The
Orchard
Church began as a home
prayer meeting with eight people in
Bay
Village.We
have sought to fit into a center position between rule-honoring
“fundamentalist” churches on one hand and feelings-driven “charismatic” churches
on the other.We desire to be loyal to
Jesus Christ and the Scriptures, open to people from all types of backgrounds,
and responsive to the Spirit’s leading.Although we are not charismatic, we do believe that spiritual gifts are
for today, freedom in worship is essential and that every believer needs to be
filled with the Holy Spirit.
Our
Mission Statement:
Advancing Christ’s Kingdom by:
Winning, Equipping & Sending
In Love
We
believe that Christians with diverse backgrounds and personalities can find
wonderful unity as they focus on the Lord Jesus Christ.As brothers and sisters work together toward
a common goal, under the same leader, their differences become smaller.The overall aim is to glorify God by
exalting, praising and worshiping His Son.Springing out of this vertical aim towards God are three great
horizontal purposes directed toward people.
Winning (Evangelism)-bringing people one step closer to Christ and
eventually to saving faith in Him.Friendships with the lost are foundational to witnessing.
Equipping (Discipleship)-learning to deny self and follow Christ
through obedience.Paul-Timothy
relationships are foundational to helping one another grow into full
Christ-likeness.
Sending (Missions)-gaining God’s perspective on the world,
including our community, and seeking to make disciples of all people before
Christ returns.Personal involvement
with missionaries is foundational to having a vision for the world and personal
involvement in a local body of believers is foundational to compassion for our
community.
What Is Our Personality
We will be led by elders and seek to follow a leadership
style of servanthood.The pastor will be
a full-time elder who devotes himself to prayer and the ministry of the
Word.He will give leadership, but will
not be the dominant leader.He will not
be the head elder, but simply function as an elder.Leadership will be through a plurality of
elders.
We will seek to avoid legalism in all its forms, realizing
that Christ is our life and hope of righteousness.Simple faith in His indwelling presence is
the road to victory and godliness.Fruit comes from abiding not rule keeping.
We will seek to be Christ-centered and Bible-centered.Faith in Christ and obedience to the Word of
God are central to the Christian life.The death and resurrection of Christ and His unsearchable riches are the
major themes of the Bible
We will participate in worship through prayer, testimony,
Scripture reading, and singing.We will
seek to maintain a balance between psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing
with joy and victory.In music, “making
a joyful noise” will be emphasized as worship rather than showmanship.
We will take no offerings in our worship services, but a “tithe
box” will be available for receiving offerings.
We will accomplish work through called and gifted people who
have a burden for a particular ministry.The model we desire to follow is that of the Body of Christ as opposed
to the secular business community.
We desire to include prayer as part of every meeting with an
emphasis on praise and thanksgiving.As
we exalt Christ in spirit and truth, He will draw all men unto Himself.The main purpose of the church is to glorify
God and enjoy Him forever.
We desire to be led by the Spirit and maintain freedom to
make changes as He leads us.We may not
follow all the traditional methods, but rather find new and creative ways to
apply biblical principles.
Our Vision
Our Focus
Strengthening
the Family
“For this reason I
bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth
derives its name.” Ephesians 3:14-15
God has ordained the family as the basic building block of
all society.It was designed to be a
safe harbor in the stormy sea of the world; a safe place where spouses could
love and affirm one another and children could be trained and influenced toward
Christ-like character.
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Our Method
Dynamic
Small Groups
“They broke bread
in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and
enjoying the favor of all the people.And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”
Acts 2:46b-47
People are hungry for true friendship and a sense of
belonging.Small groups meeting together
in the name of Christ offer the best atmosphere for those relationships to
develop.
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Our Calling
Making
Followers of Christ
“The harvest is
plentiful but the workers are few.Ask
the Lord of the harvest, therefore to send out workers into His harvest field.”
Matthew 9:38
Our desire is to establish healthy, caring, mutual
friendships with the “not yet saved.”We
also desire to reach across the oceans to the farthest corners of the earth
where the name of Christ has yet to be spoken in order to reach the unreached.
