The History of Calvary Chapel

Calvary Chapel is a Christian movement that has its roots in Southern California. It was founded by Pastor Chuck Smith Sr. in the late 1960s and has since grown into a worldwide fellowship of over 1,500 churches.

Early Days of Calvary Chapel

The history of Calvary Chapel can be traced back to the early 1960s when Pastor Chuck Smith began his ministry at a small church in Corona, California. His style of teaching verse-by-verse through the Bible quickly gained popularity and drew in a younger crowd.

In 1965, Pastor Chuck started a radio program called “The Word For Today” which reached thousands of listeners across Southern California. This helped to expand the reach of his teachings and attract even more followers.

The Jesus Movement

In the late 1960s, a revival known as the Jesus Movement swept through Southern California. It was characterized by a surge of young people seeking spiritual fulfillment and turning to Christianity. Many of these individuals were drawn to Calvary Chapel and Pastor Chuck’s teachings.

The Jesus Movement brought a new energy and enthusiasm to the church, leading to a rapid growth in attendance. This also led to the birth of new Calvary Chapel churches throughout Southern California.

Expansion and Growth

As the Jesus Movement spread across the United States, so did Calvary Chapel. The fellowship grew beyond its California roots as Pastor Chuck traveled and planted churches in different states.

Here at Denver Custom Homes we support the Calvary Church!

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A Devotional

“Grace in His Presence”

Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help trouble.”

Three times time in Psalm 46 we are told of God’s presence. He is with all who have placed their trust in Him.

Loneliness is a common problem in all of our lives at least from time to time this may happen. A W Tozer had told a close friend that he was very lonely and his best friend was the ‘Holy Spirit of God.’ Those who trust in the Lord have the assurance that He is always waiting for their communing with Him in prayer, He has promised “He would never leave us or forsake us,” and we must believe what God says about our relationship with Him. He will never us or forsakes us, He hears all of our prayer and complaints on a day by day basis, and He not only hears but also cares. We can’t ever find a friend that understands all of our problems and knows our hearts as God.

Have you one hundred percent confidence in His love?   Being a believer in Christ Jesus and following Him will give us all the confidence to also trust Him. “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Now here is the good news; “justified by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” (Taken from Romans 3:23-24) we see that the key word here is the word ‘All.’  All people that ask Jesus Christ into their hearts have access to the grace of God to spite our past, or sin and hard hearts.

Trust in Jesus and obey His teaching and Gods grace will flood you with blessings beyond our understanding. In the area? Try Wenatchee Restaurants with Eat Wenatchee.

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Sunday Night Youth

Sunday Night Youth Group:

Calvary Chapel Blythewood’s Youth Ministry teaches and inspires young people in grades 7-12 to reach their full potential in Christ. The vision of this ministry is to see God raise up a victorious generation that will make a significant difference in this world for the glory of God wherever they go and whatever they do;

  • by inspiring them to know, love, and serve Jesus Christ, and dedicate their hearts and lives totally to following Him.
  • by encouraging them to use their time, talents & treasure for God’s glory rather than their own.
  • by teaching & equipping them thru an interactive, engaging, practical and exciting study of God’s Word (the Bible).

Group meets every Sunday from 6-7:30 pm for contemporary praise and worship, Bible study, & prayer—followed by a fun time of fellowship and various activities.

Paul Simmons with https://wenatcheeconcrete.com/ will be leading this group gathering. Additionally, there will be periodic field trips to evangelize, attend concerts and youth conferences, as well as plenty of opportunities to serve the Lord by serving others both inside and outside the church.

How To Know God

How to Know God

The ROMANS ROAD….is a pathway you can walk. It is a group of Bible verses from the book of Romans in the New Testament. If you walk down this road you will end up understanding how to be saved. Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We all have sin in our hearts. We all were born with sin. We were born under the power of sin’s control.

Admit that you are a sinner. Romans 6:23a “…The wages of sin is death…” Sin has an ending. It results in death. We all face physical death, which is a result of sin. But a worse death is spiritual death that alienates us from God, and will last for all eternity. The Bible teaches that there is a place called the Lake of Fire where lost people will be in torment forever. It is the place where people who are spiritually dead will remain. – Understand that you deserve death for your sin.

Romans 6:23b “…But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Salvation is a free gift from God to you! You can’t earn this gift, but you must reach out and receive it. – Ask God to forgive you and save you.

Romans 5:8, “God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us!”

