What We Believe

 

The purpose statement for Twickenham Church of Christ is:

Making disciples who glorify God by loving Him and loving others.  This also serves as our mission and vision statement. 

If we look at Matthew’s rendition of Jesus’ final instructions on earth in Matthew 28:18-20, we see that Jesus left his disciples with what we call the “great commission” to go and replicate themselves—to go and make disciples of others in the same way in which they were made disciples. The overall purpose of our church is to “make disciples” of ourselves—as members of Twickenham Church of Christ we are to become disciples of Jesus.  

Disciples should glorify God as detailed in 2 Corinthians 3:18. We believe that we are being transformed into his image so that we “reflect his glory”.  In our transformation of becoming more and more Christ-like, our lives glorify God more and more, and we reflect a clearer and clearer image of God to others. 

How do we accomplish that transformation? Well, we really don’t.  God does through His Spirit working inside us.  We facilitate that transformation “by loving God and loving others” as spoken by Jesus in Matthew 22:36-40. 

 

Our Core Beliefs

God

  • There is only one God; He is holy, eternal, sovereign, and loving.
  • God exists as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
  • The all-powerful God created all things for His glory

Christ

  • Jesus Christ is the one and only Son of God and was with the Father in the beginning.
  • Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, “the anointed one”); He became flesh and dwelt among men.
  • He was born of a virgin, lived a perfect life, provided a perfect sacrifice, and was raised from the dead.
  • Our salvation is through Him alone.
  • He was sent to fully reveal to us who God is and to reconcile us to God.

Holy Spirit

  • The Holy Spirit is the personal, powerful presence of God throughout history.
  • He draws us toward God to save us and dwells in us as our helper and intercessor.
  • He continuously transforms us into increasing holiness as we daily yield our will to His.

Man

  • God created man as both male and female in His image.
  • The whole duty of man is to glorify God.
  • Whereas we have all sinned and broken our relationship with God, we are reconciled to God by His grace through His Son.

Salvation

  • Before time began, God planned to save us from our sins through the death of Jesus Christ.
  • The sacrifice of Jesus Christ provides the payment for our sins and allows us to be presented as righteous before the Father. 
  • Salvation is God’s free gift of grace—it cannot be earned. Those who reject this gift of grace are eternally separated from God. 
  • Man’s response to this gift is faith (placing our trust in God) demonstrated by repentance, confession, baptism, and a life of obedience to Him.

Church

  • All those who respond to the Lord’s calling, submit to Jesus as Lord, and are added by Him make up the church, the household of God.
  • The church is the body of Christ on earth—God’s spiritual family.
  • Each member is gifted by God to serve and strengthen the body.
  • The church is called to worship God, equip believers for works of service, and to preach the gospel, “making disciples of all nations.”

Bible

  • The Bible is the inspired written word of God and is eternally true.
  • The Bible reveals who God is, who we are, and why we are here. 
  • The Bible is provided so that we might know Jesus our Savior.
  • The Bible is the authority or standard for living our lives according to God’s will for us.

OUR CORE VALUES

Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together.  One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matt 22:34-40 (NIV)

Love God

Dying to Self – Becoming disciples who surrender to God’s leading; Life as Worship – Faming God’s name with all of our lives; Reliance on Prayer – Prayer as a first response, not a last resort; Hunger for the Word – An insatiable desire to know God more

Love Others

Life in Community – Living in authentic community as Christ’s body; Heart of Compassion – Reaching out to the poor and forgotten; Sharing the Gospel – Making Christ’s commission our mission


History

In 2009, Twickenham's shepherds (our congregation's leaders) asked a group of people to come together and participate in a long range planning exercise. The group consisted of about 20 men and women including several of the shepherds and staff members and a cross-section of Twickenham members. Our shepherds challenged the group to consider who Twickenham is as a body and where we should go in the future.

Initial discussions centered on what we do and how we do it.

The natural tendency was to begin where we were and then tweak or adjust operations and methods out of a genuine desire to improve. The group met every couple of weeks and began to pray for God’s leading and wisdom. During that process, the focus of discussion changed from the “what” and the “how” to the “who” as the group began to focus more and more on our need for a real and ever deeper relationship with God that will continue to shape “what” we do and “how” we do it. In other words, the relationship drives the mission, an inside-out approach that begins with lives yielded to God’s will and committed to his ways. Over a span of months the long range planning team participated in a challenging and rewarding journey as God continued to work in their hearts.

Back to Basics

This really is a back to the basics approach. As the long range planning group met, it became clear that our core beliefs (or theology) determine our core values (those elements of our faith that, according to the Bible, are of utmost importance) which then overflow into ministry opportunities or practices consistent with those beliefs and values.

Our approach initially was to focus on Core Beliefs and Core Values. Our prayer is that as we focus on our relationship with God and his mission for us, the Lord will lead us into ministry opportunities and practices that are in tune with his heart and accomplished for his glory.

To that end, we developed a series called “The Journey” that was taught in our Sunday morning classes between January and May 2011, and is reviewed with all new members. This is not a destination, a declaration or a program but rather the continuation of a journey of faith, grounded in God’s word, empowered by his Spirit and focused on his eternal purpose.

Points of Emphasis

    • This is a journey. As we seek to understand God’s leading for Twickenham, we do so with the knowledge that we do not have all of the answers. We’re asking everyone to join us in prayerfully considering God’s calling and leading in our individual lives and in the life of our church family. Please commit to pray daily for wisdom, humility and direction as we walk this out together.

    • God’s eternal plan is unfolding according to his will. It is not about us, and it is not about now. Our sincere desire is to align ourselves with God’s purpose, extending his grace for his glory. Our prayer is that God will grant us the understanding to know his will and the courage to adjust our lives in response to his great calling.

    • Why is this important, anyway? While we strive to develop more effective programs, stronger marriages, healthier families and lives of service, we recognize that what we really need – first and foremost – is God. As we come to know him more deeply in relationship, we will see the fruit of the Spirit and enjoy God’s eternal blessings in all aspects of our lives. It is because of our relationship with God that we understand our purpose and encounter our mission.

    • The scripture of the Bible teaches an “inside-out” approach to our spiritual walk. That is, our actions are an overflow of our hearts as we come to know God more intimately and abide with him daily. As we focus on God, die to ourselves and yield to the Spirit, the Lord will lead us to the right ministry opportunities at the right time according to his plan. Our prayer is that, by God’s grace, we will have open eyes and ready hearts to follow wherever he leads
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