Our Vision
Our Approach
Discipleship
Training
“And the things
you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men
who will also be qualified to teach others.” 2 Timothy 2:2
Jesus called on His church to make disciples of all nations.We desire to become a training center
where many formal and informal discipling relationships are producing an army
of disciplemakers.Building men and
women into followers of Jesus, one at a time will produce reproducers.
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Our Power
Believing
Prayer
“If my people, who
are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and
turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive
their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14
Fellowship with God through praise, petition, intercession
and thanksgiving is the privilege of all true believers.Individual, private and persistent
intercession is essential for each believer, and corporate, united, fervent,
prevailing prayer unleashes God’s fantastic spiritual power.
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Our Culmination
Celebration
Services
“But you are a
chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God,
thatyou may declare the praises of Him
who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.” . . . 1 Peter 2:9
When the members come prepared to participate with
Scriptures to read, testimonies to share, praises to pray, tears to weep, and
voices to lift; then our worship ascends to the Almighty as a sweet aroma of
incense.
Promises Given to The Orchard
“I will give you every place where you
set your foot . . . No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of
your life . . Be strong and very courageous.Be careful to obey all the law My servant Moses gave you; do not turn
from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go
. .”Joshua 1:3, 5, 7
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“If you do away with the yoke of
oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend
yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then
your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the
noonday.The Lord will guide you always;
He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your
frame.You will be like a well-watered
garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”Isaiah 58:9-11
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“Forget the former things; do not dwell
on the past.See, I am doing a new
thing!Now it springs up; do you not
perceive it?”Isaiah 43:18-19
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“The mountain of the Lord’s temple will
be established . . . and peoples will stream to it.”Micah 4:1
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“Who despises the day of small things? .
. . Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit says the Lord Almighty.”Zechariah 4:10, 6
How Can I Be a Part of The Orchard
In God’s book there are no little
people.Everyone is significant!If you commit yourself to praise the Lord
Jesus with all your heart, to love your brothers and sisters sincerely, and to
seek to be a witness to those who do not know Christ, then you are playing a
major role in the Body of Christ!There
is simplicity about the
kingdom
of
God that often gets
lost in schedules and programs.
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Any person who has been born again and
committed himself to this fellowship may become a member of The Orchard Church.
·Born Again means one who professes faith in Jesus
Christ as Savior and Lord, having received Christ into his heart by faith.(John 1:12, 3:5)
·Committed to This Fellowship means one who considers this his
church home, regularly attending and supporting its purposes, and is in total
agreement with its doctrinal statement.(Acts 2:42-47)
Membership may be terminated by the
disciplinary action of the Elders.A
member must be at least 16 years of age.
To become a member of The Orchard Churcha person should take the following steps:
1.Attend a new member class.
2.Meet with the Elders to share your
story of how you came to know the Lord Jesus.
3.Stand before the congregation in a
church service to be publicly welcomed into membership.
Mission Statement
Advancing Christ’s Kingdom
by
Winning, Equipping & Sending
In Love
What Do We Believe
We believe the Scriptures as our authority in
matters of faith and practice.
We believe in the Old and New Testaments of
the Bible as being verbally inspired of God, inerrant and infallible in the
original writings.
We believe in one God existing in three
persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for
our sins as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice, and that all who
believe in Him are justified on the ground of His shed blood.
We believe in the resurrection of Christ, His
ascension into heaven, and His present life there as High Priest for us.
We believe in the blessed hope, the personal
and imminent return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
We believe that all who receive by faith the
Lord Jesus Christ are born again of the Holy Spirit, and thereby become
children of God and heirs of eternal life and of heaven.
We believe in the necessity of the indwelling
Christ through His Holy Spirit for godly living and power to witness and
minister.
We believe in the existence of a personal
devil, who is working in the world to destroy the souls of men, and that he and
all his angels, and all who receive not Christ as their Savior, will eternally
perish in hell.
We believe in the Church, the body of Christ,
whose mission is to make disciples of all people.
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Church Property/Church Office
7191 MacKenzie Road, Olmsted
Twp.,
OH
44138
(44o).427.0224
Meeting at
Olmsted
Community Center
8170
Mapleway Drive,
Olmsted Falls,
OH
44138
Worship Service
10:30 a.m.-Sunday School
9:30 a.m.
We are associated with the Evangelical Free Church of
America
