What To Expect When You Visit

You are cordially invited to come worship with the Southside church of Christ. We are a small group of Christians who are dedicated to the principles which God has set forth for His people in the Bible – particularly the precepts in the New Testament. We don’t claim to know it all; but, we are determined to continue to "grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18).

You will receive a warm welcome and you will find that we are friendly people. We will encourage you to study the Bible with us. You will find that our classes consist of studying directly from the Bible. During Bible study, you are welcome to participate and, if you wish, to ask questions so that we may assist you in your understanding.

When we gather for worship, there are five things that we do. All five of these acts are authorized in the Bible, and by them, we grow and encourage each one who is present. What do we do in worship?

We Sing. It is vocal singing without the accompaniment of any mechanical instrument of music. The reason that we sing is this is what the New Testament authorizes – "Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord" (Ephesians 5:19). You are welcome to sing along with us, if you wish, or you are welcome to just listen.

We Pray. Prayers are offered to God in the name of Jesus Christ. Our prayers consist of "supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks...for all men" (1 Timothy 2:1). We pray for those who are ill, those who are travelling, our political leaders, and those who keep us safe. We pray for God’s approval on the things that we do and for wisdom to do the right things.

We Partake Of The Lord's Supper. We partake of the Lord’s Supper which consists of unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine [grape juice]. This is what Jesus gave His disciples as a memorial before His betrayal and death (Matthew 26:26-29). We partake of this each Sunday for we see this was the practice in the church during the 1st century AD (Acts 20:7). You are welcome to partake or not partake as you choose.

We Contribute Of Our Means. This is a free-will offering made by the members here for the purpose of funding the work that we are authorized to do (1 Corinthians 16:1-2). We do not solicit nor expect you as our visitor to give into this offering. You may, if you wish, but we do not require it of our visitors. We desire your presence, not your money.

We Hear A Lesson. A sermon will be preached on a topic taken from the Bible. Just as Paul encouraged Timothy to "preach the word" (2 Timothy 4:2), so we do today. We have some Bibles available so that you may follow along, or you may bring yours from home. We encourage you to search the Scriptures to prove the truth of the things preached (Acts 17:10-11). If you wish, either at the close of the lesson, or after we are dismissed, you may ask any questions that you may have about the lesson.

Please feel encouraged to come worship with us!

Written by Fred E. England. Unless noted otherwise, all verses cited and/or quoted are from the King James Version [KJV] of the Bible.