About Us

Welcome to Margaret Street

We are glad you are visiting us online! We realize you may not be familiar with our family and how we do things, so below we have included a few pointers for what you can expect from us while you visit:

What to Expect

A Bible-based Worship

We gather every Sunday morning at 9:00 am and Wednesday evening at 6:30 pm to study the Bible. We have various classes for all ages. You can find more detailed information about our classes under the “Spiritual Education” link in the menu, or on the Home page.

We meet every first day of the week, the Lord’s day, at 10:00 am and 6:00 pm to worship together as Christ’s assembled church. We seek to follow the pattern and example in the New Testament of those first century Christians, by worshiping God “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24) and to only do or say those things that will bring glory and honor to Him, who is worthy of our praise (Revelation 4:11).

A Family of Faith

You will find we are a very loving and friendly family because “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35) Physical families are what make up the congregation, and the “body of Christ” (Colossians 1:18) is part of God’s spiritual family (Ephesians 2:19).

Everything we say and do is focused on being faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, Who called us to be laborers in His kingdom (Matthew 20:1, 28:19-20). We are trying to obey His call by serving and evangelizing our own community and supporting several missionaries in both foreign and domestic fields

Acapello Singing

We love to sing at the Margaret Street Church of Christ! We sing praises and spiritual songs to our Lord using the wonderful voices God has blessed us with and we do not use musical instruments (1 Corinthians 14:15; Ephesians 5:18-19; Colossians 3:16; Hebrews 2:12). Everyone is invited to join in.

Partaking of the Lord's Supper

We are instructed to celebrate the Lord’s Supper (also known as Communion) every “first day of the week,” (Acts 20:7). So, we will be passing a tray during worship, with unleavened bread and grape juice, of which all believers may partake, individually, after being led in prayer.

Offering - 'Giving'

We also take the opportunity to give back to our Lord, as we’ve been blessed financially (1 Corinthians 16:1-2). As a guest, you are not expected to give. The funds received from the contribution allow us maintain our many ministries and extend our Savior’s love to our local community and into all the world.

Prayers

Several men will lead the congregation in prayer throughout the service, praising or speaking to God on behalf of the congregation.

Sermon and Invitation

A lesson from the Bible will be presented to encourage and challenge the church. At the end of the message, the preacher will often extend the “Lord’s invitation” to anyone who needs to make their lives right with the God, either through obedience to the Gospel, or to share something on their hearts with the church, for which they need prayers.

Above all, we desire to exalt and glorify God in everything that we do: in our worship, our service, our individual lives, our families, and our community (Ephesians 3:20-21).

What we Believe

Christ is the Head of the Church

First and foremost, the church of our Lord, Jesus Christ (Rom 16:16) has no official, published list of beliefs, or doctrines, nor does it have a “Confession of Faith.” The church does not adhere to, or recognize any man-made document for outlining its ideology and theology. The Bible is the sole authority for all things pertaining to the church.

There exists no central headquarters that decides or mandates the affairs of the church of Christ. Instead of those earthly-type of arrangements, each congregation of the church of Christ is autonomous (governing itself) by simply recognizing Jesus as the Head of the church (Ephesians 1:22-23) and the Bible as its only guide in “all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3).

The entire Bible is infallible and is the inspired Word of God. Therefore, it is the supreme and final authority in all doctrine and practice (Isaiah 40:8; II Tim 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20-21).

Jesus stated, “Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ shall enter in to the kingdom of heaven, except he who does the will of my Father in heaven,” (Matt 7:21). So, the real question is, “What is His will that we should be doing?” Based upon the simple principles stated above, leaders of each congregation make decisions for leading the church from the Bible in order to fulfill His will. We strive to speak only where the Bible speaks and remain silent where the Bible is silent. We do Bible things in Bible ways and call Bible things by Bible names. This being understood, below are just a few general statements regarding our beliefs, directly from the Bible.

Baptism

According to the pattern seen in the New Testament, an individual is added to the church (body of Christ) when they are baptized (immersed in water) for the remission of sin (cf. Acts 2:47; Acts 2:38; I Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 1:22-23, 4:11-16, 5:22-23; Colossians 1:18; 1 Peter 3:21). There is no passage that teaches one must say a “sinner’s prayer,” or invite Jesus into their heart, or attend a special class to become a disciple. Instead, there are many passages that give examples of the first Christians obeying “from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered,” (Romans 6:17).

Father, Son & Holy Spirit

The Bible presents one God, eternally existing in three equal persons. This is known as the “God Head” which consists of the Father (Creator), the Son (Redeemer), and the Holy Spirit (Sustainer) as presented in John 1:1-3; Matthew 3:16-17; and II Corinthians 13:14. These Three have the same nature, essence and attributes, yet they are distinct in office and activity according to Matthew 28:19; John 10:30; Acts 5:3-4; and Hebrews 1:8.

Gift of the Holy Spirit

Those added to the church receive the gift of the Holy Spirit according to Acts 2:38, and walk in newness of life by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6:1-6).

Lord's Supper (communion)

Central to our weekly gathering is the Lord’s Supper. Some call this “communion” or the “breaking of bread.” Our Lord directed His apostles on the night before His death to remember His sacrifice through the bread and the cup (Matt 26:26-28). As the church grew, the apostles directed all the Lord’s disciples to observe this remembrance each first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 11:29-30).

