And His Church isn’t an outdated idea, a dead religion or an empty building. It is actually the hope of the world and is designed by God to be a life-impacting, hope-inducing, society-influencing change agent, that literally brings the kingdom of Heaven to earth.
That’s the kind of church you’ll read about in the Bible, and that’s the kind of church we are seeking to establish in New Orleans, Louisiana.
When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, he said, “Our Father in heaven, holy is your name, your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.”
This is the clearest explanation of the will of God in the entire Bible:
“Father, the way it is in Heaven–where your goodness and glory reign and brokenness and darkness are absent–let it be here on earth.”
That’s our prayer, too, and why we exist as a church. We want to see the city of New Orleans transformed in such a way that it begins to impact this nation and the nations of the earth.
That transformation starts in you–as you experience God’s goodness and love and it begins to restore every broken place in your life. This heavenly reality happens IN you so that it can flow THROUGH you into the world around you. As each of us begin to live in the joy of heaven, the freedom of heaven, the hope of heaven, the Kingdom of God can come into the world around us.
We believe God is as happy as He is holy and wants us to know Him in a real way. It is when we are in His presence that life makes sense and we experience fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11). In the Bible, when the Spirit of God touched ordinary people, they were filled with great power and were able to become all that God had intended for them to be. The same is still true for us today–His power and His love set us free to be who He made us to be and to glorify Him with our lives. As a church, we want to encounter God in everything we do, and we specifically set aside time for corporate gatherings, worship and prayer where we can know and enjoy the presence of God together.
We weren’t made to follow God on our own. It is in seeking to become more like Jesus with others that we truly experience transformation. The book of Acts describes the early church as a group of people who shared life together. They were always eating together, seeking God together and giving to anyone who had need. They were family. And what happened? They experienced awe and wonder and people were added to their number daily (Acts 2:42-47). This is the kind of discipleship community Jesus modeled with His disciples and it’s what we were each made for! We call this House Church and it’s the main way we do church.
God has purposefully placed us in our schools, jobs, families and neighborhoods to make an impact in the lives of those around us. As we serve others, boldly share the good news of Jesus and generously give our lives away to others, we will see a Gospel-movement that not only transforms this city but leads to the transformation of our nation and the nations of the earth (Acts 1:8). We are committed to equipping and empowering every person to reach their sphere of influence with the love of God and sending out missionaries and church planters to neighborhoods throughout the city and nations around the world.
Antioch New Orleans is a part of a global family of churches committed to seeing the Great Commission fulfilled around the world through church planting and discipleship movements. Antioch is based in Waco, Texas and currently has over 80 international church-planting teams and 38 churches in the United States–with more teams being sent and churches being planted each year. We are also closely connected to our sending church, Antioch Baton Rouge and are strengthened by their support and friendship.
Instead of gathering at Booker T this Sunday (3/26), we'll be hanging out at Popp Bandstand in City Park at 10am. See you there!
Join us for Tuesday Prayer at 6am, 12pm and 8pm! Zoom Link
