CCC is a growing, multi-generational church committed to the spiritual and social health of our community. We are part of the Evangelical Covenant Church, a group of almost 900 churches around the US and Canada with an enduring commitment to be biblical, connectional, devotional, and missional. We hope to help everyone grow deeper in Christ and to go further in mission. You can learn more about the ECC at www.covchurch.org.
The Covenant Affirmations are the core theological commitments of the ECC.
We affirm:
- The centrality of the word of God.
- The necessity of new birth.
- A commitment to the whole mission of the church.
- The church as a fellowship of all believers.
- A conscious, daily dependence on the Holy Spirit.
- The reality of freedom in Christ.
The sermon series, We Are, unpacks each of these affirmations. You can read the full explanation of the affirmations here, or a brief version here.
CCC’s Mission and Priority Callings:
Centennial Covenant Church exists to glorify God by following Jesus on a shared journey of transformation in his mission to our broken world.
We carry out this mission by following our four priority callings. We refer to these as a four-dimensional way of life.
UP – Vulnerable worship, as we dwell in the presence of our God.
WITH – Authentic community, as we bring our real selves into real relationships with others.
IN – Life transformation, as we grow into the person God made us to be.
OUT – Active love, as we allow the blessings we have been given to become blessings to others.
Along with the core commitments of our Covenant Affirmations, Mission, and Priority Callings, we also have a number of theological distinctives. While we see ourselves very much as part of the broader Church, we know that every church is unique. We share these distinctives to help you get a feel for who we are and how we carry out our commitment to following Jesus. Even though every church has distinctives, we hope that our unity as part of the global Church stays front and center.
Wells instead of fences:
Sometimes, going to a church can feel a bit like taking a high-stakes test. For some people, it feels like there is a secret code they need to learn, or some secret knowledge they are supposed to have. For others, it can feel like there’s a big, invisible fence one is supposed to stay inside of without being sure what boundaries it draws. In the ECC, we think about God more like a well. The life of faith isn’t about figuring out the boundaries and trying to stay inside of them. Rather, it is like coming to a well of life-giving water. That well is at the center of everything, and the most important thing in life is to keep moving toward it. We might be far away from it or we might be right next to it, but we are all trying to move toward it and drink its refreshing water. This well is the truth and grace of God, demonstrated to the world by Jesus in his act of great love: dying on the cross then coming back to life in order to give everyone life. We invite people on a journey of moving toward this well together and discovering the joy of growth along the way.
Our Vision for Health:
You don’t have to look far to find people talking about health. Gyms promote physical health, counselors promote mental health, mindfulness apps promote emotional health, and there are countless other examples. Where does the Church fit in? Some would suggest the Church fits into its own separate category of “spiritual health.” Around here, we don’t buy it. When you read the gospels and hear the stories about the life of Jesus, you encounter a person with a multi-faceted life. He laughed, he wept, he felt compassion and anger, he was hungry and exhausted, he needed rest and time to himself. In the midst of it all he prayed, and engaged the spiritual world. Jesus’ life didn’t separate the facets of his life but rather integrated them. We acknowledge that humans are multi-faceted. We are emotional, intellectual, physical, spiritual beings designed for love. Health, therefore, is a multi-faceted, integrative, relational spectrum. Our hope is that everyone in our community will flourish in all realms of life. Our spiritual journeys include seeking health and growth holistically, in every area of our lives. In short, all health is spiritual health.
Biblical Mutuality:
Because of our strong commitment to the teachings of scripture, we affirm God’s equal giving of gifts to people regardless of gender. Therefore, you will regularly hear women and men preaching at our worship gatherings, find women and men serving on our Council of Elders, and hear us encouraging everyone to serve according to their gifting, not according to their gender. You can read the full ECC statement on Women in Ministry here.
Sanctity of Life:
The ECC strongly affirms the clear teaching of scripture that all life is sacred to God. Therefore, all life must be treated as sacred by God’s people. We believe this teaching must be applied consistently. The theological teaching of the sanctity of life should influence how we treat those without homes or jobs, how we respond to and treat immigrants, how we care for orphans, how we welcome refugees. It should also influence our views on the fighting of wars, the horrors of human trafficking, how we treat unborn lives and the mothers carrying them, the treatment of inmates in prisons, the suffering caused by inequality, and many other issues. If you would like to read the full ECC statement on the Sanctity of Life, you can find it here.
Human Sexuality:
Our starting place for understanding human sexuality is the biblical teaching about sin. As it says in the book of Romans, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We believe this is true of every person. Straight, gay, bi-sexual, trans, married, single…everyone falls short of God’s design for love. This truth applies to every person in every area of life, including our sexuality. Therefore, nobody can stand as righteous above others; rather, we all stand in need of God’s life-giving grace. Hence, we seek to take a posture of grace in our relational welcome and connection with everyone who comes through our doors.
Our hope is that, even for those who disagree with our understanding of the Bible’s teaching on God’s design for faithfulness in heterosexual marriage and celibacy in singleness, we can still find meaningful relationship and shared ministry as we all journey together toward Christ. You can find a full suite of resources on the ECC Embrace website, here.
Racial Righteousness:
God created a multi-ethnic mosaic of people who all bear his image. His Kingdom is made up of people from every tribe, tongue, and nation, and the Church should be a reflection of this diversity. Therefore, every instance of inequality or division along racial or ethnic lines – whether in the church or in the culture around the church – is a form of brokenness that God desires to heal. And God desires his people to be part of that healing. In scripture, the word “righteousness” is used a lot.
It refers to God’s intention to make all things right. God works to restore all things to his design. You can find an entire suite of resources on racial righteousness, including resources on topics like immigration, criminal justice, and the theology of the Kingdom of God at the ECC Resources page here.
There is so much more we could say, but we don’t want to overwhelm you. These are simply a few things people often ask us about, so we thought we would share them here. If you want to know more, you can share a meal with some people from Centennial by signing up for Taste of Centennial or you can Grab Coffee with a Pastor.