One Church

The church is described in many ways in the Bible. It is described as, “the body of Christ,” (Colossians 1:18); the “household of God,” (Ephesians 2:19); the “church of Christ,” (Romans 16:16), the “church of God,” (Acts 20:28); and “the kingdom” (Matthew 16:18,19; Colossians 1:13). These are all synonyms used to describe the same entity. Yet, even though it has many descriptions, there is only one that belongs to the Lord (Ephesians 4:4). This means we must follow the example and pattern of the church that is described in the New Testament, not the multiple ways that man has devised.

Resurrection

The Bible teaches us about the resurrection of the dead (at the Second Coming of Christ) and the eternal conscious existence of all individuals in either heaven or hell, after the judgment of God (cf Luke 16:19-31; I Corinthians 3:11-15; II Corinthians 5:8-10). Therefore, one needs to be prepared for that final judgment. 

Who are we?

The Church that Belongs to Christ

Jesus said He would build “His church” in Matthew 16:18-19. We are striving to be that church! To do this, we are simply following the examples and patterns of those first century disciples that we find in the New Testament.
Consider Acts 2:42,47, 20:7; Romans 16:16; 1 Cor 16:1-2; Ephesians 4:4-6.
The church of Christ that meets at Margaret Street is a unique place with a unique people (1 Peter 2:9). We are your neighbors, friends, family members, and fellow co-workers within your community. This warm, friendly, diverse, and growing family consists of younger, older, and in-between ages who are all trying to follow Jesus and seek to “walk in the light” (1 John 1:7), as His church.
God’s way is not complicated, so we use the Bible to guide us in all religious matters. Thus, you will find that in all of our sermons, Bible class lessons, and all our special activities, we seek to only “speak as the oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11). Above all, we desire to exalt and glorify God in everything that we do.

Is the Church of Christ a Denomination?

This is a question we often receive. The simple answer is, “No. We are not a denomination.” A denomination is a part, or portion of an original, or base, but is not the original itself (like a quarter is part of a dollar, but not a dollar).

Ephesians 4:5 says that that there is only “one body … one Lord, one Faith and one Baptism.” This clearly indicates that denominationalism is unscriptural because there cannot be multiple bodies, nor multiple ways for being saved (as is taught by many other religious groups). So, what is that “one body (the church)? It is the one described in the New Testament; the first and the original. That is the church model we are trying to follow and replicate. Therefore, you could more accurately call us “pre-denominational,” because those man-made institutions arose long after Jesus and His apostles had established His church.

If Not a Denomination, What are We?

We strive to be the church Jesus said He would build (Matthew 16:18). To do this, we are following the example and pattern of those first century disciples we read about in the New Testament.

The One Body. Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “… I will build my church …” There are several things to note about this passage. First, it would be built by Jesus. Second, it would belong to Him. He called it “my” church. Thirdly, notice He said church, in the singular sense, not plural, as in “churches.” All of this harmonizes perfectly with Ephesians 4:4-5, which says, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism.”

So, any church that was started by someone other than Jesus, or who carries some other name that is not His or His Father, cannot be the church described in the Bible. The fact that there is only one church (also called “His body” in passages like Colossians 1:18) teaches us that there is a singular institution that He established. Thus, it is impossible to have some 45,000 different “churches” all claiming to be His one true church! There is only one. His. The church of Christ strives to follow that very principle. Jesus is the head of the church and we call it by His name (Rom 16:16).

An Acts 2 Church. So, when and where did Jesus build His church? The answer is found in Acts chapter two. After Jesus had ascended back to heaven, and Peter preached the first Gospel sermon, many people wanted to become a part of this new church. Acts 2:37-47 shows us the beginning of Jesus’ church. “And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47). That was the day that the church of our Lord was inaugurated. From that day forward, until today, people are still being added to that same church, in the same manner as those first converts were. It started in Jerusalem, on that Day of Pentecost (around 33 AD), and then begin to spread all around the world (cf Acts 8:4, 13:3ff). Many of the epistles of Paul, Peter, and John address people who belonged to the Lord’s church but were part of congregations in various locations (Acts 11:26; 1 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:2; Rev 3-4).

New Testament Christianity. All throughout the New Testament, there are commands, descriptions and examples that help us identify the church that Jesus built. The religion of the Old Testament was Judaism, which was intended for the Hebrews (the children of Israel) and they adhered to the “Law of Moses” (1 Kings 2:3). Jesus did away with that Old Law (cf Gal 3:24; Col 2:14) and Christians now follow the “Law of Christ” (Gal 5:18, 6:2). It regulates everything about Christianity and the church. The church of Christ that exists today, such as the one that meets at Margaret Street, is simply trying to follow the New Testament and example of the first century Christians.

If the first Christians, having been led by Jesus’ apostles and the Holy Spirit, demonstrated what to do as His church, then we can confidently respond by replicating what they did. Therefore, we meet to worship and partake of the Lord’s supper on “the first day of the week” just as they did in the first century (cf Acts 20:7; 1 Cor 16:2). We have various members who serve as elders (1 Tim 3:1-7; 1 Pet 5:1-4), as deacons (1 Tim 3:8-13), evangelists and teachers (Eph 4:11). We try to do ALL religious things in Bible ways and call Bible things by Bible names. So, what is the church of Christ? It is the church that you can read about and identify in your Bible. We’re trying to be that church!

Our Teachings. In all of our sermons, all our Bible class lessons, and all our special activities, we seek to “speak as the oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11). Above all, we desire to exalt and glorify God in everything that we do: in our worship, our service, our individual lives, our families, and our community (Ephesians 3:20-21).

We have Bible classes for all ages on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. Our worship services are very simple and uplifting as we strive to “worship Him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).

What is the History of the Church of Christ?

Video Lesson on the History of the Church. Click on the image below.