(252) 523-4143
GORDON STREET CHRISTIAN CHURCH
(DISCIPLES OF CHRIST)
118 East Gordon Street
Kinston, NC 28501
GORDON STREET CHRISTIAN CHURCH (Disciples of Christ)
GORDON STREET CHRISTIAN CHURCH (Disciples of Christ) welcomes all who come looking for a place to worship God, to draw closer to Jesus, and to grow in faith, love, and in knowledge of Him. Join us this Sunday!
Worship - 11 AM
118 East Gordon Street, Kinston, NC 28501
252-523-4143
NEWS & UPDATES
Read about the latest happenings at Gordon Street!
ABOUT US
Gordon Street Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a congregation that acknowledges Jesus to be the Son of God, the Savior of the world. We, as disciples of Jesus, strive to follow his example and his teaching by showing God’s love to all people. We believe every person, without exception, is loved by God. Therefore, we welcome all people without regard to nationality, race, gender, sexual orientation, or social status. Jesus came to call all people into the Kingdom of God.
We believe in the authority of scripture, and in the responsibility of Christians to read and study scripture together and individually. We believe that God has given us a mind to use, so we believe faith should be joined with reason.
Our worship services are traditional. The organ accompanies congregational singing. The hymns, the scripture readings, and the sermons proclaim the message of God’s Word.
Each Sunday, the climax of our worship is our sharing at the Lord’s Table. We believe that the whole gospel is remembered and proclaimed in the partaking of the Lord’s Supper. Through sharing the Bread and the Cup, we remember Jesus’ death for us, and his resurrection and living presence with us. We practice open Communion, which means you do not have to be a member of this congregation to receive the Bread and Cup. We believe Christ welcomes to his table all who love him and wish to come.
We practice believer’s baptism, by immersion, for those becoming members of our congregation through a profession of faith in Jesus Christ. We also accept into membership those who transfer from other congregations, who have already been baptized into Christ by other methods.
As a congregation, we believe that we are called together not just for worship and for ministry to each other in the church. We are called together to be strengthened for service to those outside the church. In whatever ways God has enabled us, we strive to show love and grace to others, and thereby become witnesses of God’s love and grace for all people.
As we look to the future, it is our prayer that we will be transformed into all Christ wants us to be, and that through us, His love and grace will be extended to all people we are privileged to encounter. It is our hope that you will join us in serving our Lord Jesus Christ.
OUR HISTORY
Gordon Street Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) was established on January 21, 1843. As a direct result of a visit to the area by Thomas Campbell, a small but enthusiastic group of four men and five women met at the “Little Sisters Meeting House” on Hugo Road to sign a covenant to form the Kinston Church of Christ. As far as we can tell, this was the first congregation founded in North Carolina as a Disciple congregation from its birth.
From its inception, the congregation met in Kinston in a small wooden chapel erected on the corner of Gordon and Herritage Streets. In 1870, the wooden church was moved to Caswell Street, and in December of 1891, construction of a new brick house of worship was begun.
The present day sanctuary, begun in 1912, was dedicated in 1915 as the Gordon Street Church of Christ and was so called until 1953 when the church became Gordon Street Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Two educational buildings adjacent to the sanctuary have been erected on North Street. The first was completed in 1924 and served not only the congregation but was utilized by the community of Kinston as the Boy Scouts headquarters, a Work Progress Administration (WPA) location, recreational center, and a temporary location for Lewis School when the school was destroyed by fire. The second educational building was constructed in 1970 at the same location and continues to serve the congregation and community. The church was placed on the National Register of Historical Places in 1989.
In 2001 an extensive renovation project was undertaken with the primary goal to make the multilevel educational and sanctuary complex handicapped accessible. Further beautification of the property was initiated in 2006 with the addition of a Memorial Garden.
Over the years, as part of its wide and varied ministries, Gordon Street has been involved in starting a new church (Northwest Christian Church), partnering to build a retirement facility (Six Churches Plaza), supporting boy and girl scout troops, organizing tours for youth choirs and handbells, and offering strong support to the mission of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). It is one of 3,700 congregations of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada and practices communion open to all believers, freedom in interpreting the scriptures, and a commitment to the cause of Christian unity.
WHAT WE BELIEVE
We are Disciples of Christ, a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world. As part of the one Body of Christ, we welcome all to the Lord’s Table as God has welcomed us.
Disciples of Christ Identity Statement
The following confession is the opening paragraph in the Preamble to the design of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and is used by many Disciples congregations in worship as an affirmation of the faith of the church throughout the ages – not as a “test of fellowship,” but as a statement of faith that identifies the Disciples’ commitment to, and place within, the universal and ecumenical church.
As members of the Christian Church,
We confess that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of the living God,
and proclaim him Lord and Savior of the world.
In Christ's name and by his grace
we accept our mission of witness
and service to all people.
We rejoice in God,
maker of heaven and earth,
and in God’s covenant of love
which binds us to God and to one another.
Through baptism into Christ
we enter into newness of life
and are made one with the whole people of God.
In the communion of the Holy Spirit
we are joined together in discipleship
and in obedience to Christ.
At the Table of the Lord
we celebrate with thanksgiving
the saving acts and presence of Christ.
Within the universal church
we receive the gift of ministry
and the light of scripture.
In the bonds of Christian faith
we yield ourselves to God
that we may serve the One
whose kingdom has no end.
Blessing, glory, and honor
be to God forever. Amen.
Christian Education Classes
Loaves and Fishes
Wednesdays at 6:30 P.M
(Suspended since the Pandemic)
Sanctuary Choir
Wednesdays at 7:30 P.M.
MEET OUR STAFF
Rev. Doug Stokes
Senior Minister
Doug is a life-long Disciple, who grew up in the Hookerton District of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in North Carolina. As a child, he attended Riverside Christian Church and Timothy Christian Church. Though there had been five generations of Doug's family at Timothy, it was at Riverside that he was baptized and ordained.
Doug graduated from Ayden-Grifton High School, Atlantic Christian College (now Barton), and Duke Divinity School. Beginning after his sophomore year at Barton, he has held pastorates at Rountree Christian Church (Ayden), Southwest Christian Church (Kinston), Pantego Christian Church, and Jamesville Christian Church.
Doug's wife, Ellen, was organist for Jamesville Christian Church 24 of the 25 years Doug was at Jamesville. They met while students at Barton.
Doug's email is dougstokes@gordonstreetchurch.org
Ms. Joanne Heath
Minister of Music
Ms. Joanne Heath is Minister of Music, a position she has held since 1972. She directs a music program that includes vocal choirs for both children and adults, as well as an extensive handbell program for beginning and advanced ringers. She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education.
Mr. Thurman Pate, Church Steward
Ms. Tina Faulkner, Nursery Attendant
Mr. Weil Sawyer
Organist
Mr. Sawyer has been organist since September, 2013. He holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from the NC School of the Arts and a Master in Organ and Sacred Music from East Carolina University. In addition to serving as organist, he teaches music education in the Lenoir County School System.
CONTACT US
118 E Gordon St, Kinston, NC 28501, USA
(252) 523-4143