Eau Claire First Church of the Nazarene

1921 7th St. - Eau Claire, WI 54703

Who We Are

Our History

In 1908 a number of independent congregations came together to form the Church of the Nazarene. Many of these churches began near the close of the 19^th Century during a time of revival. Since then the Church of the Nazarene has continued to plant new churches and reach out to un-churched people. Today the Church of the Nazarene has more than 5,000 congregations in the United States and is present in over 140 world areas.

Why Nazarene???

Jesus was from the town of Nazareth in Galilee, and so he was known as Jesus the Nazarene (Matt. 2:23). Jesus came so that a lost and weary world might find life and hope. The Church of the Nazarene seeks to live out that mission in our world today.

What We Believe

How is the Church of the Nazarene different from the next church down the street? Perhaps the best way to answer that question is to affirm the core of our beliefs. Our core values are:

We are united with all believers in proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We believe that in divine love, God offers to all people forgiveness of sins and restored relationship. In being reconciled to one another, loving each other as God has loved us, forgiving each other as we have been forgiven by God. We believe that our life together is to exemplify the character of Christ. We stand with Christians everywhere in affirming the historic Trinitarian creeds and beliefs of the Christian faith, and we deeply value our heritage in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition. We look to Scripture as the primary source of spiritual truth confirmed by reason, tradition, and experience.

2. We Are a Holiness People

We are called by Scripture and drawn by grace to worship God and to love Him with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves. To this end we commit ourselves fully and completely to God. We believe that the Holy Spirit convicts, cleanses, fills and empowers us as the grace of God transforms us day by day into a people of love and spiritual discipline, compassion and justice, and ethical and moral purity. It is the work of the Holy Spirit that restores us in the image of God and produces in us the character of Christ. Holiness in the life of believers is most clearly understood as Christ-likeness.

3. We Are a Missional People

We are a “sent people,” responding to the call of Christ and empowered by the Holy Spirit to go into all the world, witnessing to the Lordship of Christ and participating with God in the building of the Church and the extension of His kingdom (2 Corinthians 6:1). Our mission (a) begins in worship, (b) ministers to the world in evangelism and compassion, (c) encourages believers toward Christian maturity through discipleship, and (d) prepares men and women for Christian service through Christian higher education.