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Southport Presbyterian Church
The primary purpose of Southport Presbyterian Church is to glorify God in word and deed. To achieve this purpose we will seek:
To express the Father's love for the world through ministries to those in need, both in our own community and throughout the world;
To bring people to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ through preaching, personal witness, and missionary involvement;
To promote the reign of the Holy Spirit within the lives of believers through corporate worship, fellowship, Christian nurture, stewardship, prayer, and Bible study.
Our Motto
Sharing the Good News of God's love with a needy world
Preparing believers to live productive lives in a challenging world
Caring for others on behalf of Jesus Christ in a hurting world
The Presbyterian Church was an offspring of a religious movement called the Reformation which occurred in the 1500's. Two of the leading reformers of the time, Martin Luther (1483-1546) and John Calvin (1509-1564), had no intention of forming a new church, at least not initially. Their desire was to reform their present day Catholic Church, to make corrections, and set it more in line with the traditions and teachings of Scripture and of the early church. The Reformers became known as "Protestants" because their requests for change sounded like protests.
The Presbyterian is one of several churches that trace their origins to the Reformation. While the Lutherans were greatly influenced by the teachings of Luther, Presbyterians and others in the Reformed tradition were greatly influenced by the teachings of John Calvin. Presbyterians get their name from the Greek word "Presbuteros" which means "elder." The term refers to the system we see in the New Testament of choosing leaders from among the wisest members of the church. A prominent doctrine of the Reformation was "the priesthood of all believers." Reformed churches designed themselves in ways that gave more power to the congregation. They designed a system of representative government that greatly influenced the writers of the United States Constitution in their designing of the representative system of our national government.
In our church today there are "teaching elders" (the pastors) and "ruling elders" (those from the congregation who serve on the Session, or governing board). Pastors, therefore, are teaching elders but not ruling elders. Elders are ordained for life. They serve communion and help govern the church. They will serve one or more 3-year terms on the Session.
The French organized the first congregation in 1555 and the French Huguenots were one of the first Presbyterians to reach , followed closely by the English, Dutch, German, Irish, and Scottish. In 1706 the first American presbytery was formed in Philadelphia .
In the , the church knew westward expansion. Sadly, the church was split during the Civil War into a northern and southern group. This split was repaired in the 1980's when the northern and southern churches reunited forming the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA).
To express the Father's love for the world through ministries to those in need, both in our own community and throughout the world;
To bring people to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ through preaching, personal witness, and missionary involvement;
To promote the reign of the Holy Spirit within the lives of believers through corporate worship, fellowship, Christian nurture, stewardship, prayer, and Bible study.
Our Motto
Sharing the Good News of God's love with a needy world
Preparing believers to live productive lives in a challenging world
Caring for others on behalf of Jesus Christ in a hurting world
The Presbyterian Church was an offspring of a religious movement called the Reformation which occurred in the 1500's. Two of the leading reformers of the time, Martin Luther (1483-1546) and John Calvin (1509-1564), had no intention of forming a new church, at least not initially. Their desire was to reform their present day Catholic Church, to make corrections, and set it more in line with the traditions and teachings of Scripture and of the early church. The Reformers became known as "Protestants" because their requests for change sounded like protests.
The Presbyterian is one of several churches that trace their origins to the Reformation. While the Lutherans were greatly influenced by the teachings of Luther, Presbyterians and others in the Reformed tradition were greatly influenced by the teachings of John Calvin. Presbyterians get their name from the Greek word "Presbuteros" which means "elder." The term refers to the system we see in the New Testament of choosing leaders from among the wisest members of the church. A prominent doctrine of the Reformation was "the priesthood of all believers." Reformed churches designed themselves in ways that gave more power to the congregation. They designed a system of representative government that greatly influenced the writers of the United States Constitution in their designing of the representative system of our national government.
In our church today there are "teaching elders" (the pastors) and "ruling elders" (those from the congregation who serve on the Session, or governing board). Pastors, therefore, are teaching elders but not ruling elders. Elders are ordained for life. They serve communion and help govern the church. They will serve one or more 3-year terms on the Session.
The French organized the first congregation in 1555 and the French Huguenots were one of the first Presbyterians to reach , followed closely by the English, Dutch, German, Irish, and Scottish. In 1706 the first American presbytery was formed in Philadelphia .
In the , the church knew westward expansion. Sadly, the church was split during the Civil War into a northern and southern group. This split was repaired in the 1980's when the northern and southern churches reunited forming the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA).