Grace Community Church (California)
Encyclopedia
Grace Community Church is a non-denominational
, evangelical
megachurch
located in Sun Valley, California. John MacArthur
is the pastor-teacher of the congregation, founded in 1956. As of 2008, the average weekly attendance was 8,258.
Founded as Grace Community Church of the Valley, with an emphasis on the basics of Christianity, the congregation held its first public service on July 1, 1956, calling Don Householder to be its founding pastor. Within the first few years, the church had moved to the present location on Roscoe Boulevard and expanded to hold two Sunday morning services.
Following Householder's death in 1965, Richard Elvee was called to be pastor and the church continued to grow under his leadership until he died in 1968. In February 1969, John F. MacArthur
assumed the pastorate. During the early days of MacArthur's ministry, the church doubled in size every two years, building a new Family Life Center in 1971 and a new Worship Center in 1977. In 1972, Moody Monthly magazine published a feature article about the congregation titled, "The church with nine hundred ministers."
Grace Community Church has tightly-held theological positions regarding elder rule
, church discipline, divorce and remarriage, the evangelization
of children, the cessation of spiritual sign gifts (such as speaking in tongues
), Lordship salvation
, and the sufficiency of Scripture. They are also noted for their views regarding the role of psychology in counseling, and their teaching that Roman Catholicism is "a satanic religious counterfeit."
Non-denominational Christianity
In Christianity, nondenominational institutions or churches are those not formally aligned with an established denomination, or that remain otherwise officially autonomous. This, however, does not preclude an identifiable standard among such congregations...
, evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
megachurch
Megachurch
A megachurch is a church having 2,000 or more in average weekend attendance. The Hartford Institute's database lists more than 1,300 such Protestant churches in the United States. According to that data, approximately 50 churches on the list have attendance ranging from 10,000 to 47,000...
located in Sun Valley, California. John MacArthur
John F. MacArthur
John Fullerton MacArthur, Jr. is a United States evangelical writer and minister noted for his internationally known and broadcast radio program titled Grace to You...
is the pastor-teacher of the congregation, founded in 1956. As of 2008, the average weekly attendance was 8,258.
History
Following Householder's death in 1965, Richard Elvee was called to be pastor and the church continued to grow under his leadership until he died in 1968. In February 1969, John F. MacArthur
John F. MacArthur
John Fullerton MacArthur, Jr. is a United States evangelical writer and minister noted for his internationally known and broadcast radio program titled Grace to You...
assumed the pastorate. During the early days of MacArthur's ministry, the church doubled in size every two years, building a new Family Life Center in 1971 and a new Worship Center in 1977. In 1972, Moody Monthly magazine published a feature article about the congregation titled, "The church with nine hundred ministers."
Distinctives
Elder (Christianity)
An elder in Christianity is a person valued for his wisdom who accordingly holds a particular position of responsibility in a Christian group. In some Christian traditions an elder is a clergy person who usually serves a local church or churches and who has been ordained to a ministry of Word,...
, church discipline, divorce and remarriage, the evangelization
Evangelization
Evangelization is that process in the Christian religion which seeks to spread the Gospel and the knowledge of the Gospel throughout the world. It can be defined as so:-The birth of Christian evangelization:...
of children, the cessation of spiritual sign gifts (such as speaking in tongues
Glossolalia
Glossolalia or speaking in tongues is the fluid vocalizing of speech-like syllables, often as part of religious practice. The significance of glossolalia has varied with time and place, with some considering it a part of a sacred language...
), Lordship salvation
Lordship salvation
The "lordship salvation" controversy is a theological dispute regarding key soteriological questions within Protestantism, involving some non-denominational and Evangelical churches in North America since the 1980's...
, and the sufficiency of Scripture. They are also noted for their views regarding the role of psychology in counseling, and their teaching that Roman Catholicism is "a satanic religious counterfeit."
External links
- Grace Community Church website
- Grace Books International
- Grace to You media ministry of John MacArthur
- Grace Community School