Koinos (koy-nos’)…
Koinos is a Greek word (most of the New Testament was originally written in Greek) which means “shared, together, open to all.” This word was used in the New Testament to describe the first communities of Jesus followers. Koinos was also used outside of the Bible to describe common, everyday life.
We chose this odd name because we aim to follow in the same original Spirit of the early Church: following Jesus in the real world and welcoming all people.
Christ – Centered
We believe that God reveals himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ. As a result we come to experience life change as we learn to know and trust Him, not through a particular religious system or rules we must follow. Of course Christ followers are called to live a different kind of life that often stands in contrast to the world around us, but we don’t change ourselves by working hard.
It’s through our experience of Christ’s love, forgiveness and truth that we become different people.
Authentic
We believe that all people are sinful and incomplete in themselves—including our church leaders. We also believe that acknowledging our shortcomings is a key component to spiritual transformation. Consequently, we think it runs counter to the Way of Jesus if we put on a false display of piety on Sunday mornings.
Our desire is that we would experience growth and life change together as we authentically engage with God and each other.
Relevant
We believe that God created the physical world and declared it to be good. God has not abandoned human cultures and everyday life, but entered it Himself in the incarnation of Jesus.
As a result, our spirituality is not a matter of escaping the world that God made, but seeing the everyday spheres of work and family and neighborhoods and friends as the places where we meet and serve God Himself.
Relational
We believe that life with God was never intended to be solely an individual pursuit. When Jesus was asked what the most important commandment was, he responded that it was both loving God and loving others. You cannot separate the two.
Therefore, we desire for Koinos to be much more than a place where you come on Sundays to perform rituals or simply acquire more spiritual information. Our hope is that Koinos would be a community of friendship: friendship with God and with each other.
Welcoming
We believe all Christ followers are simply redeemed sinners. God saves us, not by what we do, but by His goodness and grace. In response, we believe that we are compelled to extend that same goodness and grace to those who do not yet know God. We want to do everything possible to model Christ’s love to them.
Therefore, we look to prioritize making the life and message of Jesus understandable to those who are newly encountering Him. We believe that if we are not welcoming newcomers with open arms, we are no longer a church in the mold of Jesus Himself.
Affiliation
At Koinos Community Church we are focused on the life and teaching of Jesus and not a certain type of religious system. However, we are proud to be a part of a larger family of churches. The particular family to which we belong (our denomination) is the Brethren in Christ.
