Announcements

Elective Sunday School Classes

The following Bible study classes are offered on Sunday mornings at 9:15am:

The Truth Project. A video series exploring the Christian worldview.

Living Among the Thorns. A ladies' Bible study class on God's principles for life's problems.

1 Samuel. A men's Bible study class on the Old Testament book of 1 Samuel.

Vintage Jesus. A young adult Bible study class on the identity of Jesus Christ.

EVANTELL "You Can Tell It!" Seminar

On Saturday, February 4, from 9am-2pm, CBC will host an EvanTell training seminar on understanding the good news of Jesus Christ and learning how to share it effectively. The cost is $15 per person and $25 per couple. Lunch is included and childcare is available. Contact the church office for more information or to register.

Questions for God Survey

"If you could ask God any question, what would it be?" Send your question to questions@516church.org. We will use the results of this survey as the basis for a sermon series in the spring.

Weekly Bible Verse

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

2 Corinthians 5:17

About Us
Our Church Staff
Steve Foster
Steve Foster
Pastor

Steve was born in Green Cove Springs, FL in 1968, the youngest of six children. Steve is a graduate of Southeastern Bible College (BA), New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (Master of Divinity), Dallas Theological Seminary (Master of Sacred Theology) and Biblical Theological Seminary (Doctor of Ministry). In 1991, he married Liz and they have four children:  Nate, Noah, Jonah and Joshua. Steve became the pastor of CBC in May 2010 after spending seven years in New Orleans as youth pastor at Berean Bible Church (1990-97) and twelve years in New Jersey as associate pastor at Sayre Woods Bible Church (1998-2010). Steve enjoys reading C.S. Lewis and Tim Keller, teaching church history, playing golf, throwing the football with his boys, watching FSU (and LSU) football, eating a good cheeseburger (ketchup only), listening to Third Day music, watching old episodes of MacGyver, and going on dates with his wife.

Noah Lang
Noah Lang
Youth Pastor

Noah grew up in Sayreville, NJ with an older sister and younger brother. After interning as a missionary in Russia with Touch the World Ministries, he graduated from Philadelphia Biblical University and spent 5 years teaching history at Trinity Christian School in Montville, NJ. He met his wife, Olya, on one of several missions trips to Russia. They married in 2003 and have a son, Elijah. Noah is passionate about missions, history, and the New York Football Giants. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, reading, and researching his genealogy.

Shelley Baker
Shelley Baker
Secretary

Shelley was born and raised in Baton Rouge and has been a member of Community since 1998. She joined the CBC staff in October 2011 and loves her new job! She is also a student majoring in nursing at Southeastern Louisiana University and hopes to start nursing school next fall. Shelley spends her spare time visiting with family and friends, playing games (especially Dutch Blitz), reading, doing Beth Moore Bible studies with her mom, and chasing around her two Maltese puppies.

Our Church Elders
Tim Cox 225.755.0033
coxtim@bellsouth.net
Carlton Jones 225.928.4103
carltonjones@cox.net
Lynn Kennedy 225.766.8837
lakennedys@cox.net
Stephen Punkay 225.923.1355
scppe@cox.net
Jak Stallings 225.744.3158
jmstall@eatel.net
Steve Foster 225.924.1369
pastor@516church.org
What We Believe
THE HOLY SCRIPTURES

We believe that the Bible, including both the Old and New Testaments as originally given by God, is verbally and plenarily inspired and free from error and is therefore the final and authoritative guide for faith and conduct. (II Tim. 3:16-17; II Peter 1:20-21; Matt. 5:18; John 16:12-13; I Tim. 5:17-18)

THE GODHEAD

We believe that the Godhead eternally exists in three persons – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – and that these three are one God; having precisely the same nature, attributes, and perfections, and worthy of precisely the same reverence, confidence, and obedience. (Matt. 28:18-19; Mark 12:29; John 1:1-14; Acts 5:3-4; II Cor. 13:14; Heb. 1:1-3; Rev. 1:4-6)

GOD THE FATHER

God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth. God the Father has the specific role of Father to the nation Israel (Exodus 4:22), to the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 3:17), to all believers in Christ (Galatians 3:26), and, more generally, to all mankind (Acts17:29). He is the initiator of the plan for the salvation of mankind (John 3:16, Ephesians 1:3-8), as well as for the overall Messianic role of Christ (Psalm 2:7-9, Ephesians 1:9-10).

THE PERSON AND WORK OF CHRIST

1. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, without ceasing to be God, having been conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, in order that He might reveal God and redeem sinful men.
(1 John 1, 2, 4; Luke 1:35)

2. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption through His death on the cross as a representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice: and, that our justification is made sure by His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Rom. 3:24-25; I Peter 2:24; Eph.1:7; I Peter 1:3-5)

3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to heaven, and is now exalted at the right hand of God, where, as our High Priest, He fulfills the ministry of Representative, Intercessor and advocate.
(Acts 1:9-10; Heb. 9:24; 7:25; Rom. 8:34; I John 2:1-2)

THE HOLY SPIRIT

We believe that the Holy Spirit, though omnipresent from all eternity, took up His abode in the world in a special sense on the day of Pentecost. He dwells in every believer, and by His baptism unites all believers to Christ in one body. We believe that, in this age, certain well-defined ministries are committed to the Holy Spirit. These ministries are: The restraining of evil in the world; the conviction of sin, righteousness, and judgement; the re-generating of all believers; the indwelling and anointing of all who are saved, thereby sealing them unto the day of redemption; the baptizing into the one body of Christ all who are saved; and the continued filling of those among the saved who are yielded to Him and who are subject to His will.
(John 14:16-17; 16:7-15; I Cor. 6:19; Eph. 2:22; II Thess. 2:7; John 3:6; Rom. 8:9; I Cor. 12:13; Eph. 4:30, 5:18; John 20-27)

