Let me first say thank you for visiting our website and taking the time to read this short introduction about Christ’s Church of Hartwell. This is the first of what I pray are many blog entries as well as other resources to help and inform the church. For this first entry, I thought it would be good to simply introduce our church and speak a little bit about our values and mission. We are a young church in terms of our existence. As I write, we have not even reached our sixth month of being a church, but what a ride it has been. My hope is that as you read, you will find something different about us, something compelling, and maybe something that would move you to come and see what we are all about.

God knew! 

So, how did Christ’s Church come to be? Well, that is a good question and one that I will try to answer. There is a little verse in Scripture that has become one of great comfort. Proverbs 16:9 – The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps. If I had to pick a verse that encapsulates how we came to be, this verse would certainly be in the top five of verses I would choose. Christ’s Church was birthed out of some dark and difficult days. However, what has happened from that is nothing short of amazing. The plans that I had, as well as so many others, never included starting a church, but these were the steps that God was directing. We take comfort in knowing that God knew all along what He was going to do, and we have had the privilege of being included.

Christ’s Church was birthed from a desire by many people to put aside the trappings of cultural Christianity and traditionalism, and a desire to look into the Word of God and be fed and filled. We started with nothing but a desire to obey God and follow His Word, and God has honored that obedience by showing us great favor. I believe I can speak for the entire church when I say, this path was not the one any of us had planned, but it has been one of the most beautiful and rewarding journeys any of us could have imagined. 

What drives our church? 

I believe the best way to describe what drives us as a church would be the desire to know God through His Word. Now, that may not sound very unique, and in reality, it shouldn’t be unique for a Christian church. However, this is a matter that we take very seriously. We hold to the belief that the Scriptures are sufficient for us as a church body, as well as for our individual lives. The Bible is our authority and we truly do have a desire to know it and do what it says. One of the beautiful things that has come about since starting Christ’s Church has been the opportunity we have had in structuring our church from the ground floor. We started with a blank canvas and we have let the Word of God inform us as to what goes on that canvas. We have not had to battle a “this is how we have always done it” mentality. We have simply opened our Bibles, and studied it, and God has shown us, through His Word, how He wants us to be structured. 

Another important element that drives us as a church is captured in our motto “God’s Glory/Our Good.” What this means is pretty simple. We believe that we exist, as a church, and as human beings, for the purpose of displaying the glory of God. We were created by God, for God, and to display the glory of God in all that we do. It is our strong belief that when we are faithful in doing what we were created to do, then that will produce the greatest good for us. So, we live, work, and play, all for the glory of God and the good of His people. We worship together by praying the Word, singing the Word, reading the Word, and teaching the Word, all for the glory of God and our good. We believe that the greatest good God has done for us is given us salvation through Christ. We long for and deeply desire to see people come to a saving knowledge of Christ.  

One other thing I will mention here in terms of what drives us as a church, and that would be our love for each other and the unity we share that is centered on truth. If I had to mark one of the most amazing outcomes of planting this church, it would be the unity that has developed among us. We are unified in truth, and that being the truth of God’s Word. This is key because unless a church is unified around truth, it really isn’t unified at all. We see in Scripture that Jesus commands love and unity for one another. He said that all people will know that we are His disciples, by our love for each other. We never want Christ’s Church to bring reproach upon the name of our Lord. We want our community to know that we love them and we love each other. 

A few distinctives. 

So, what can you expect should you choose to visit Christ’s Church? 

1. Expositional Preaching: If you are not familiar with this type of preaching, it can take some getting use to. The goal for the preaching ministry at Christ’s Church is to feed God’s people the whole council of God. Generally speaking, we take a book of the Bible and walk through it verse by verse. However, there are times when we may do what I call an expositional topical series. The sermons are sometimes long, at least by some standards (40-45 minutes), and they are crafted to both challenge and stretch you. The goal is growth in our knowledge of God. The goal is to get to the truth of what God is saying. The goal is not to tickle ears or dumb down the Word. 
2. Serious Membership: Christ’s Church takes membership very seriously. We do this because the Bible takes it seriously, and because we have seen the dysfunction and chaos that comes from loose membership. Membership that matters is what we aim for. We love our people and we desire to protect them. One of the ways we do that is to be sure we know who joins us. In the type of church government we employ, members play an important role in the direction and health of the church, so we are careful to makes sure our membership process is thorough and is maintained. We want to ensure that all of us are pulling the rope in the same direction, and membership that matters helps aid in that goal. 
3. Affiliation: While we are first and foremost a Protestant, Evangelical Church, we also voluntarily affiliate with the Southern Baptist Convention. We hold to certain Baptist distinctives and are conventionally Baptist in our theology and doctrine. Now, please understand, we wave the banner of Christ before any other, but there are certain benefits from joining with other like-minded churches. The greatest of these is missions. By joining with the SBC, we help support thousands of missionaries around the world. A feat that we could not do on our own. 
4. Ordinances: We observe two biblical ordinances, the Lord’s Supper and Baptism by immersion. 
5. Music: We sing a mix of songs, mostly hymns. We sing songs that uplift and magnify the Lord. The goal is that our singing is about God, to God, and for God. Songs that are rich in their theology and help us think seriously about Christ. 

Let me end here before I go ten more pages. I hope this short introduction helps give you a little bit of understanding about who we are. Please know that you are always welcome to join us, and we are always glad to help answer any question you may have. There is a place on the website to send in questions, or better yet, come by and see us. May God richly bless you and I look forward to seeing you soon.

                                                         Pastor Michael