About Us

Christians have been gathering to worship God on this site for more than a century. Throughout that time there has been little change in the way we express our Beliefs or the Vision that motivates the people who continue to meet here.

Statement of Faith

• We believe in One God, revealed to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
• We believe that salvation from the power and penalty of sin is possible only through the death of Jesus Christ, who died on the cross to pay the price for our sins and bring us back to God.
• We believe that all people need to be born again by the power of the Holy Spirit.
• We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, from where we look forward to His return in power and glory.
• We believe that the Holy Spirit produces the fruit of godly life in Christians and that He equips individuals with gifts for building up the church.
• We believe in the divine inspiration and authority of the bible, which is God's unchanging word to all generations.

Vision Statement

With the enabling of the Holy Spirit, we aim to be:

• Believers who gather together to WORSHIP God in a way that honours Him and stirs our emotions towards Him.
• Believers who long for all to find SALVATION through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
• Believers who demonstrate DISCIPLESHIP by a deep personal commitment to the Lord, to prayer and the study of God’s Word, accepting its teaching in belief and in lifestyle.
• Believers who build a loving FELLOWSHIP where everyone is befriended and where there is a spirit of peace, unity and pulling together.
• Believers who are aware of our spiritual gifts and talents, using them in SERVICE to God for His glory and the strengthening of others.
• Believers who reach out to the local community and beyond through personal and collective WITNESS and beneficially impact society around us.

Apostles' Creed

Our beliefs are also succinctly expressed in one of the oldest faith statements that was formulated by the early Christian church, commonly known as the Apostle's Creed:

"I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen."

Structure of Our Church

Membership

It is not necessary to become a member of the church to join in worship or most other church activities. However, we believe that only those who are clearly committed to the church’s work and its members should be able to participate in members’ meetings at which issues concerning the church and its ministry are prayerfully considered.

Anyone desiring membership should have been in regular fellowship for at least a year and have demonstrated their commitment to Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord, their commitment to the vision and beliefs of the church and their commitment to its members and leadership.

In line with these principles of commitment, requests for membership are prayerfully considered by the leaders and then brought to a church members’ meeting for confirmation.

Leadership

As an Independent Methodist Church we encourage every member to serve in the church according to their spiritual gifts that are distributed by the Holy Spirit to all believers.

We have a Leadership Team who are appointed from the church’s members and are supported by other church members who are appointed to specific roles in the church.

Decisions concerning the church and its work are made at members’ meetings normally held every couple of months.

Baptism

We believe in believer’s baptism by total immersion in water.

We do not believe that anyone becomes a Christian through baptism. The only way of salvation is by repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. However, we believe baptism is an outward sign of an inward commitment of the heart. Through baptism we give witness to the death of our old life and the start of a new life in relationship with Jesus Christ.

We do not practise infant baptism. If parents request that their child be “christened”, we offer a service of dedication at which they are able to express promises that accord with their own personal Christian commitment.

Opportunities to be Involved

We believe that God, the Holy Spirit guides and equips all those who are born into God's kingdom to serve God - normally in the place where they worship and share fellowship.

Some activities, such as musicians, need specific skills and others call for more than usual devotion, care or humility. Some ministries are continuous, whereas others may only be called upon under particular circumstances.

In all cases, we believe that work undertaken out of love and devotion to God and His people never goes unrewarded.

If you would like to discuss your role in the church then please ask to speak with one of the leaders.

Bryn-IM Blog

The aim of the Bryn-IM Blog is twofold:

1. To bring a Christian perspective when commenting about topical events in the news
2. To express kernels of Christian principles and values derived from messages delivered in our local church.

Poems of Pilgrimage

Poems of Pilgrimage have been written by John Marrison - one of our church members and are published in the hope that they will bring comfort, encouragement and enlightenment.

History

The following brief comments are worthy of note for anyone with an interest in the history of local churches:

Founding of the Church

The church was founded in 1880 when the population in the area was growing with the development of the Lancashire coalfield.

There were no other churches in the immediate vicinity - the nearest Independent Methodist chapel being about 2 miles away at Downall Green.

Five men from the Downall Green chapel decided to construct a church building at Bryn Cross and on the 4th October 1880, they commissioned a local builder to erect a “wooden chapel with a zinc roof”, which was open for use on the
13th November 1880.

Early Growth

Within five years the congregation had outgrown the wooden building and it was replaced by a larger brick structure. Interestingly, two of the walls from this structure are still standing today as part of the present church.

By the end of the 1800s, membership had grown to 50 with around 200 scholars in the Sunday School and membership remained around this level until the start of the first world war.

World Wars and After

The war years were difficult for local churches with young men away at war and other family members working hard to make ends meet. Encouragingly, however, work with young people and children remained strong.

Following the wars church membership began to increase again, due in part to an influx of people moving out of Liverpool.

This period also saw development of the church building with the addition of a new schoolroom and more comfortable seating.

Major Refurbishment

The numbers of people attending the church each week has always exceeded the number of names on the official membership and in 2001 it was decided to completely remodel the premises to accommodate increased numbers.

The modernised structure provided an enlarged sanctuary flanked by a large vestibule (or narthex), along with a new kitchen, toilet block and schoolroom.

Baptist Union

Along with a number of other Independent Methodist churches, we entered into negotiations to join the Baptist Union of Great Britain.

This started to come to fruition in October 2010 with our welcome into the North West Baptist Association.

Our full membership of the Baptist Union of Great Britain was approved in March 2011 and we were formally welcomed at the Baptist Assembly in May of that year.

Moving On

Recent decades have been quite turbulent – brought about by shifting population, changing employment patterns and people moving on to other opportunities of service. Current members are looking for God to prosper their work as they seek to offer a warm, welcoming fellowship, to grow in spiritual maturity, pray for the local community and share their faith.

Independent Methodist Connexion

Read more information about the history of the Independent Methodist movement in the UK.