LOOKING FOR A CHURCH?
Looking for a church to call home is one of the most important and life-changing searches an individual or family can undertake. At the same time, it can be one of the most daunting. Each church promotes itself and puts on its best appearances in hopes of drawing new people and growing numerically. It's understandable. After all, an increase in attendees and an increase in offerings yields increasing optimism and opportunities to accomplish things for God.
If the search were not difficult enough, it is further complicated by the fact that Knoxville, Tennessee, is inundated with churches. We often describe it as the Baskin Robbins of churches where you can find any flavor you want. Looking for a Baptist church barely narrows the options. Looking for an Independent Baptist church finally starts to make a dent in the available options but still leaves you with so many choices as to be overwhelming. Only when you further filter your options by a specific position on the King James Bible and type of music implemented in the various facets of the church's life and ministries, can you begin to have a reasonable amount of churches from which to choose.
At Antioch, we are unusual in that it is not our main purpose to grow numerically. We do not believe it to be God's will and plan for everybody to come to our church. Instead, we believe God's purpose and plan for us to be that we glorify God in all that we do and that we strive to preserve a pure body of doctrine and practice within our church until Christ comes. As such, there are people in our community (and in other places) who should come to Antioch and join us as we strive to please the Lord, but there are others who want something quite different than what we want and would attend only in hopes of changing us to be like one of the other churches within the community.
In order to help you decide whether or not Antioch is the place for you, consider the following.
Why are you looking for a church?
Is it because you are moving to Knox County, Blount County, Anderson County, Union County, or Campbell County and need a church to attend in your new community? If so, maybe we are the place for you.
Is it because you have become frustrated with your present church?
If your church left or never had sound Bible doctrine and you are looking for a place that holds to the doctrines resulting from a simple and total faith in the words of the King James Bible, Antioch might be the place for you.
If your church has strayed from the old hymns of the faith and you are looking for a place that still clings to and loves those songs, Antioch might be the place for you.
If your church has lost its concern for holy living and you are looking for a place that still desires a higher standard and preaches and teaches accordingly, Antioch might be the place for you.
If somebody at your church made you mad or mistreated your children, or the preacher does not have a good personality or preaches too long or too short, or has too many hobbies, or is too old or too young, or his children misbehave or are too perfect, or his wife is not nice enough or is too nice, etc., you would probably be best served to work through the problems where you are and grow in the Lord from doing so. Moving to a new church without making things right only compounds the problem.
If you have been a member at several other churches in the area and need a new place to try, Antioch is likely not the place for you. After all, there is a good chance that you are a church hopper and lack stability in your life. Until you get that fixed, no church will be your home for any extended period of time.
What are you looking for in a church?
We are likely not the church for you, if you are looking for:
A church that majors on the programs it offers to every member of your family
A church that encourages or allows contemporary Christian music, praise and worship choruses, or Southern gospel music in the worship services or ministries within the church
A church that uses multiple versions of the Bible or that believes that the King James Bible is merely the best translation available, but remains imperfect
A church where your personal holiness is never challenged
A church that keeps your family busy with social interaction with little emphasis on spiritual growth
A church where the sermons major on story telling and tear-jerking illustrations and minimize biblical doctrine and context
A church with polished preachers, immaculate facilities, or professional musicians and singers leading the services
A church that minimizes doctrine in order to bring more people in
A church that blends charismatic doctrine or practice with Baptist doctrine and practice
A church where women lead the men and therefore the church, either visibly or behind the scenes
We might just be the church for you, if you are looking for:
A church that wholeheartedly believes every word of the King James Bible to be the perfect words of God
A church that emphasizes congregational singing, foreshadowing the style of worship used in heaven
A church that rejects contemporary Christian music, Southern gospel music, praise bands, drama teams, etc. in favour of old-fashioned hymns of the faith
A church that strives to have a high standard of holiness and preaches and teaches against ungodliness
A church that emphasizes the Bible in every aspect whether it be preaching or teaching, or in church ministries and practice, or in our homes and personal lives
A church where your children can be raised in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and encouraged to trust Christ as Saviour and live lives pleasing to Him
A church where the men are encouraged to be the heads of their homes and lead their families according to the dictates of scripture
Please do not take our transparency as a lack of caring or an unwillingness to welcome you should you visit Antioch. We simply want to fulfill God's purpose and will for our church and we wish nothing less for you and for your family. We would love for our church to grow spiritually and numerically as the Lord leads and maybe you are part of His plan to fulfill that. We just understand that finding a church is hard, and forthrightness on the part of churches can go a long way to helping in the process.
That only leaves one consideration on your part, is Antioch the place where God wants you to grow and serve?