In order to give insight into who we are and what we focus on as a local group of God's people, please consider the following 3 Ls of the Loudon Church: 

LOVING:

In Matthew 22:34-40, Jesus is asked a question of the greatest importance, “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?” Jesus does not scoff at the question, but he responds with a legitimate answer. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.”

This answer from Jesus is at the heart of everything we do as a church family in Loudon. We are committed to loving God with everything we have. This means we will respect His authority in every way. What He says is true, is true. What He says is false, is false. His Word is our standard, not the ever-changing winds of culture.

Additionally, this means that we will offer Him the worship that He has revealed within Scripture. When we assemble to worship, we’ll be found singing, praying, observing the Lord’s Supper on a weekly basis, giving of our means to the work of the Loudon Church, and studying together from the Biblical Text. Our worship is focused on glorifying God, not entertaining people.

Further, Jesus states in Matthew 22:39, “The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” We cannot say we love God without loving those made in His image (Genesis 1:26,27). We treat every person with the respect an image-bearer of God deserves, regardless of social, economic, racial, or other external characteristics. You will have a place among us. Come and see!

LEARNING: 

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is a masterpiece when it comes to describing what God has done through Jesus to create a new people for His own possession (Ephesians 1:3-14). As a people being created through the work of Jesus, we are indebted to be the type of people that He would have us to be. We can know what type of people He wants by looking at how He has designed His church to be structured.

Such a design is found in Ephesians 4:11-16, where Jesus is said to have designated certain roles within the church. Those roles are those of Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. These roles were given by Jesus for the purpose of “equipping the saints for the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ, until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, growing into maturity with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness.”

It is important to highlight what Paul says here because it shows the church was created and designed to be a spiritually-driven and spiritually-focused entity. It is to focus on the Word and Will of God above all else. It is a body in which learning more about God and His Will for us is the priority.

At the Loudon Church, you will find a strong desire to spend time in God’s inspired Scriptures to be taught, rebuked, corrected, and trained in righteousness (II Timothy 3:16,17).

LIVING: 

Continuing to read Paul’s letter to the Ephesians will reveal that Paul doesn’t just want people who know what God and Jesus want for them, but he desires a people who are changed by what they come to know. While we do strive to have as great of a knowledge of God’s Word as possible, we recognize that failing to live according to that knowledge would be a terrible mistake.

In Ephesians 4:17, Paul instructs the Ephesians that they are to “no longer live as the Gentiles live.” This language clearly reveals there is an expectation for the fruit of repentance to be seen in the lives of those who profess to be followers of Jesus. Repentance is so much more than simply saying we are sorry. True repentance demands a real change in who we are as demonstrated by what we do. It is not enough to say we love God or to say we have learned the ways of Christ and yet be the exact same person as we have previously been.

No, real repentance means putting away behaviors and attitudes that are contrary to the character of Jesus (4:25-31). It means being “imitators of God, as dearly loved children” (5:1). It means paying careful attention to how we live—not as unwise people but as wise—making the most of the time because the days are evil (5:15,16). It means doing the good works God prepared ahead of time for us to do in Christ Jesus. We won’t always be perfect, but God’s grace will help us to live well if we will trust in Him always!

How do I become a Christian or join the Loudon Church family? 

We have zero desire to reinvent the wheel when it comes to accessing the salvation made available to mankind through the grace and mercy of God. Therefore, we simply desire to encourage every person to consider how the very first hearers of the Gospel message responded to what they heard. This means going back to the first Gospel message that was presented in Acts 2.

To keep it short and sweet: The Holy Spirit comes down upon the Apostles just as Jesus predicted in Acts 1:4,5. The people are amazed that these men of Galilee could speak in so many different languages. They ask a crucial question in Acts 2:12, “What does this mean?”

Peter stands and declares that they are seeing the fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel 2:28-32. The Day of the Lord was upon them and it was time for everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord to be saved. He goes on to firmly establish Jesus of Nazareth as Lord (Acts 2:22-36). The people show their belief in Jesus by asking what they should do, or in other words, “How can we call on the name of this Jesus?” Peter responds succinctly, “Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts 2:38).

If you have faithfully submitted to Jesus as Lord through belief, repentance, and baptism, we would love to speak with you about joining the family! Let’s talk to see what you can do to support the work we are doing for Him here in Loudon!