OUR VISION
WHO WE ARE
Christ Central Church is a mission church of the Blue Ridge Presbytery is in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). We are located in the heart of Charlottesville, Virginia. We long to reach the Charlottesville community with the life-saving, and beautiful message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is our great hope that this is the kind of place you have found and perhaps the reason you are here! When we talk about who we are though, that really comes down to our vision for what we want to be, and our mission for how we intend to do that.
We pray for and expect to see visitors and are intentional to make Christ known. While not living in the past, we take delight in being a part of the historic church founded by Jesus and passed on through the generations. Like the saints of old, we live with the expectation that God continues to work in us and through us.
Our Purpose
Our Purpose is to see the beauty and the glory of Christ—who is the visible presence of the transcendent God—made known in our city. We long to see the transforming power of the gospel in Charlottesville, and we desire to be intentional witnesses of that gospel.
Our Vision
Our Vision is to be a Christ-loving, hospitable community, that is a catalyst for life change. This vision is reflected in our slogan, “Reaching Up, Reaching In, Reaching Out”.
Christ Loving- Reaching Up
We respond to God in worship, and are dependent on God’s word that graciously offers us new life in His Son Jesus.
In him we live and move and have our being.
(Acts 17:28a)
Hospitable Community- Reaching In
We love one another through community and fellowship that reflects the reality of God’s love.
This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
(John 15:12)
Intentional Welcome- Reaching Out
We share God’s peace and reconciliation with the community and the world at our doorstep.
Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! (Psalm 96:3)
Our Mission
To make disciples in the Charlottesville, VA area, calling people into a devoted community and sending them out to be salt and light in the city and beyond. (Matthew 5:13; 28:18-20)
We want to see people come into a life changing Encounter with Jesus, to come to Know Him by the power of the Holy Spirit, and then to be equipped to Show Him to their community in word and action.
The Vision and Mission in Practice
We recognize that there are many challenges to be met if the stated vision and mission is to be realized. Among those challenges are secularism, globalism, and also instant and incessant communication. Those challenges also bring opportunities.
Being Intentional
To be a welcoming community requires intentionality. In the early 21st century, being intentional also means being aware of our setting. There probably has been no other time in American history when a small, local church, had the opportunity to reach so many people from diverse backgrounds. God promised Abraham that in Him all the families of the world would be blessed. (Gen 12:2-3) That promise is ultimately fulfilled in Christ. The floodgates of God’s blessing is available to people from every nation on earth.[1] That includes Charlottesville, where refugees and other displaced people have been streaming into our city for many years.[2] Literally dozens of heart languages are spoken in local schools.
The famous story of the Good Samaritan, told by Jesus to a religious group of inquirers, is rightly understood as the Christian response to people in need. But, taken in its fuller context, it is a call to love across racial, cultural, and ideological barriers.[3] (Luke 10:25-27) Simply put, our mission, context, and demographic reality, requires us to find new ways reach people with the gospel of Jesus and include them in Christian community. One of the ways we do that at Christ Central is to utilize available technology to provide translation of our worship services. Presently, that is Spanish translation, but we can accommodate other languages as opportunities arise. This truly does give us the opportunity to “make disciples of all nations”. (Matthew 28:19)
Since its beginning, Christ Central has always emphasized the importance of authentic Christian community as an expression of faith, an encouragement to believers, and as a blessing to the large community. Our witness is not dependent on one voice, but on the community of believers, the local church, who stand together as one to make Christ known. In doing so, we offer hope and peace to our neighbors in the name of Jesus. Together, in word and deed we are saying in effect, “O taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the one who trusts in him!” (Psalm 34:8)
[1] Rebecca McLaughlin, (2021) “The Secular Creed”, p. 8, The Gospel Coalition
[2] Charlottesville has long been home to the IRC (International Rescue Committee), a government supported refugee relocation and relief agency. The group brings in 250-300 refugees per year.
[3] Rebecca McLaughlin, (2021) “The Secular Creed”, p. 11, The Gospel Coalition
CORE VALUES
Gospel-centered
The Gospel or "good news" of Jesus Christ is the focal point of the Scriptures, and we believe that it should also be the focal point of the church. The Gospel changes, defines and empowers us.
Gospel doctrine leads to Gospel community - characterized by honesty, safety, forgiveness, and above all—love.
simple
We will do a few things and we will do them well. We are committed to three simple things:
Worship - God is the at the center of all that we say and do. Worship is first and foremost honoring and glorifying Him.
Community - We gather, and we scatter. We come together to be refreshed and to go out and refresh others with love and grace.
Life Transformation - Discipleship is at the heart of what we do as a church.
humble
Humility is the foundation of many things we want to display and practice - Unity, service, generosity, and hope.
We will strive toward humility with a focus on prayer and submission to God.
We will serve shoulder-to-shoulder as a people and place of warm welcome. No one is unimportant or less worthy of Love.
Historically-Rooted
We celebrate standards set and lived imperfectly by those who have gone before us on similar paths.
Our traditions are informed by the best of past wisdom and future grace.
We seek to live and convey Christian faith that is rooted in the scriptures and applied to contemporary life.