Twin Branch Church

Twin Branch Bible Church

Mishawaka, Indiana

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The Doctrines of Grace

The doctrines of grace have been a part of biblical instruction since the first century when the apostles and prophets of the early church inscribed them into holy Scripture. These teachings of the Bible did not originate with the New Testament. They go back to Genesis when it quickly became apparent that God’s grace was mankind’s only hope of escaping the deserved punishment for sinning against him. The first Adam willfully did what God commanded him not to do. All of humanity is in Adam and came into captivity to sin because of him.

The desperate plight of humanity is evident. We can sin, but we have no control over the consequences. Nor are the consequences entirely hidden though we cannot foretell exactly how they will play out in life. It was clear to Adam and Eve that death would be the punishment for disobedience. How they would experience that death may not have been readily apparent to them, but there was no scenario in which death was of minimal concern or in any possible way escapable.

What came to be immediately after their transgression was far more terrifying than they might have expected. They could not control sin. They could not stop it. They could not escape it. It only became worse as time and family life went on. Their first-born son brutally murdered their second-born son. Generation after generation were under the power and penalty of sin. The entire earth was subjected to futility and it languished under the curse because of human sin. Death was now everywhere. What life there was became darkness. Only a very few in those ancient generations clung to a hope that came in the briefest words of condemnation God spoke to the serpent who had deceived Eve. “I will put enmity between you and the woman…he [the woman’s offspring] will crush your head and you shall crush his heel” (Genesis 3:15).

What to Expect

What happens when we gather? We tend to define our Sunday services as “worship,” but we don’t want to suggest that worship is something we do on Sunday but not on any of the other six days. The Christians life is the worship of the Lord at all times and everywhere.

It’s okay to describe our gatherings as worship. Yet in the mindset of worship we gather to be instructed from the Bible. The objective of this instruction is be Christ-centered in corporate and personal life. In a world where the default mindset is self-oriented we realize its ultimate futility to follow such a system of belief. Jesus Christ is the head of his church. He is the Savior of “the body” (a metaphor for the church). It is his will that we seek to be done on earth as it is in heaven. In a way, the church is a microcosm of Christ’s lordship and rule, an imperfect witness to the King of kings who is the very definition of perfection.

The Bible teaches that this present world will be under the power of sin until creation itself and in its entirety is made into new creation at the return of Christ in power and glory.

When we come together as a church our objective is to be instructed from God’s word, the Bible. The Bible instructs us to sing songs with lyrics that help the instruction of the Bible to enter deeper into our souls. The songs we sing are carefully chosen to reflect, not contradict, the word of God. The music is not for our entertainment but our praise for God. We sing both contemporary hymns as well as many of the older hymns so long as they do not deviate from what is true according to God’s word.

We observe the Lord’s supper on the first Sunday of every month and sometimes on other occasions as well. We have what is sometimes called “open communion.” This means that everyone who has faith in our Lord Jesus Christ is welcomed to his table. It does belong to him, not us.

Quite often we will gather in a home for evening fellowship and instruction. We have some for whom leaving their house is quite a challenge physically. We want to them to be included in church life as much as we possibly can.

Sunday together begins with prayer and Bible study at 9:30. We have on class for younger children and an adult class.

At 10:45 we come together for a time of prayer, singing and the preaching of God’s word. This usually ends at about 12:15 p.m. The evening assembly starts at 6 o’clock and ends at 7 p.m.

There is also a gathering on Wednesday evenings at 7 p.m. We are usually engaged in reading a book together that helps us better understand and apply the teaching of the Bible. In times past we have also listened to video series that pertain to important issues that are facing the church in the cultural milieu. This gathering concludes close to 8 o’clock.

So this is what we do as a church. Of course there are opportunities for social interaction where we can get to know each other and encourage each other as we “manage” the Christian life in 21st century America with all its challenges.

We would welcome you with joy if you would join us to discover first-hand what we’re about.

Looking for a Church?

Looking for a church? Is it like finding a new restaurant or ice cream parlor? It quite often seems like it. The criteria that most people use to find “a religious house of worship” is quite amazing–to put it in the best light possible. There is a sense in which people want to commune with something or someone divine, but God is more like an idea than a living person. It’s pretty easy to consult with an idea in order to establish some guidelines in searching for a church. It is quite another matter to consult with a person who might have his own non-negotiable requirements as to what actually constitutes a church without consulting us about what we might prefer.

If we were interested in consulting with God about a church, how would we know what he requires? Whose to say? Well, it is God who establishes the criteria and makes it known to us in his word, the holy Scriptures. Now this doesn’t cut it with too many people. Religion is more of a personal matter and no one is in a better position to define it than we are. In fact, the postmodern hubris is that no one is better suited to say who or what God is than we are. As for the holy Scriptures, aren’t they just the opinions of people who lived thousands of years ago? Why would we consult with people who lived and died more than two thousand years ago?

Our starting point is the Bible. It is not unreasonable to believe that God is real and that he has the ability to reveal himself to us–or not. The Bible itself reveals the person who is God. It is God’s word. It speaks of many things, but the Bible is preeminently about God: who he is; what he is like; what he demands of us; and what our everlasting fate will be if we stand before him without the righteousness he requires absolutely.

So our starting point in finding a church is the Bible. God teaches us in his word what a church is–which necessarily also says what a church is not. If the nature of the church is authoritatively defined by Scripture…well, most of what passes our own preferences is a very long way from passing God’s requirements.

Frankly, this doesn’t bother too many people today. And not too many will agree with the conviction that the Bible is an authority that entirely eclipses our own. Most will disagree that the Bible is the sole authority over all matters of human life.

Taken at God’s word, the church is the assembly of people–sinful people–who have responded to God’s Son, Jesus Christ, with the response that God himself demands. And what is this response? Two loaded words: (1) repentance toward sin; (2) faith in Jesus Christ. The church is a community of people who have come to believe in Christ on the basis of the word of Christ.

People who give to God their obedience of faith are not thereby sinless in this present world. But they are declared to be what God requires them to be: Righteous. Not with their own righteousness. No! What they have is the righteousness of Christ credited to them because of their trust exclusively in Christ Jesus. This is what God says the church is.

To “cut to the chase” so to speak, Twin Branch Bible Church will not look very appealing to the postmodern (read “self-oriented”) world. And we as a church are not trying to compete in the profit-driven economy of our time. “Advertising” feels a little like retail strategy. But we do what people to know that there is a church that meets in a building at 3807 Vistula Road. It is a church that believes the Bible, teaches the Bible, and holds the Bible to be the sole authority over all of life and faith. This does not mean we think we’ve hit closer to perfection than anyone else. We certainly do not believe this. Our very nature as human beings is conducive to disobedience rather than obedience. But we do know where to go and what to do with our sin. And we know how to receive with grateful hearts what Christ Jesus has done for us on the cross two thousand years ago. We know because of our faith what God will do for us when this present age ends: He will fulfill all his promises he has made without a single one of them left unfulfilled. We try to help each other live in the light of God’s promises.

We invite you to consider these matters. And if you would consider them alongside us, we welcome you.