Friday, January 25, 2019

Covenant PCA in Tullahoma, Tennessee

Covenant  Presbyterian PCA – Who are we?
Covenant Presbyterian Church, PCA, is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America. As a PCA church we are connected to all the congregations in the PCA fellowship. We pool resources, meet regularly to deliberate ministry issues, and we share the conviction and commitment of all our sister congregations. Together we are: Faithful to the Scriptures, True to the Reformed Faith, and Obedient to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.
Our Statement of Faith, shared by all PCA churches is the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms (WCF). These are the system of doctrine set forth in the Bible. The Westminster Standards, as they are sometimes called, state the teachings of the Bible in a systematic manner. For more than four centuries, many churches have used WCF as their doctrinal standard. The Confession is not infallible nor authoritative nor inspired by God. Holy Scriptures alone are described in those terms.
For our local Christian ministry in Tullahoma and the surrounding region, we adopted 10 core values to guide us as we seek to minister to the people in our reach. They are agreeable with the Bible and our statement of faith and were prayerfully adopted by us and for us.
Our vision is to glorify God by establishing a healthy congregation in Tullahoma in order to reach the diverse population moving to and residing in Tullahoma and the surrounding communities.
Our aim is to live as a community glorying in the cross of Christ in our worship, fellowship, mercy, and outreach.
We are absolutely committed to the Bible as God’s infallible and inerrant Word, the only source of knowledge concerning what we are to believe and how we are to live.
We believe that prayer is fundamental, rather than supplemental.
We are confessional, connectional, Reformed, and evangelical.
Our public worship is centered in God, gospel-proclaiming, creative, affectionate, and balanced in attention to form and freedom.
We strive to strengthen families and promote a community where the Gospel produces life-changing relationships within our church family.
We believe that there is one race of people - the human race - and that all people are created in the image of God and that there is sanctity in all human life.
We are convinced that there is no one that God by His Spirit and through the gospel cannot change.
We are committed to the spread of the gospel through evangelism and the multiplication of churches locally and abroad.

Monday, November 19, 2018

Is it wrong for Christians to Celebrate Christmas?


Is it wrong for Christians to Celebrate Christmas?
I have talked with a good number of my fellow Christians about what has happened to Christmas. Many of them have become ambivalent, cynical, and even disgusted about what the holiday has become. It is not just the commercialism. It is not just that folks who normally have no interest in Jesus are suddenly all excited about Jesus' birth.
Increasingly, it is the pluralism of our post-modern culture and the redefining of Christmas that has soured many Christians. Merry Christmas has given way to “Happy Holidays”, “Season’s Greetings”, “family trees”, etc., ad al. For some this has given rise to the question, Should Christians even Celebrate Christmas at all? Pastor and author John MacArthur has weighed in on the question. Here is what he has to say.
Should Christians Celebrate Christmas?
By John MacArthur
Scripture doesn't specifically command believers to celebrate Christmas—there are no prescribed "Holy Days" the church must observe. In fact, Christmas was not observed as a holiday until well after the biblical era. It wasn't until the mid-fifth century that Christmas received any official recognition.
We believe celebrating Christmas is not a question of right or wrong since Romans 14:5-6 provides us with the liberty to decide whether or not to observe special days: “One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks.” (Rom. 14: 5-6).
According to these verses, a Christian can rightfully set aside any day—including Christmas—as a day for the Lord. We believe Christmas affords believers with a great opportunity to exalt Jesus Christ.
First, the Christmas season reminds us of the great truths of the Incarnation. Remembering important truths about Christ and the gospel is a prevalent New Testament theme (1 Corinthians 11:25; 2 Peter 1:12-15; 2 Thessalonians 2:5). Truth needs repetition because we so easily forget it. So we should celebrate Christmas to remember the birth of Christ and to marvel over the mystery of the Incarnation.
Christmas can also be a time for reverent worship. The shepherds glorified and praised God for the birth of Jesus the Messiah. They rejoiced when the angels proclaimed that in Bethlehem was born a Savior, Christ the Lord (Luke 2:11). The babe laid in the manger that day is our Savior, the "Lord of lords and King of kings" (Matthew 1:21; Revelation 17:14).
Finally, people tend to be more open to the gospel during the Christmas holidays. We should take advantage of that openness to witness to them of the saving grace of God through Jesus Christ. Christmas is chiefly about the promised Messiah who came to save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). The holiday provides us with a wonderful opportunity to share this truth.
Although our society has muddied the message of Christmas through consumerism, myths and empty traditions, we should not let these distract us from appreciating the real meaning of Christmas. Let us take advantage of this opportunity to remember Him, worship Him and faithfully witness of Him.

