Who Are We?

We believe God is about Restoration.
Not just simply restoring things to the way they were, but to a brilliant newness where we, His creation, fully display and enjoy His glory.

God begins that work in us as we embrace what He did through His Son, Jesus Christ’s, life, death and resurrection. As renewed followers, He invites us to join with Him in completing this restoration work in all of creation.

Being part of a church community is therefore not simply a religious experience, but a relational experience. In rediscovering our relationship with God and our oneness with each other through Christ, we begin to learn what it means to be truly human and we get a taste of heaven on earth.

The words Behold – Believe – Become have become words of focus for us as we seek to live out all God is working within us.

We invite you to join us as we Behold the beauty of God, Believe the truth of His Word and together Become all He created us to be.

Our History

Centenary Lakes Christian Community began meeting as a church in 1969. We are affiliated with Queensland Churches of Christ, (not to be confused with other more recent groups and sects of similar name).

Churches of Christ are a group of churches that grew in the early 19th Century out of a desire to restore the church to the practices and principles of the New Testament Church.

Although Churches of Christ have a national and state wide supportive conference structure, we as a community are autonomous; we have no governing authority or financial support outside the local community.

Churches of Christ across Australia share a commonality in belief and Christian practice, however, we are free to express our relationship with Christ, His church and the world around us in ways appropriate to our local situation.

Churches of Christ have often stated their approach to belief as:

• In essentials - unity
• In non essentials - freedom
• In all things - love

In Essentials – Unity

Our Beliefs

• Jesus Christ is the Son of God and is the only way to a relationship with the Father. Our desire is that we, as a community, journey together to a real, passionate and intimate relationship with him.
(John 14:6, Philippians 3:7-14)

• The Holy Spirit is God’s presence amongst us producing the fruit of relationships and gifts for ministry. We believe all gifts are for today. In our major gatherings we affirm the public expression of gifts that build and unify the body.
(Acts 1:8, Galatians 5:22-26, 1 Corinthians 12:1-11)

• Community is highly valued. People are important, all people without distinction between race, gender and class. Our commitment to each other is essential. We would seek to practise the love of Jesus in tangible ways both within and beyond our community.
(Galatians 3:28, Genesis 12:1-3, Matthew 28:18-20)

• The Bible is the Word of God for people at all times and is fundamental to our community. We believe God’s Word to be without error, however we understand that man’s influence and interpretation will occasionally produce different conclusions on some matters.
(Psalm 119:105, Acts 20:32, 2 Timothy 3:16)

• The Lord’s Supper is an essential ‘celebration’ within our worship each Sunday and at other times when appropriate. We share the bread and wine as a participation in the death and resurrection of Christ.
(Matthew 26:27-29, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

• Baptism is a natural outworking of our commitment to Christ. Whilst we recognise there are many forms of Baptism in the Christian Church, we teach and encourage baptism of believers by immersion.
(Matthew 3:13-17, Matthew 28:18-20, Romans 6:1-4)

• We are all ministers. We believe that the whole community should minister by gifts and calling. We submit to our elected leadership and to each other by mutual accountability. Pastors and Leaders are called to be servants to lead by example and to be open to correction.
(1 Peter 2:9, Ephesians 4:11-13, Ephesians 5:21)

• Commitment to the Kingdom of God involves far more than commitment to the local church, however we believe that being in a community at Centenary Lakes means getting involved by praying, supporting, giving, encouraging and serving as God leads.
(Philippians 4:6,7, Luke 9:23, Hebrews 10:24,25)

In Non-Essentials – Freedom

Grace is the lifeblood of our community. We believe that the faith Jesus taught was intended to make people free. We encourage and expect people to become like Jesus in their attitudes and behaviour, but this must be worked out in the atmosphere of Grace. Grace is worked out in people’s lives by allowing them to grow at God’s pace, not ours, as His Word and His Spirit bring both conviction and power to grow.
(Ephesians 2:8,9, Galatians 5:1)

We emphasise what we have in common. Many of us have differing views on how we are to worship, practice the gifts of the Holy Spirit, understand Christ’s return and so on. It is important that these opinions do not divide us.
(1 Corinthians 12, Romans 14, 1 Corinthians 11:17-28)

In all things love

The call of God’s word to ‘love each other deeply from the heart’ is our code of behaviour. Unity of the body is critical at Centenary Lakes Christian Community. Unforgiveness, gossip, dishonesty, pride, legalism, a critical spirit, cliques, prejudice, are behaviours that destroy community. Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, are ways we seek to express love to one another. We wish to relate to others as if they were Christ themselves.
(John 13:34,35, 1 Corinthians 13, 1 Peter 4:8, Colossians 3:12-17)

Building community takes hard work. It is far more than a Sunday gathering. Community requires of us a commitment to stick together when things are tough, to remain open to God, to each other, to new people and new ways of ministry.
(Philippians 1:3-6, James 1:19)

Above all we live to receive and give the grace of Jesus.

We are passionately committed to the building of God’s kingdom through the local church and would love to have you join us on that journey.

We hope this gives you a little more insight into who we are.

Should you wish to find out more about how you can get connected into Centenary Lakes Christian Community, please contact the church office.