who is Tibitha church of god?

Tibitha Church of God might best describe herself as trying to be an Acts 2:42 church. In that biblical passage we learn that the church was devoted to teaching, to fellowship, to breaking of bread, and to prayer. And the result of that was the Lord added to their number.


Since its beginning 120 years ago, Tibitha Church of God has been identified by the community around it as both a “praying church” and as a “welcoming fellowship”.


In its early years of existence it was not uncommon for those in the small rural community named Tibitha, to call upon the “saints” of the Tibitha Church of God asking for prayer for a loved one. The congregation was diligent about praying for the needs of their friends and neighbors.


The congregation still, to this day, works to present itself as a place where the good news about Jesus Christ is taught and lived out. The congregation still regularly prays for those who live in the surrounding community. And the congregation continues to offer a warm welcome to those who visit.


The fellowship and the breaking of bread are part of the reason the congregation meets on the first Sunday evening of the month for the “First Sunday Fellowship Meal”. The meal provides the occasion to sit at the table, enjoy a meal, and partake of conversation.


In what is still a somewhat isolated and rural part of Virginia, Tibitha Church of God seeks to extend the character of the church found in Acts 2:42, desiring that in so doing, Jesus Christ will become known.

HISTORY

The Church of God reformation movement in this community had its beginning around the turn of the century. Rev. C. E. Orr, a Church of God preacher, of Federalsburg, Maryland and others held “brush arbor” meetings in Fleeton not far from Reedville, Virginia. As a result, several persons were saved and others took a stand with the teachings of the Church of God and the Tibitha Church of God began in 1896.


The young church was without a pastor and a place of worship.  The Rev. Becker of Baltimore, Maryland came as the first pastor, and for several years, services were held in the old Pine Grove School near the Reedville Air Field.


The new church grew rapidly and soon outgrew the old school house, so in 1904 the church building was erected on a plot of land which had been donated for that purpose on the present site and remodeled until the present sanctuary was built in 1964. A new addition, completed in 2008 and a renovation of the current sanctuary in 2013, is a testimony to the congregation's desire to continue ministry in the Reedville area. The Tibitha Church of God has the distinction of being the oldest congregation of the Church of God in Virginia. To God be the glory for all He has done through the years and will continue to do.


CHURCH OF GOD

Tibitha Church of God voluntarily identifies itself with approximately 2300 other Church of God congregations in North America for the purpose of enhanced ministry opportunities. Globally, there are an additional 4000 churches identifying with the Church of God, for a total of 800,000 believers worldwide.


General offices for the Church of God are in Anderson, Indiana. Local congregations of the Church of God are autonomous. The General Offices and General Director have no ecclesiastical authority over the local churches. The national leadership exists to serve and to bring a unified ministry opportunity to the local church.


To find out more about the Church of God movement, visit the Church of God official website at www.jesusisthesubject.org.


The Church of God had its beginnings in 1881 when a group of people separated themselves from church organizations and began to teach the unity of God's people and a life of holiness. That original gospel team began to travel and hold meetings across the Midwest and then it spread into other parts of the country. As new works were founded, new congregations of the Church of God were established.


An effective publishing ministry supported and helped spread the work in the early years. Soon several ministry homes were established across the country, followed by a larger publishing ministry and several colleges. Today, Warner Press in Anderson, Indiana is the publishing house of the Church of God. Anderson University and School of Theology is the largest of the group's colleges. Other colleges include: Warner Southern, Lake Wales, Florida; Mid America Christian University, Oklahoma City; Warner Pacific, Portland, Oregon.


Regarding its theology and biblical perspective, the Church of God is indebted to the Protestant Reformation, the Anabaptist free-church tradition, the Puritan-Pietist movement, Arminian-Wesleyan evangelicalism, and the Holiness movement.