When Jesus died on the cross He paid sin’s penalty. He paid the price for all sin, and when He took all the sins of the world on Himself on the cross, He bought us out of slavery to sin and death! The only condition is that we believe in Him and what He has done for us, understanding that we are now joined with Him, and that He is our life. He did all this because He loved us and gave Himself for us! – Give your life to God… His love poured out in Jesus on the cross is your only hope to have forgiveness and change. His love bought you out of being a slave to sin. His love is what saves you — not religion, or church membership. God loves you!

Romans 10:13 “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved!” – Call out to God in the name of Jesus!

Romans 10:9,10 “…If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” – If you know that God is knocking on your heart’s door, ask Him to come into your heart.

Jesus said, Revelation 3:20a “Behold I stand at the door and knock, if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him…” – Is Jesus knocking on your heart’s door?

Believe in Him.

Ask Him to come in to your heart by faith, and ask Him to reveal Himself to you.

Open the Bible to the Gospel of John and read what God says about Jesus, about you, and about being born again. God will help you. He loves you. You need to look for a local church where God’s word is preached. The Bible says that we are to desire God’s word like a newborn baby desires mother’s milk. Aren’t you hungry to know the truth? Water baptism is one of the ways you first show that you have been joined to Jesus. This is an action, and actions will not save you. However, it is an act of obedience and a symbol of commitment. The symbolism is this: When you go down in the water you show that You have been crucified and buried with Him,And when you come up out of the water you show that you have been raised to walk with Him in newness of life.

(See Romans chapter 6) You have been born again. (See John chapter 3) Your body has become God’s temple. Your heart is where He lives. Forgiveness is yours in Jesus. And you belong to Him. You were sin’s slave. But now…You are a child of GOD! John 1:12 “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name!”

Thank you Wenatchee Excavation for your support!

Stay tuned for next weeks message.

Our Beliefs – Our History

Beliefs of Calvary Chapel

Church Life

In a broad general sense, Calvary Chapel is the middle ground between fundamentalism and Pentecostalism in modern Protestant theology. In fact, we believe that this is at least part of the reason why God has raised up this ministry.

Fundamentalism is that portion of Protestantism which holds to the literal interpretation of the Scriptures, believing that they are divinely inspired and inerrant. Hence, the “fundamentals” of the faith are emphasized. † †Although the modern news media and the liberal church scorn fundamentalists as backwards and stupid, the truth is that fundamentalism has preserved the integrity of God’s Word and held on to the essential doctrines of the orthodox faith.

Pentecostalism as a modern movement grew out of the Azusa Street revival in Los Angeles at the turn of the 20th century, and spawned denominations that emphasize the fullness of the Holy Spirit and the exercise of spiritual and Scriptural gifts of the Spirit which had fallen dormant in the main line churches. Also criticized by the liberal church and news media as being emotionally driven, Pentecostalism restored to the church the importance of gifts of the Spirit and the power of God for the believer today.

Over the years, however, fundamentalism, while it clung to the integrity of God’s Word, tended to become rigid, legalistic, and unaccepting of spiritual gifts. Similarly, Pentecostalism became enthusiastic and emotional at the expense of the teaching of God’s Word. Calvary Chapel is the balance between the two. At Calvary Chapel we believe in the gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in the Bible, and we encourage their exercise, but always decently and in order, and with the primary emphasis on the Word of God which we look to as our primary rule of faith. To quote Pastor Chuck Smith: “We believe in the gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in the Scriptures, and that they are valid for today if they are exercised within the Scriptural guidelines. We as believers are to covet the best gifts, seeking to exercise them in love that the whole Body of Christ might be edified. We believe that love is more important than the most spectacular gifts, and without this love all exercise of spiritual gifts is worthless.” Because of this balance, Calvary Chapel services are designed to be centered around the verse by verse teaching of God’s Word, and special “after glow” services are provided where the gifts of the Holy Spirit can operate freely under the leadership of mature Christians. Many Pentecostals think Calvary Chapel is not emotional enough, and many fundamentalists think Calvary Chapel is too emotional. That balance is indication, in my opinion, that we are right where God wants us to be.

Calvary Chapel also differs from most mainline churches in its style of church government. Most denominational churches maintain either a congregational form of church government, a Presbyterian form, or an Episcopal form of running their churches. These three terms should not be confused with the denominations that bear the same names because other churches of different names share the same styles of government.

The congregational form of church government is an American invention and appeals to our American sense of democracy. Basically, the congregation as a whole makes all decisions in these churches by voting on matters of importance and appointing committees from its ranks to run the daily operation of the church. Most Congregational, Baptist, Pentecostal, Brethren, and non-denominational churches are organized in this fashion. The congregation votes on hiring a pastor, votes on how to spend the money, and on anything else of importance. Although democratic people like the idea, congregational forms of church government often wind up at best causing the pastor to be directed by the sheep he is supposed to lead, and at worst reducing the pastor to a hireling.

