When the church began almost 2000 years ago (following Jesus’ resurrection and Pentecost) there were no organisations, no denominations (types of churches) or traditions to follow. There was just the church, made up of Jesus’ disciples and those that became Christians as they heard the good news of what Jesus had done for them.
The church grew incredibly quickly with thousands becoming Christians in a single day (Acts 2:41, Acts 4:4) and so very quickly there were multiple churches, or groups of Christians meeting together. As more churches formed and the good news spread into Asia, Europe and beyond, there were inevitably differences in style of churches because people and cultures are different.
As the centuries have gone on some churches have chosen to fellowship, affiliate or join with each other because they share a similar style of worship, or often because of minor differences in what they believe. Sadly, there are also times where groups of churches have not held to the teaching of the Bible, and so when DCF started we first wanted to ensure that what we believed and taught was true to what the Bible, God’s Word to us, says.
However, it was also important to us to join with other churches to be accountable (for what we teach and do) and to have fellowship with others who also hold the Bible in the highest regard – as absolute truth that we can build our lives upon.
For us, we have found ourselves at home with the Calvary Chapel group of churches – a world-wide network of over 1600 like-minded churches that grew out of the Jesus Movement in Southern California in the 1960’s. Calvary Chapel is not a denomination, but a fellowship of churches who share in a common philosophy of ministry.
If you would like to know more about Calvary Chapel, please visit calvarychapel.uk
At the heart of the Calvary Chapel movement is a passionate commitment to the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the teaching of the Word of God. While our ministries are varied, our mission is simple: to proclaim Jesus as Lord & Saviour, making disciples of Jesus, unto the glory of God!
It is this commitment to the Gospel and the Word of God that has seen over 30 Calvary Chapel churches planted in the UK alone over the last twenty years. There are currently 38 Calvary Chapel churches located across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
You can find about more about the history of DCF by clicking here, and if you would like to know more about Calvary Chapel, please visit calvarychapel.uk or visit https://calvarycca.org