Does the church of Christ believe in and follow the Bible?
Yes, we follow the teachings of the Bible. We believe that the 66 books of the Bible as they were originally written were divinely inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16-17). The Bible refers to itself as the “word of God” and are often called the “scriptures”.
Since the Bible is inspired by God, the scriptures are infallible and authoritative as their Author is. We believe we can find the answer to every religious and spiritual question by searching the scriptures. We consider the scriptures as the final word on all spiritual matters. With the Bible as our guide, all our preaching and teaching come directly from this divinely inspired word of God.
What are the Old and New Testaments of the Bible?
The Bible consists of 66 books, written by many authors who did not know each other personally, in many geographical locations, over thousands of years.
What we refer to as the Old Testament are the first 39 books, many of which record the histories and lives of the Israelites and their relationship with God up to about two centuries preceding the coming of Jesus Christ.
What we refer to as the New Testament are the last 27 books, which are a record of Christ’s life on earth, His teachings, and the lives and teachings of his apostles and disciples in the years after He left earth.
The events of the New Testament took place in thhe first century (i.e. AD1 onwards) when the apostles of Christ (his earliest and closest disciples) were alive and still serving on earth.
The New Testament is the source of our Christian teaching today. Our plea is for the disciples of Jesus Christ to return to the Christian faith, practice and examples laid out in the New Testament.
The Old and New Testaments are called such because the Old Testament was written before the New Testament.
Is the church of Christ Catholic, Orthodox or Protestant?
We are none of those. We are non-denominational and do not describe ourselves along denominational lines. We are a church that adheres to the authority of the Bible, with Jesus Christ as the sole head of our church (Ephesians 1:22-23).
There is only one church that we read of in the Bible (Matthew 16:17-18; Acts 2:47), and we do not find that church described as Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant.
We seek to answer the Bible call to be a united body of Christ (John 17:20-23; 1 Corinthians 1:10-17).
Does the church of Christ have a headquarters?
There is no central headquarters for the churches of Christ; every local congregation is autonomous in ministering to the members and community in its vicinity. This follows the New Testament example where there is no centralised or head authority, church or organisation which directed and controlled other churches.
All members of the different churches of Christ are bound by spiritual ties as one body (1 Corinthians 12:12-13) as well as in following the teachings in the Bible. Much like the churches of the first century, the congregations today maintain warm relationships with each other and collaborate to spread the gospel, assist each other in difficult times and in efforts to spiritually grow members.
Why doesn’t the church of Christ use musical instruments during worship?
We wish to return to and restore New Testament Christianity, that is, the religious faith and practice of the first disciples of Christ.
As we follow the example set by the early Christians recorded in the Bible, we note there is no mention of musical instruments used in worship (Hebrews 2:2; 1 Corinthians 14:15).
Instead, Christians are asked to be “speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:19). These scriptural examples eliminate the use of instrumental music, and in line with this, acapella singing is the only form of music used in our worship.
Does the church of Christ practice baptism?
Yes, we believe that baptism by immersion in water is essential for salvation as the Bible teaches us in Mark 16:16.
The word “baptize” itself comes from the Greek word “baptizo” and literally means, “to dip, to immerse, to plunge.” In addition to the clear and obvious literal meaning of the word, immersion is practiced because it was the practice of the church in apostolic times (i.e. when Jesus’ apostles were still serving on Earth).
Only immersion conforms to the description of baptisms as given by the apostle Paul in Romans 6:3-5 where he speaks of it as a burial and resurrection. We believe that just as Christ died, was buried and raised from the dead, we also must be buried (immersed) with Christ in baptism and then be raised to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4) At the point of being baptised, our sins are washed away and God adds us to His church (Acts 2:47).
Does the church of Christ baptise babies?
No, we do not subscribe to the ideology of “inherited sin” (i.e. teaching that all humans are born with sin, or in sin or are inherently sinful from birth). We believe that all adults are responsible for their own actions of which they have control over, and if they grasp morality (Ezekiel 18:14-20, 2 Chronicles 25:4, Romans 14:12). This occurs when they reach the age of accountability, i.e. the age a person has come to understand the difference between right and wrong and is fully responsible for his or her own actions and the consequences thereof.
As we believe the purpose of baptism is for salvation and forgiveness of sins, we do not baptise babies since they have not sinned, or children since they are not fully accountable for their own actions.
Further, in the examples of baptism found in the Bible, faith is required before baptism. People in the Bible believed in the gospel first and then were baptised immediately after they believed; there were not baptised unless they had faith first. The scriptures also teach that faith comes from hearing and understanding the word of God (Acts 8:31). It follows that only those who are old enough to hear, understand and believe in the word of God can be said to have faith. In this connection, the church of Christ does not baptise babies and young children who are not able to understand and believe in the word of God, i.e. not able to have faith.
How is the church of Christ in Kota Kemuning governed?
The church of Christ in Kota Kemuning are led by two elders, who serve as the governing leaders of the congregation. They are appointed by the brethren, following the qualifications set down by God in the Bible, which instructs for at least two elders with specific qualities (1 Timothy 3:1-7).
The elders are considered shepherds or overseers who serve the members; however, all Christians remain under the headship of Christ according to the New Testament.
Serving under the two elders are two deacons, similarly appointed based on the Bible’s pre-requisites (1 Timothy 3:8-10). The spiritual needs of the members and community are also supported by various other teachers, evangelists, ministers and ministry leads and coordinators.
Get to know more about these leaders in the “Get to Know Us” and “Our Ministries” sections of this website.
What is the gospel of Jesus Christ?
The word gospel simply means “good news”. When we refer to gospel of Jesus or gospel of Christ, it literally means “the good news about Jesus Christ”.
The first four books of the New Testament are an account of how God sent his son Jesus Christ down from heaven, born as a human, ultimately dying on the cross as a pure sacrifice, washing away the sins of mankind and connecting us back to God.
The gospel is the good news that humanity, which has been separated from God and unable to enjoy eternal spiritual life due to its wrongdoing, is now offered salvation through Jesus Christ, God’s only Son. Jesus’ death “paid” the price for sin on humanity’s behalf, and those who obey the gospel have their sins forgiven by God, allowing them to be reestablish a spiritual relationship with God.
How do I obey the gospel? How do I become a Christian? How do I become a member of the church of Christ?
We’re so glad you asked! The Bible has detailed several steps that can be taken by a willing person with full mental capacity in order to obey the gospel, become a follower of Christ, and be added to the church:
1. Hear the gospel (Romans 10:17)
2. Believe the word of God (Hebrews 11:6)
3. Repent of past sins (Acts 2:38)
4. Confess Jesus as Lord (Matt 10:32; Acts 8:36-37)
5. Be baptised by full immersion under water (Mark 16:16)
6. Remain faithful until death (Revelation 2:10)
After obeying the gospel and being baptised, God adds individual members to the church of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:47).
I have more questions!
We’d be happy to speak more with you if you want to explore more about God and His deep love for you, or have questions about Christianity, Jesus Christ or His church. Do contact us with your details in the Contact Us page, if you are interested in building a meaningful relationship with God that will lead to eternal life! We’ll get in touch with you and can arrange a personal lesson with you.