SATAN

We believe that Satan is a real, created being, a fallen angel, the author of sin, and the cause of man's Fall, and further, he is the open and declared enemy of God and man, and shall be eternally punished in the Lake of Fire. We believe that when Satan fell, he retained all of his power, and he uses demons, fallen angels, the unsaved, and carnal Christians to implement his power. (Job 1:6-7; Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:12-19; Matt. 4:2-11, 25:41; Eph. 6:11-12; James 4:7; I Peter 5:8; Rev. 20:10)

MANKIND

Mankind was created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:27), but in Adam's sin all subsequent mankind became tainted with sin (Romans 5:12). The result is that all people are sinners by nature and by practice, eternally condemned apart from the salvation and grace of God. (Genesis 3:20-24; Romans 1:18-3:23, 6:23)

SALVATION

We believe that man's salvation from his lost condition is God's gift of eternal life brought to man by grace. We believe that no one can enter the kingdom of God unless born again, whereby the Holy Spirit, by the Word of God, imparts a new life. Furthermore, man's salvation has been accomplished solely by the death and shed blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. This new birth of the believer comes only through faith in Christ and no other acts. (Lev. 17:11; Isaiah 64:6; Matt. 26:28; John 1:12; 3:5,16,18,36; 5:24; 6:29; Acts 13:39; 16:31; Rom. 1:16-17; 3:22,26; 4:5; 5:6-9; 10:4; II Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:13, 22, 6:15; Eph. 1:7; 2:8-9; Phil. 3:4-9; Titus 3:5; James 1:18; I Peter 1:18,19,23)

THE ETERNAL SECURITY AND ASSURANCE OF BELIEVERS

1. We believe that all believers are kept by God's power and are thus secure in Christ forever. (John 6:37-40, 10:27-30; Rom. 8:1, 38, 39; I Cor. 1:4-8; I Peter 1:5)

2. We believe that the assurance of the believer's salvation rests upon the testimony of God in His written Word, rather than upon feelings. (Luke 10:20-33;II Cor. 5:1, 6-8; II Tim. 1:12; Heb. 10:22-23; I John 5:13)

SANCTIFICATION

We believe that sanctification, which is a setting-apart unto God, is threefold: (1) It is already complete for every saved person because his position toward God is the same as Christ's position. Since the believer is in Christ, he is set apart unto God in the measure in which Christ is set apart unto God. We believe, however, that he retains his sin nature, which cannot be eradicated in this life; (2) Therefore, while the standing of the Christian in Christ is perfect, his present state is no more perfect than his experience in daily life. There is, therefore, a progressive sanctification wherein the Christian is to "grow" in grace, and to "be changed" by the unhindered power of the Spirit; (3) We believe, also that the child of God will yet be fully sanctified in his state as he is now sanctified in his standing in Christ, when he shall see his Lord and shall be "like Him". (John 17:17; Rom. 12:2; II Cor. 3:18, 7:1; Eph. 4:24; I Thess. 5:23; Heb. 10:10,14, 12:10)

SPIRITUAL GIFTS

We believe that divine, enabling gifts for service are bestowed by the Spirit upon all who are saved. While there is a diversity of gifts, each believer is energized by the same Spirit, and each is called to his own divinely appointed service as the Spirit may will. (Rom. 12:6; I Cor. 12:4-11; Eph. 4:11; I Peter 4:9-11).

Concerning the sign gifts, via (1) miracle working, (2) healings, (3) tongues, (4) interpretation of tongues, we believe the first two were the signs of the authority of the early disciples, arresting the attention of the populace, identifying with the work of Christ and attesting to their origin the power of God. These were the credentials the apostles presented to an unbelieving world. The last two were signs to Israel that God was removing the Jews from the privileged place and turning to the Gentiles (I Cor. 14:21-22; Isaiah 28:11). All these have served God's purpose and have been set aside in the sovereign will of the Spirit of God. If the Spirit of God should choose to use them again, we would expect it to be in line with their "sign" character.

THE ORDINANCES

We believe that water baptism and the Lord's Supper are the only ordinances of the church and that they are a Scriptural means of testimony for the church in this age. (Matt. 28:19; Luke 22:19-20; Acts 10:47-48; 16:32-33; 18:7-8; I Cor. 11:26)

THE CHURCH

We believe that all who are united to the risen and ascended Son of God are members of the church which is the body and bride of Christ, which began at Pentecost and is completely distinct from Israel. Its members are constituted as such regardless of membership or non-membership in the organized local churches. (Matt. 16:16-18; Acts 2:42-47; Rom. 12:5; I Cor. 12:12-27; Eph. 1:20-23; 4:3-10; Col. 3:14-15)

We believe, however, that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. It is the responsibility of the local church to observe the ordinances, edify itself, and evangelize the world. (Acts 14:27; 20:17,28-32; I Tim. 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-11)

FINAL EVENTS

We believe that the imminent coming of Christ is to rapture the living members of the Church and to resurrect those dead in Christ (2 Thess. 2; I Thess. 4:13-18) will immediately precede the seven-year tribulation (Revelation 3:10). The physical return of Christ to the earth (2 Peter 3:3-10, Revelation 22:7) will end the tribulation period and will usher in His 1000 year reign over the earth (Revelation 20:1-6). His reign is followed by the final judgment of mankind, Satan, and the fallen angels (Revelation 20:7-25), the creation of a new heaven and new earth, and the ushering in of the eternal joys of heaven for all those who have ever trusted Christ for salvation (Revelation 21:1-22:5).