Anthology Church

Anthology: a collection of stories brought together for a common purpose.

The story you live in is the story you live out. We are a collection of diverse life stories unified by the good news of Jesus. Each person has a story and is invited to participate in God’s grand story of redemption with us.

Mission
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Vision

Anthology Church is a family of communities scattered across neighborhoods in New York City committed to follow Jesus together for the good of the city.

Our dream is to see people become deeply formed followers of Jesus whose lives, communities, and city is transformed by the gospel.

VALUES

Our vision to see deeply formed followers of Jesus is shaped by four core values.

  • We prioritize seeking God’s presence and purposes to experience, express, and enjoy Him in our daily lives.

  • We value one another so that we may build authentic loving relationships across social, ethnic, political, generational, and economic divides.

  • We follow Jesus’ teachings daily, aiming to become deeply transformed disciples who participate with God in the spiritual, social, and cultural renewal of our neighborhoods.

  • We participate in God’s renewal of all things by declaring and demonstrating the good news of Jesus so others can experience life with God.

Following Jesus together for the good of the city

We pursue the presence and purposes of God as a community shaped by the way of Jesus in both groups and gatherings.

Groups - communities across our neighborhoods where we practice the way of Jesus together in everyday life.

Gatherings - times when we come together for prayer, worship, teaching, and training.

Join Us

And the one seated on the throne said:
“Look! I am making all things new!”

— Revelation 21:5

BELIEFS

The ancient church father St. Augustine offers a helpful statement on any church’s shared beliefs, “In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In everything, love.”

We hold to essential historic teachings of Christian orthodoxy as articulated in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed.

We also subscribe to summaries of Christian doctrine as formulated in the statement of faith of the Langham Partnership.

  • The Apostles’ Creed is the foundational creed of Christian churches. It has received this title because of its great antiquity; most of the creed dates from the early 2nd century. The creed was used as a summary of Christian doctrine for baptismal candidates in the churches of Rome. Though many churches and flavors of Christianity throughout the ages have different interpretations of the Bible, and embrace various doctrinal nuances, the essence of what the Scriptures teach is found in the words of the Apostles’ Creed.

    Therefore, we have fellowship with other members of the Body of Christ who profess their faith as follows:

    We believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth,

    And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:

    who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead.

    The third day He arose again from the dead.

    He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

    We believe in the Holy Spirit,

    the holy catholic (universal) church, the communion of saints,

    the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.

  • The Nicene Creed was developed in the 3rd Century as a foundational statement of belief for early Christian churches across the Greco-Roman world:

    I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

    And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God,

    begotten of the Father before all worlds;

    God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God;

    begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.

    Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven,

    and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man;

    and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate;

    He suffered and was buried;

    and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures;

    and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father;

    and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead;

    whose kingdom shall have no end.

    And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life;

    who proceeds from the Father and the Son;

    who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified;

    who spoke by the prophets.

    And I believe in one holy catholic (universal) and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins;

    and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

    Amen.

  • Langham Partnership is committed to the fundamental truths of historic biblical Christianity, in accordance with which we affirm:

    1. There is one, eternal God, Creator and Lord of the universe who, in the unity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, both governs all things according to God’s will and is accomplishing God’s purpose in the world and in the church.

    2. The Holy Scripture in its entirety is inspired by God’s Spirit through human authors and constitutes the revelation of God’s truth to humanity. It is wholly true and trustworthy in all that it affirms. Whatever the Bible, rightly interpreted, is found to teach, we are bound to believe and obey. It is our supreme authority in every matter of belief and conduct.

    3. All human beings are created in God’s own likeness and therefore have inherent value and equality before God. Human sin and guilt since the fall have rendered us subject to God’s wrath and condemnation and have resulted in our alienation from God’s life, suppression of God’s truth and hostility to God’s law. God’s love desires all to come to repentance and to be reconciled rather than condemned.

    4. Salvation from the guilt, penalty and all other consequences of sin has been achieved solely through the work of Jesus Christ – his perfect obedience, substitutionary death, bodily resurrection and exaltation as Lord. Jesus alone is truly God and truly human, the only mediator between God and humanity. There is salvation through no other person, creed, process or power. Each sinner is justified before God and reconciled to God only by divine grace appropriated by faith alone.

    5. The work of the Holy Spirit is necessary for the individual’s new birth and growth to maturity. The Holy Spirit empowers and indwells the church, enabling its constant renewal in truth, wisdom, faith, holiness, love, ministry, power and mission.

    6. There is one, holy, universal and apostolic church, which is the Body of Christ, and to which all true believers belong. The church’s calling is to worship God forever and to serve God in the world.

    7. As the Father sent the Son into the world, so the Lord Jesus Christ sends his church to participate in God’s mission by words and works. The church is called: to make Christ known; to proclaim God’s truth and the gospel of God’s grace; to make disciples among all nations; to exhibit God’s character through compassionate care for the needy; to demonstrate the reality of God’s kingdom through creative and sacrificial living, the community of love, the quest for righteousness, justice and peace, and the care of God’s creation.

    8. As the Lord Jesus ascended to his Father, so he will return personally, visibly and in glory. He will raise the dead and bring salvation and judgment to final completion. God will then fully establish his Kingdom and finish the new creation – a new heaven and a new earth from which all evil and evildoers, all suffering and death, will be excluded and in which God will be glorified forever.

