Lord’s return (1 Cor.11:25-28)
All that we do in the glorious privilege of worship centers on the One who made it possible, Jesus the Christ, who has made us "fellow heirs of God" (Rom.8:17).
OUR LIFE
The faithful Christian is one in whom the life of Jesus is modeled (1 Pet.2:21-24), or as Paul exclaimed, "For me to live is Christ…..it is no longer I that live, but Christ lives in me" (Phil.1:21; Gal.2:20). And when Paul described Jesus as "our life" (Col.3:4), he meant that he is more than the source, the strength, and the solace of life; he is life, our life!
OUR HOPE
In (John 14:2-3) Jesus promised, "I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am , there you may be also" (John 14:2-3). Peter later described this "living hope" as an "inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you" (1 Pet. 1:3-4).
