OUR STORY
Joseph Faillace, an ordained pastor through Harvest Network International, founded Tri-State Christian Missions in 2018. Joe was asked by Regent University to complete an internship project for his M.A. in Practical Theology, and was lead by the Holy Spirit to bring the churches together for outreach and missional activities.
"Our region feels like a frontier where there are a number of cultures and challenges to engage. There is a large portion of the population who have not heard the gospel of Jesus Christ or begun their journey to walk with Jesus as His disciple. I want the churches to see themselves as missionaries in this region with the chosen task to represent Jesus and His Kingdom and invite people to receive the benefits of forgiveness and to walk with Him as disciples of Jesus Christ. God has been placing ministry leaders in our region who have a desire to work together and reach the lost and we are waiting on the Spirit to move in people's hearts as we step out in faith to share the love of Christ."
TRI-STATE CHURCH COMMUNITY
Vision and Mission
Vision
To bring the vitality of the Kingdom of God to every community in the Tri-State area through prayer, love, discipleship, and missional outreach!
Pillars of Ministry (The Mission)
1) Form (reform) missional church communities
What we see described in the book of Acts is the Spirit using people to establish churches (gatherings of believers) sharing Jesus in a variety of places and people groups engaging the gifts and calling of each and every follower of Jesus. We can call these local churches missional church communities. Our desire would be to allow the Spirit to work through us to share the gospel of Jesus Christ through missional church communities in the Tri-State area to reach out to various areas and cultural people groups. We would like to see believers gathering together to show love for one another, pray, grow in spiritual gifts, listen to God’s leading to reach out to their communities, and invite others in a variety of different places and settings. This could be in a sanctuary, home, coffee shop, community center, park, or anywhere else people live. These missional church communities see themselves as connected to the larger Body of Christ nearby and afar caring for one another as needs arise and also as missionaries called to fulfill the great commission in their area or among particular people groups they are called to multiplying into other missional communities to saturate this world with the Gospel message (see Acts 12:24).
2) Be the church where people are (Outreach)
We are called to bring the aroma of Jesus in a variety of places by going where people are, or by creating places or environments where people can come in to build relationships and/or share the gospel in word and deed. This means we keep the location and type of outreach flexible so that we can have the most impact on the community around us. God has given each believer special gifting, interests, assignments, and social circles (whether existing or to be realized) where they can most effectively represent Him. We endeavor to encourage and help every believer and groups of believers to find their place where they can be salt and light, building relationships with the lost and showing the love of Jesus.
3) Unify in regard to Biblical Christianity
There are beliefs* that we hold to be essential to our fellowship together as the church and other areas where faithful historic followers of Jesus have differed in interpretation. We look to unify with other believers in our communities to show that we love one another, value one another, and are putting the Kingdom of God and Jesus Christ in the foreground—without a spirit of competition or putting personal preference and ministry focus above our care for Christ’s Body.
Why is there a Tri-State Church Community?
We believe the church's primary calling is to bring glory to God by sharing the good news of Jesus Christ led by the Spirit of God and by living as a community of grace growing in the love of God, reflecting His coming Kingdom, worshipping the Lord in all we do. The Word of God must continue to be the guiding light for how we move and grow in our relationship with God and held in the highest esteem as the Spirit-inspired Word of God and not ideas formed by human effort or ingenuity. There are indications that American churches have lost focus, moving away from the mission and message of the Gospel and from representing Jesus and His Kingdom in a dynamic, Spirit-led, and life-giving way. We need to reclaim lost elements of Christian fellowship as a missional community led by the Spirit of God—which is what we hope to live, model, and multiply in this region.
Our time and energy should primarily be devoted to going out to the lost and making disciples who worship the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and live for Him. There is a need to fan the flames and rekindle the fire through the simple gospel of Jesus Christ, regaining our identity and mission in Him, and allowing the Spirit of God to guide us and empower us in ministry.
We will participate in God’s mission by
Praying and listening to the leading of the Holy Spirit,
Faithfully sharing the Word of God with Jesus at the center,
Passionately worshipping our King,
Encouraging the testimony and gifts that are in the whole Body of Christ.
We want to give God’s people opportunities to walk by faith in representing Jesus in bold, sacrificial, loving, and faithful ways so that we can be renewed in our time.
Common Beliefs for Partner Churches and Ministries
View of God
● God is one, and to believe in the one true God means to forsake all others
● God the Father is the creator of the heavens and earth and rules and reigns over all creation
● Jesus, fully man and fully God, came to save us from our sins and has risen to the right hand of God the Father to come again to redeem the people of God and reign in the age to come.
● The Holy Spirit is also God and indwells believers in Jesus, guiding, transforming and empowering us
The hereafter
● Believers will be resurrected in a new physical body and reign with Jesus in a new heaven and earth
● There is a literal heaven where God rules and reigns in the presence of the angelic host and hell where the demons will be cast along with those who refuse God’s offer of grace
and mercy through Jesus Christ.
The Church
● The church is not a building or a place but a people called by God. The people of God called out for salvation and to represent Jesus on the earth until He returns. The local church is therefore a community called to meet, pray, worship, serve and grow together as a sign that the Kingdom of God is here and with intentions to share the gospel of Jesus Christ to others.
● Believers in Jesus are called to pursue a lifestyle that glorifies God in its separateness from the world around them by living in holiness and purity (Eph 5:1). There is grace
and forgiveness offered to believers as they step through this journey.
The church is called to make disciples of Jesus Christ and share their faith with others as they grow in their relationship with God being led by the Spirit (Matt 28:19).
● The church is a people without prejudice in regards to race, class, or gender (Gal 3:28). All will be treated with equality in the Kingdom of God
Social Issues
● We are to look for ways to help the poor and work for justice of the oppressed (James
1:27).
● We hold to a historic Christian worldview of marriage being between one man and woman with a view of sexual purity being exhorted among those who profess themselves believers in Christ (Gen 1:27).
● We hold all life to be precious including unborn children (Jeremiah 1:5).