Anthology Church Doctrinal Statement

  • The Gospel is the good news that God himself, the Creator, has come to rescue us from sin, and renew all things, in and through the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf, to establish his Kingdom, through his people, in the power of the Holy Spirit.

    This good news is initiated by God, in grace.

    This good news is substitutionary: Christ has come, lived, died, and risen on our behalf.

    This good news is participatory: we are involved in declaring and joining the work of God in redemptive history as his faithful, fruitful people.

    This good news is news of a Kingdom, not just individual hearts. It is the Lordship of Jesus tangibly worked out across all of creation.

    This good news is powerful. It wakes people from death to life, promises the presence and power of God in us, and enables us to be a preview community of the work God will do in all creation.

  • We believe that the Scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments are verbally inspired by God, in whole and in part, error-free in the original writings and the supreme authority of faith and practice for the follower of Jesus Christ. We further believe that all scripture points to Jesus as the Messiah. (Psalm 119:160; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Hebrews 1:1-2, 4:12).

  • We believe there is but one living and true God who is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable. We further believe that God is one in essence while existing in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Though each person of the Godhead possesses precisely the same nature and attributes, each function differently in respect to God’s purposes and dealings with man (Deuteronomy 4:39; 6:4; Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14).

  • The first person of the Trinity orders and directs all things according to His own purpose, pleasure, and grace. The Father is sovereign in creation, providence, and redemption. He has decreed all things that come to pass for His own glory. He graciously involves Himself in the affairs of men, hears and answers prayer, and saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ (2 Chronicles 29:11; Psalm 103:19; Matthew 6:9; John 5:19-24; Ephesians 1:2-6).

  • The second person of the Trinity is both the eternal Son of God and virgin-born Son of man. Jesus Christ, fully God and fully man, surrendered nothing of His deity during His earthly life. Having led a sinless life, He paid the penalty concerning sin by His substitutionary death on the cross. We believe in His bodily resurrection, His physical ascension, and His visible return to make all things new (John 1:14-18; Acts 1:11; Romans 3:24-26; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 2:17-18; Revelation 20:11-15).

  • The third person of the Trinity executes the will of God in the world. It is the Holy Spirit who applies the salvation that Jesus Christ secured through His death on the cross. It is the Holy Spirit who convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. It is the Holy Spirit who indwells and empowers the church to live a lifestyle pleasing to God, endowing it with special gifts which equip believers to accomplish distinct ministries (John 3:1-8, 15-16; 16:4-15; 1 Corinthians 12; Galatians 5:16-25; Ephesians 1:13-14; 5:18-21).

  • We believe that all humans are directly created in the image of God to enjoy His fellowship and to fulfill God’s will on earth. Man sinned by voluntary act of personal disobedience to the will of God; as a result, all are spiritually dead and subject to the certainty of physical death. The fall of mankind was a non-repeatable event, the effects of which are transmitted to all human beings, each of whom is born with a sinful nature and sins habitually in thought, word, and deed (Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7; 3:3-4; Romans 1:18-32; 3:10-23; Ephesians 2:1-3).

    We believe that God created the human race male and female, and all conduct with the intent to adopt a sex/gender other than the one ordained by God at conception is contrary to God’s intent, and therefore sin. (Genesis 1:27; Matthew 19:4; Mark 10:6).

  • We believe that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone. Christ died for our sins as the only sufficient, substitutionary sacrifice. All who believe in Him are declared justified by the Father on the grounds of Jesus’ death and resurrection. All who receive the Lord Jesus Christ by grace through faith have been regenerated by and baptized in the Holy Spirit. They become, thereby, the children of God, forever, and members of the one true church, the universal Body of Christ. This salvation will result in righteous living and good works as the believer submits their life to the control of the Holy Spirit who directs the life of the believer in harmony with the Word of God (John 1:12; 3:16; 5:24; 14:6; Acts 4:12; Romans 3:21-26; 5:8; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10; Titus 3:4-7; Hebrews 10:10-12; 1 John 5:11-13).

  • We believe that all who have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit belong to the one true universal Church and are directed by the Scriptures to associate themselves in local, visible churches. The local church is the only scriptural representation of Christ’s invisible Church and consists only of regenerated believers. The local church is autonomous in its government and recognizes its own members for the biblical offices of elder and deacon. Two ordinances have been committed to the local church-Baptism and Lord’s Supper. The purpose of the church is to lead others to Christ, mature them in the faith, and equip them for personal ministry (Matthew 16:13-28; 28:18-20; Acts 2:41-47; 4:1-16; 1 Corinthians 11:23-29; Ephesians 2:19-22; 4:11-13; Hebrews 10:23-25; 1 Peter 5:1-3).

  • We believe in the historically Christian view of marriage and sexual expression; namely, that God has established marriage as a lifelong, exclusive relationship between one man and one woman and that all intimate sexual activity outside the marriage relationship, whether heterosexual, homosexual, or otherwise, is sin (Genesis 1:26-27; Genesis 2:24-25; Exodus 20:14, 17; Matthew 19:4-6, 9; Romans 1:18-31; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, 15-20; Jude 7).

    Marriage ceremonies conducted by Anthology Church NYC should represent the establishment of this covenant relationship.

  • We believe that prophetic scriptures teach the imminent return of Jesus Christ (John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17). We believe the second coming of Christ will occur in a bodily, visible manner with great glory (Acts 1:9-11; 1 Corinthians 15:20-28; Revelation 20:1-4).