A NEW LIFE FELLOWSHIP
Connected in Christ, Serving in Spirit, and
Growing in New Life TOGETHER
WHAT WE BELIEVE
The Highland Park Church of God is affiliated with the Church of God, Anderson, Indiana. There is no church “membership” here. We believe that every person who professes Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior is a child of God in the family of God and a part of the body of Christ, the Church.
It is our mission to be a body of believers commissioned by Jesus Christ to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything Christ has commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19) We do this by:
CONNECTING People to Christ and to the Church
SERVING the Church and the Community as the Spirit Leads & Equips Us
GROWING in this New Life Together
We observe COMMUNION the first Sunday of the month. It is our belief that this is the Table of the Lord Jesus Christ and all are welcome to the Table. We ask that children come with an adult who will explain to them the beautiful message of Communion: that Jesus Christ gave Himself up for the forgiveness of our sins and to restore our relationship with God.
We practice BAPTISM of Believers. We believe that baptism is an outward and visible testimony of a personal decision that has been made to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord and a choice to follow Him.
The church practices BABY DEDICATION, with parents and the church making a commitment to raise this child in faith to know and follow to Jesus.
Church History
In 1914 a few Christians began a Church of God in Gloucester City. They met at different locations over the years, including a remodeled shoemaker’s shop on Burlington Street and a church at Brown and Bergen Streets. In 1929, our lot at Market Street and Baynes Avenue was purchased for $2,000, and in 1935 the church was constructed. In 1957, the adjoining property at 111 Baynes Avenue was purchased. In 1965, as a result of the first Building Fund Campaign, the addition of bathrooms and Sunday School classrooms was completed. Small World Nursery School was established in 1971, and ran for three decades. In 1978, a mortgage-burning ceremony was held. Between 1987 and 1992, the properties of 107, 109, and 120 Baynes Avenue were purchased. In 1998, 1201 Market Street was purchased. In 2001, ground was broken and two houses were razed to install an additional entrance with an elevator and to provide on-site parking for parishioners. A handicapped accessible restroom was also installed.
Celebrating our 100th Birthday in 2014, we look back over the years and see the blessings God has poured out on this congregation in tangible ways. But, more importantly, we can look back and see the many lives that He has touched and blessed. The church is more than just a building. We are His people.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (I Peter 2:9-10)