Part A: Christian Outreach Center

On the 30th May 2010, I attended Citipointe Christian Centre, which is part of the denomination Christian Outreach Centre. Starting at 8:30 am and ending at 10:00 am the service at Citipointe went for one and a half hours. Opening the sermon, was a young Church band which played loud music for Praise and Worship. During the music various staging techniques were used such as bright lights and smoke machines. After the music had finished, the Senior Pastor came on and led everyone in a prayer, before speaking for around ten minutes about the importance of tithes and offerings to the Church. Once he had finished speaking about tithes and offerings, a guest speaker was welcomed to the stage. The guest speaker then preached and shared the word of God, before leading the audience in a prayer and welcoming back the band to the stage. Once the band had finished leading the Church in praise and worship songs, the sermon was considered over and people went and socialised before leaving the church.
The history of Christian Outreach Centre is very short because of the Churches recent foundations. It is a denomination of Protestantism and its first meeting occurred in Brisbane 1974, where 25 people met in Clark Taylor’s house. He is considered the founding chairman of the Christian Outreach Centre, which has over 1000 churches in 31 countries. The growth of the Church started in 1975, where COC moved to a warehouse in West end Brisbane. After 10 years and more than 1000 people later, COC moved from West end to Mansfield in turn building facilities which could accommodate over 5000 people. Currently around 4000 people attend the church, which recently renamed to Citipointe Outreach Centre. (Christian Outreach Centre Australia, 2008)
In general, there is a core set of beliefs which members of the Christian Outreach Centre must believe. These beliefs can be seen in Christian Outreach Centre’s Statement of Faith (Christian Outreach Center Australia, 2008). All members must demonstrate that they accept the Holy Scriptures as inspiration and infallibility to their lives. As well as this members must accept that there is Godhead and this consists of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They must also believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God, and that he walked the earth to save us from our sins. Members are required to follow the Bible as closely as they can, and believe in the prophecies made by the Bible about the end times etc. Another less known belief is that to truly receive baptism in the Holy Spirit, you must speak in different tongues. By having faith in Jesus Christ the Lord and following him you will have a moral life. These beliefs stated here are core beliefs of Christian Outreach Centre. However with different Churches, there are small ideas which not all Churches share. (Christian Outreach Center Australia, 2008).
Citipointe Church is governed by a committee called the oversight. Senior Pastors and elders from each church in Australia report to the oversight of the state. These oversights then meet up three to four times a year to discuss and report on current Church problems. They then figure out how to improve the Church, and make it more appealing to the general public. This oversight is important in the structure of the Church as it allows it to adapt to modern times circumstances.
The liturgy of Christian Outreach Centre is not of a particular set structure unlike the Catholic Church. However most services consist of opening with praise and worship, then tithes and offerings, a message from the Bible, and then ending in an alter call-back which leads into praise and worship. The alter call back, is an uncommon practice which most Christian groups don’t perform. It is where the preacher asks anyone who was affected or could relate to the bible message, to come forward and receive some prayer. It is basically a call to salvation, and happens in nearly all Christian Outreach Centre services (Zaspel, 1998). Once the prayer has been received the band will lead the service once again in praise and worship. The style of the music played is loud and bright flashing lights are used in aide with smoke machines and many musicians. This gives the music a very overwhelming touch, which is used to intensify the atmosphere and represent God as very powerful present. The style is very much suited to young adults and teenagers, making the church more appealing to families.
Overall my experience at Citipointe Church was a memorable experience. This was due to the fact that right from the praise and worship at the start of the service, to the end with the alter call back; it was very high-paced and overwhelming service. However this also helped me understand why Christian Outreach Centre is such a successful Church. The reason for this, is because it is hard to forget and will stay in your mind, slowly convincing you to go back for more.
Bibliography
Christian Outreach Center Australia. (2008). Statement of Faith. Retrieved June 6, 2010, from COC: http://www.coc.org.au/about/believe.aspx
Christian Outreach Centre Australia. (2008). About Us. Retrieved June 6, 2010, from COC: http://www.coc.org.au/about/default.aspx
Zaspel, F. G. (1998). Is it helpful or harmful? Retrieved June 6, 2010, from Altar Call: http://www.biblicalstudies.com/bstudy/ecclesiology/altar.htm