The Missionary Church
Core Beliefs
GOD
We believe in one God, eternally existing in three divine persons, equal in power and glory - Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God is the creator and sustainer of all things.
Jesus Christ
We believe in Jesus Christ, the eternally begotten Son of the Father. He is the fully divine, living Word of God who also became fully human - conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. His sinless human life, humble obedience to his Father's will, sacrificial death and bodily resurrection made sufficient provision for the salvation of all people. In his ascension, he returned to his Father, where he reigns as Lord, Advocate, Great High Priest, and Coming Judge.
Holy Spirit
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the third person of the triune God, proceeding from and sent by the Father and the Son. He is the personal expression of God's power - instrumental in all his works. He is the author and illuminator of sacred Scripture. He convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgement. He is the agent of the new birth, the one by whom we are baptized into the Body of Christ. As the spirit of holiness, he indwells every believer and his Church, purifying and empowering his people for holy living. He guides them into truth, comforts, and encourages them, and enables them to fulfill the Great Commission. He produces his fruit in the lives of believers and gives them spiritual gifts for the good of the Church.
Bible
We believe that the Bible, consisting of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, is the written Word of God, verbally inspired by the Holy Spirit and therefore, true, reliable and without error in all it addresses. We believe the Bible has been safeguarded by the Holy Spirit and transmitted to the present day without any doctrinal corruption. The Bible forever remains the unchanging and final authority for faith and living.
Salvation
We believe that Christ is the atoning sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Salvation is a divine gift given to any who repent and believe. Repentance and faith are the divinely enabled human responses to the grace of God. By the power of the Holy Spirit, a sinner must turn away from sin and embrace God - thus appropriating the benefits of Christ's life, death and resurrection. All who truly believe and receive Christ are fully justified, reconciled to God, born of his spirit, adopted as his children, and united with Jesus in his death and resurrection. They will one day see him in his glory and be glorified themselves, as God brings his redemptive work to completion.
Church
We believe that the invisible and universal Church is a spiritual body comprised of all believers, both living and dead - over which Christ himself is Head and Lord.
Ordinances
We believe that baptism and the Lord's supper were instituted by the Lord Jesus himself - not as a means of salvation, but as outward signs of the salvation we have by faith. They are the divinely mandated means by which believers publicly affirm their faith in Christ. Water baptism symbolizes the spiritual union that every believer has with Jesus in his death, burial, and resurrection. Therefore, we believe that the biblical pattern is baptism upon profession of faith in Christ, and furthermore, that it should be administered by immersion whenever possible.
History of the Missionary Church
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In the 1850s, the Missionary Church’s roots formed when several Mennonite ministers were dismissed from their churches for holding unsanctioned prayer meetings, attending and conducting revival services, and allowing women to share public testimonies. These dismissed ministers united to form the Mennonite Brethren in Christ (later renamed the United Missionary Church in 1947).
Meanwhile, the Missionary Church Association was founded after a pastor was dismissed from his former denomination for seeking baptism by immersion as a born-again believer in Christ. He continued preaching the message of God’s love through Jesus Christ as savior. In 1898, those who shared his convictions adopted the name “Missionary Church Association” to reflect their passion for worldwide evangelism.
After three decades of discussion, the United Missionary Church and the Missionary Church Association merged in 1969, bringing together a staff of nearly 200 missionaries. This union was possible because both denominations were committed to preaching only the Bible and reaching the world for Christ.
In 2011, the Missionary Church reorganized from a district-based structure to regions, launching multiple networks within each region. These networks, each with unique styles, expanded opportunities for church planters and congregations to partner, learn from one another, and share in the joys and challenges of the united mission to multiply disciples.
Our methods may change, but our mission never will—make disciples who make disciples to the fourth generation.



