Our church family here is a loving, close-knit group of Christians trying our best to live for Christ. We’re not perfect, of course, but we’re striving each day to let God’s Word be our guide for everything we do—in everyday life, at work, at school, at church. . . everywhere. Many of us come from different backgrounds, and we work in different fields, but we share a common love for Jesus Christ and His church and look for opportunities to share that love with others.
Maybe you’ve realized there’s a void in your life, like something’s missing. We would love to have you as our guest! This could be a perfect opportunity to connect with Christians in this area. It’ll be a non-threatening environment, and you won’t be singled out or made to feel uncomfortable in any way. Just come join us for this simple worship service where we’ll reflect on what Jesus Christ has to say to our lives.
We’d love to see you soon. We’ve saved you a seat!
Our History
The History of Pacific church of Christ stretches back to the first century. The Lord Jesus Christ promises to build, and did build, only one church (Matthew 16:18819, Acts 2:47, Col. 1:18, Ephesians 4:4). This He did through the inspired preaching of the apostles in Jerusalem in 30 A.D. on the first Pentecost after His resurrection from the dead (Acts 2). The Lord’s church in Pacific, Missouri, however, was established in July 1955 by brother S.W. Bell and other dedicated Christians. Over the years, the congregation has seen many interesting changes in the membership and in the meeting places.
The first meeting place was in an upstairs room over a pool hall located at 201 East St. Louis Street. In January 1961 the church began meeting in their own building at the corner of Elm and Orleans. The Lord blessed the church with growth and it was not long before the building proved too small. They built an addition that would accommodate 100 people. Later the facility was enlarged again. It then had eight classrooms and the auditorium could seat 150 people. A persistent problem over the years has been the danger of flooding. Once in 1982 the church was forced to remodel their building because of flood damage. It was decided to move out of the flood plain and in November 1991 a new church building was purchased at 112 North Payne Street. After extensive remodeling, the brethren began worshipping at the new location in 1992.
The church has seen many people come and go. We have had our share of successes and failures. There are still many people who worship with the church today who have been with us for many years. However, sister Esma Horton holds the record for membership in the congregation; she and her family began worshipping with Pacific church of Christ in 1960 when the brethren were still meeting above the pool hall. Presently, we have an active membership of 90 with an average Sunday morning attendance of 100.
For most its history, the church has employed part-time preachers. In 1984, the congregation hired Leamon Stewart as its first full-time evangelist. He served until 1994 and was followed by Johnnie Scaggs, Jr., who served until 1996. Travis L. Quertermous and his family came to us in August of 1996 and served until April of 2005. In June of 2005, we were able to hire Kendall Fox as our full-time preacher. Kendall comes to us from the Overland church of Christ and we look forward to working with him for years.
Another spiritual milestone was reached on January 30,2000 when Phillip Jackson and Ralph Shelton were ordained as the first elders of the Pacific church of Christ. On April 2, 2000, Mike McGuire, Ken Moore, Jimmy Smith, Randy Finch and Floyd Blake, Jr., were appointed as our first deacons. On April 15,2001, Ken Moore was selected to serve as an elder alongside brother Jackson and Shelton. On October 26, 2003, three more deacons were appointed. They were John Whitaker, Jerry Prince, and Todd Fudge. Currently, we do not have elders and we have no deacons. However, we deeply appreciate the work that these men have done.
Faithful churches of Christ are strongly committed to the restoration of nondenominational, New Testament Christianity. We are not a denomination. Christ established His church exactly like He wanted it and no one has the right to change any part of it. The New Testament gives us the pattern for admission into the church, as well as for her worship, mission, organization, names, and doctrines. Those who follow this divine pattern are not a denomination, but members of the same true church established by Christ in the first century. They are members of the same body as all the Christians in the first century were. There were no Catholic or Protestant, man-made, sects in the first century. Indeed, the division which denominationalism represents is contrary to the Lord’s prayer for unity (John 17:20-21) as well as Paul’s pleas for the same (1 Corinthians 1:10). Therefore, we must oppose it as sinful (Jude 3) and plead for the New Testament doctrine of pure, non-denominational Christianity.
We remain strongly committed to the Restoration Plea to “Speak where the Bible speaks and remain silent where the Bible is silent.” Such is a plea to abandon the man-made churches, names, creeds and teachings that are unauthorized by the New Testament. It is a plea for unity in Christ and His one true church. We are dedicated to the church’s threefold work of evangelism, edification, and benevolence (Matthew 28: 18-20; Galatians 6: 1 0; James 1 :27). We are committed to the gospel plan of salvation for a lost and dying world, including faith in Christ as Lord and Savior, repentance of all sins, the good confession, immersion in water (baptism) for the remission of sins, and faithfulness to Christ (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; Romans 10:10; Revelations 2:10). We invite YOU to join us in this greatest of all works. In all things, may God receive the glory!