ABOUT US
Who We Are
We are a multi-generational, multi-cultural church with a passion for living out and spreading the gospel from London to the UK and the world. We have close ties with the churches planted from this congregation in other cities in the UK, Africa, and Asia and work in partnership with the international charity HOPE worldwide to bring hope and to change lives by empowering people to escape poverty in all its forms.
We make our best efforts to love God and each other.
We believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God and our guide for daily living. We appreciate the forgiveness and purpose that comes through Jesus Christ and are eager to share this good news with others. The International Churches of Christ (ICOC) is a fellowship bonded by the cross of Christ and a common vision to make disciples of all nations.
Our church in London began when a small group of faithful Christians moved here specifically to establish a congregation that could take the message of Jesus to our capital city and beyond. We want to keep building on that legacy as we continue to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to all nations from this great city.
What We Believe
• We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:19-21)
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• We believe that a person is saved by the grace of God through faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:23-25)
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• We believe that people repent and are baptized, their sins are forgiven, they receive the Holy Spirit and are added to Jesus’ church. (Acts 2:38)
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• We believe that while salvation is based on the grace of God, disciples of Jesus have a responsibility to love God and to love others as Jesus stated. (Mark 12:28-30)
What Is Our Vision
We want to see people from all cultures, nations, and backgrounds growing together into a united spiritual family that knows and shows the love, glory and mercy of God to London and the world.
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To Love God
We strive to keep growing in our knowledge of God’s word, power and will, so that we are equipped to show the love of God to our city and our world.
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To Love People
We are all about relationships. We want to see every member of our community flourishing as we join together in living out the good news of Jesus Christ.
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To Love London
We want our lives to demonstrate to London that the gospel is true and reasonable, rational and relatable,
life-affirming and life-changing - a message that empowers us to live as God intended and be a light to our city and our world.
Please join us in helping this vision become a reality.
What Is Our Story
• 1980s
Our church was planted in 1982 by a small team of faithful Christians from our sister congregation in Boston, with a big dream to establish a congregation that could take the message of Jesus to our capital city and beyond. It was a time of rapid growth and great missionary endeavour. The Birmingham church was planted (1988) and Manchester followed (1989). Also, there were wonderful international plantings: -Bangalore, India (1988) and Lagos, Nigeria (1989).
A quote from those early days summarises the mood: - “We didn’t know what we were doing but we prayed a lot!”
• 1990s
Church plantings continued including Edinburgh, Scotland and Dublin, Ireland (1991). In the early ‘90s, the church started to help people living on the streets of London with food and clothing. In 1993, the ‘Two-Step’ programme began to provide people who were homeless with emergency shelter then long-term housing. In 1995, ODAAT (One Day At A Time) launched to help people break free from drug & alcohol addiction. These pioneering programmes became part of a separate charity HOPE worldwide in 1995.
Though it was another decade of growth and service, it is important to acknowledge that we did make mistakes and, at times, relied too much on human effort rather than God's power and Spirit.
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• 2000s
In 2003, our worldwide family of churches went through a very challenging period where we had to take time to assess ourselves and our direction. We spent some years reflecting, discussing and resolving. This, although hard for all of us, actually led to an opportunity for greater growth and depth. The London church continues to grow both in maturity and in number since then.
Though it was a difficult time for all of us, the transformation has been profound!
• 2010s
We appointed new elders, deacons and some new evangelists. We set about sending out staff members to strengthen our smaller churches around the UK. Other new staff have been hired, especially many young leaders through the 'One Year Challenge' programme which helps young people serve and support the church.
It was an exciting decade of spiritual renewal and unity.
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• 2020s - VISION
We are excited about continuing to grow in maturity and number as we look to reach all of London for Christ, and indeed help reach the whole of England during this decade. We are embracing the digital age and with the onset of Coronavirus have been rapidly expanding our online presence.
Come and be a part of our exciting future.
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THOUGHTS OR
QUESTIONS?
WE'D LOVE TO
HEAR FROM YOU.