We Celebrate Advent


We Celebrate Advent
"How proper it is that Christmas should follow Advent. For him who looks toward the future, the manger is situated on Golgotha, and the cross has already been raised in Bethlehem." --Dag Hammarskjold
Covenant Church celebrates Advent. We decorate the building, sing the songs, gather for special food and treats, and work hard to celebrate the great redemptive act of God – the Incarnation and birth of Jesus.
We treat Advent as a season of preparation. For centuries Christians have devoted the month prior to Christmas day as a season to prepare their hearts and homes for the great festival, the celebration of Christ’s incarnation.
We busy ourselves with a good bit of bustling about between Thanksgiving and Christmas – we shop, compile guest lists, mail cards, decorate our homes, prepare our favorite foods, and host or attend parties. All that is a part of the celebration. Yet all those things can become traps and ends in themselves if we are not careful.
Is that the kind of preparation to which Advent calls? Traditionally, that is, for most of Christian history, Advent has been a time of quiet introspection, personal examination, and repentance – a season of fasting, prayer, confession, and reconciliation. All the great Advent stories, hymns, customs, and rituals point to those practices as the best means of preparation.
Celebrating Advent is a tradition at Covenant Church. We see that as a good thing. We try to make the things we do to the glory of Christ.
Edith Schaeffer spent her entire adult life cultivating community and hospitality at L'Abri Fellowship in Huemoz, Switzerland. She emphasized the importance of building traditions as an integral part of family and community:
There is something about saying, ‘We always do this,’ which helps keep the years together. Time is such an elusive thing that if we keep on meaning to do something interesting, but never do it, year would follow year with no special thoughtfulness being expressed in making gifts, surprises, charming table settings, and familiar, favorite food. Tradition is a good gift intended to guard the best gifts.” Edith Schaeffer.
(Inspired by “The Whip of Advent” in Grantian Florilegium, November 29, 2008)










Covenant PCA – Who are we?


Covenant  Presbyterian PCA – Who are we?
Covenant Presbyterian Church, PCA, is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America. As a PCA church we are connected to all the congregations in the PCA fellowship. We pool resources, meet regularly to deliberate ministry issues, and we share the conviction and commitment of all our sister congregations. Together we are: Faithful to the Scriptures, True to the Reformed Faith, and Obedient to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.
Our Statement of Faith, shared by all PCA churches is the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms (WCF). These are the system of doctrine set forth in the Bible. The Westminster Standards, as they are sometimes called, state the teachings of the Bible in a systematic manner. For more than four centuries, many churches have used WCF as their doctrinal standard. The Confession is not infallible nor authoritative nor inspired by God. Holy Scriptures alone are described in those terms.
For our local Christian ministry in Tullahoma and the surrounding region, we adopted 10 core values to guide us as we seek to minister to the people in our reach. They are agreeable with the Bible and our statement of faith and were prayerfully adopted by us and for us.
Our vision is to glorify God by establishing a healthy congregation in Tullahoma in order to reach the diverse population moving to and residing in Tullahoma and the surrounding communities.
Our aim is to live as a community glorying in the cross of Christ in our worship, fellowship, mercy, and outreach.
We are absolutely committed to the Bible as God’s infallible and inerrant Word, the only source of knowledge concerning what we are to believe and how we are to live.
We believe that prayer is fundamental, rather than supplemental.
We are confessional, connectional, Reformed, and evangelical.
Our public worship is centered in God, gospel-proclaiming, creative, affectionate, and balanced in attention to form and freedom.
We strive to strengthen families and promote a community where the Gospel produces life-changing relationships within our church family.
We believe that there is one race of people - the human race - and that all people are created in the image of God and that there is sanctity in all human life.
We are convinced that there is no one that God by His Spirit and through the gospel cannot change.
We are committed to the spread of the gospel through evangelism and the multiplication of churches locally and abroad.