The Episcopal form of church government, used by Episcopalian, Anglican, Catholic, Orthodox, and Methodist churches (to name a few) is controlled by a church hierarchy which may have differing names. Basically, there is a bishop, or someone of similar stature if called by a different name, who oversees the churches, appoints pastors to pulpits, sets policy, and guides the vision of the local congregations. Unfortunately, this style of government, which grew out of European monarchies, leaves little freedom for the local pastor or congregation to follow the leading of the Spirit. The Presbyterian form of church government, which is typical in Presbyterian and Reformed churches, puts the decisions of church polity in the hands of a select group of elders (the “presbytery”) who are appointed in various different ways, depending on the church. These elders are over the pastor, who in turn is over the congregation. The problem here too is that this system puts the God-appointed leader, the pastor, under some of those he is supposed to lead.

Calvary Chapels are organized differently. Church government at Calvary Chapel is very simple, not a complex bureaucracy, committees and sub-committees are essentially non-existent. Basically, at Calvary Chapel we believe that the pastor is responsible for the church, responsible to hear from God, and responsible to feed and love His people faithfully. Elders are appointed in the larger churches to help the pastor care for the spiritual needs of the congregation, as are deacons to help the pastor care for the material needs of the church.

In addition, our churches have church boards as required by most states which vary in size depending on the size of the church, and which usually are made up of mature Christian businessmen who can advise the pastor with respect to the business operations and decisions of the church such as property management and investments. At Calvary Chapel, church organization is de-emphasized, and only the organization that is needed to run the church is instituted. The pastor guides the church as he is lead by the Holy Spirit, and we trust God to put pastors where He wants them to be.

Doctrine

At Calvary Chapel we believe in all the fundamental doctrines of the evangelical Protestant church. For example, we believe in the inerrancy of Scripture, that the Bible, Old and New Testaments, is the inspired, infallible Word of God.

We believe that God is eternally existent in three separate persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe that God is the personal, transcendent, and sovereign creator of all things. We believe that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, that He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, provided for the atonement of our sins by His vicarious death on the Cross, was bodily resurrected by the power of the Holy Spirit, ascended back to the right hand of God the father, and ever lives to make intercession for us.

After He ascended to Heaven, Jesus poured out His Holy Spirit on the believers in Jerusalem, enabling then to fulfill His command to preach the Gospel to the entire world, an obligation shared by all believers today. We believe that all people are by nature separated from God and responsible for their own sin, but that salvation, redemption, and forgiveness of sin are freely offered to all by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. When a person repents of sin and accepts Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord, trusting Him to save, that person is immediately born again and sealed by the Holy Spirit, all his/her sins are forgiven, and that person becomes a child of God, destined to spend eternity with the Lord. As we previously mentioned, we believe in the proper Scriptural exercise of all the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Bible, the greatest gift of all being God’s love. At Calvary Chapel, we await the pre-tribulation rapture of the church. Calvary Chapel is strongly committed to a belief that the church will be raptured before the tribulation period described in Revelation chapters 6 through 18. We recognize that other believers hold a different view, but this is the way we see the Scripture’s teaching on this subject. We believe that the second coming of Jesus Christ with His saints to rule on the earth will be personal, pre-millennial, and visible. This motivates us to heartfelt worship, committed service, diligent study of God’s Word, regular fellowship with other Christians, and participation in both adult baptism by immersion and in Holy Communion.

Calvary Chapel rejects the teaching of “amillenialism” which spiritualizes Scripture and denies the literal 1,000 year reign of Christ on the earth as described in Revelation chapter 20.

What We do not Believe

At Calvary Chapel, we reject some popular doctrines of some Christian groups because we believe them to be in error Scripturally. This does not mean that we will not fellowship with those holding these views, it simply means that such views are outside the boundaries of what constitutes a Calvary Chapel church.

