Celebrating our new life in Christ
Sunday evening meetings of our individual church communities in homes throughout Ames & Des Moines.
A central part of CityChurch participation is the Sunday evening meetings of our individual churches. We refer to our churches as “kerygmatic” communities––communities that by their very existence and activities proclaim the work of God, through their individual and community life! Modeled after Paul’s instructions to the churches in the Epistles and a careful study of how the Early Church gathered, the meeting of each of our churches is formed around the following elements.
Sunday Evening: In Homes
We have modeled our weekly gatherings after the meeting pattern of the Early Church (Acts 2:42, 20:7-11). Based on this pattern, our churches meet weekly on Sunday evenings (the first day of every week) around the Lord’s Supper, in homes across Ames and Des Moines.
Around a Meal: The Lord’s Supper
We believe that the meal was at the heart of these small, simple meetings, which fed the spontaneous expansion of the Early Church—a concept that began in Acts 2:42 with fellowship and breaking bread from house to house. This concept was fully developed in Paul’s instruction about the “Lord’s Supper” to all the churches in 1 Corinthians 11, becoming synonymous with the believers meeting together for a meal––to “break bread.” They gathered together for the purpose of observing the Lord’s Supper and that term––The Lord’s Supper––was used to symbolize the whole meeting.
Formal Time of Meeting
Following the meal, each church gathers for a more formal time of discussion and instruction, which is overseen by the leadership of that church. Opportunities are available for all to contribute to the strengthening of the church through their participation. Contribution to the formal time could take any of the following forms.
Artistic contribution – Song, poetry, written prayer, visual art, etc. that has emerged as an individual is processing truth. (1 Cor. 14:26, 29)
A teaching – Sharing a piece of biblical teaching that has been learned and applied in one’s life. This could come from an individual’s experience in ordered learning, the current teaching series, or personal study.
Significant insight – Sharing new understanding or insights that have been gained as the Spirit works in the minds of established believers to “uncover” truth based on “the mind of Christ.”
Presentation of a problem – Individuals may present a problem to the group to seek to understand biblical principles and how they apply to that issue.
Network-wide communication from CityChurch leadership – Time and attention may be required to solve or correct issues within the CityChurch or simply to ensure that community dialogue is taking place on important issues.
Guarding the Teaching – Leadership may go back to the passages and main thrust of the “Apostolic team’s” teaching. This may be for the purpose of reviewing collective instruction, challenging the church, or creating discussion and debate around the issues. Because anyone can bring a teaching and interact with the ideas, leaders must have a firm grasp of the Scriptures and be able to refute those who contradict that teaching.