For example, we reject, as we have already mentioned, “amillenniallsm”, post-millennialism, as well as a mid or post-tribulation rapture view. At Calvary Chapel, we are strongly pre-millennialists and pre-tribulation rapturists. We also reject the belief, held by some Pentecostals and charismatics, that Christians can be demon possessed. The Scripture says “greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world” which makes no sense if a believer can be simultaneously indwelt by both the Holy Spirit and evil spirits. Christians can be attacked by demons, but they cannot be possessed or controlled by them. In addition, we reject “5-point Calvinism”. Calvary Chapel rejects two of the five points of five point Calvinism. First, Calvinism teaches that Jesus’ atonement on the Cross was limited, that is, that He died only for a chosen group, His “elect”, not for the sins of the entire world. At Calvary Chapel, we believe that Jesus died on the Cross for all the sins of all people, and that anyone who wants to can accept Him as Lord and Savior and be born again. Strict five point Calvinists believe that only the elect can be saved and that God has elected others to spend eternity in hell. Secondly, we reject the Calvinistic teaching called “irresistible grace”, which is the belief that man cannot, even if he wants to, resist the wooing and calling of God to salvation. Instead, at Calvary Chapel we believe that man has a free will and he can resist the call of God if he chooses to do so. Therefore, those who hold to five point Calvinism are outside of the borders of what defines Calvary Chapel. At Calvary Chapel, we also reject the teaching of “positive confession” which is the doctrine put forth by the faith movement teachers that says that we as human beings can have unlimited health and wealth because we, like God, have the ability to create our own reality by the confession of our lips. These people teach that if a person will confess health and wealth consistently, then that is what they will have, and, conversely, the Christian living in sickness or poverty is settling for less than his full inheritance in Christ. At Calvary Chapel, we believe that many believers both in the Bible and in daily life are often afflicted not because their confession is wrong, but simply because we live in a foreign world. We believe that the health and prosperity doctrine is a perversion of Scripture and is often used to fleece the flock of God. We do not believe that God can be commanded by man to heal or provide, but that we must always submit to His perfect will even in affliction. Additionally, we reject the teaching that uses human prophecy to supersede the Word of God. There are some Christian groups around which claim to have prophets and apostles of equal validity with those who wrote the Bible. Moreover, they claim that the prophetic utterances from these people take precedence over the Word of God. At Calvary Chapel, we believe that the Bible is the final authority and the complete Word of God for His church today, and that no prophecy or teaching can ever supersede it. Some churches have incorporated human secular psychology and philosophy into their teaching programs, creating sermons that are more based on secular humanistic theory than on the Word of God. While we respect our fellow believers who work in mental health related fields, we at Calvary Chapel believe that the central mission of the church is to proclaim God’s Word to a lost and hurting world. Moreover, it has been our experience that humanistic psychology and philosophy often do more harm than good, and people respond best when God’s Word is proclaimed in the power and love of the Holy Spirit. It is God’s Word that changes lives for the better. At Calvary Chapels our services remain centered on the teaching of the Bible. This is not to imply that we object to the work of the many dedicated Christian mental health professionals; conversely, we thank God for them. Our point is simply that in our church services, we emphasize the teaching of God’s Word. And finally, as we have mentioned before, Calvary Chapel rejects the over-emphasis of spiritual gifts and experiential signs and wonders to the exclusion of Biblical teaching. Again, we are a Bible based ministry that avoids programs and gimmicks in favor of the simple teaching of the Word of God in love to His people. In our services, we focus on a personal relationship with God through worship, prayer, and the teaching of the Word of God. We offer both expository and topical studies; we do not allow speaking in tongues loudly during services because we do not believe that the Holy Spirit would interrupt Himself.

Recommended Reading…

Harvest - by Chuck Smith


Calvary Chapel Distinctives
Chuck Smith
What is it that makes Calvary Chapel different from other Bible-believing, evangelical churches? Plumbers Wenatchee

Harvest - by Chuck Smith


Calvinism, Arminianism & The Word of God
Chuck Smith
This pamphlet discusses the facts upon which these doctrinal stands are based, and compares them to the facts of the Word of God.

Harvest - by Chuck Smith


Charisma vs. Charismania
Chuck Smith
Chuck Smith looks at a theological controversy that has existed for years and explores the ‘Charismatic experience’ as it relates to today’s Christian.

Welcome to Calvary Chapel

Welcome to Calvary Chapel

Calvary Chapel is a fellowship of believers in the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Our greatest desire is to know Christ and be conformed to His image by the power of the Holy Spirit.

We are not a denominational church, nor are we opposed to denominations, as such. We are opposed to the emphasis of non-biblical teachings that divide the Body of Christ. We believe the true basis of Christian fellowship is God’s love, which is greater than our differences. Without His love, we have no right to say we are Christians. Be sure to check out our beliefs and our history for more information.

Sunday Morning Service: 10:30AM – Contemporary Praise Worship followed by an exciting and practical systematic study through the entire Word of God, chapter-by-chapter, book-by-book; culminating with a time of fellowship and conversation over a complementary cup of Starbuck’s coffee and delicious pastries.