OUR FUTURE

AT JOURNEY COMMUNITY CHURCH

UPDATE 11/23/22

On Saturday November 19th, United Methodist leaders met virtually for the West Ohio UMC Annual Conference. The Annual Conference voted by 93% to ratify the request of the 80 churches requesting disaffiliation from the UMC, including Journey Community Church.

Additionally, during the Clergy session, Pastor Blaine's request to terminate membership in the United Methodist Church to align with another denomination (Global Methodist Church) was also approved.

As of January 1, 2023, Journey Community Church will be a congregation of the Global Methodist Church with Blaine Keene appointed as a Global Methodist Church pastor.

UPDATE 11/1/22

After months of prayerful discernment, the members of Journey Community Church gathered for a Church Conference on October 30th, 2022 to vote on the matter of disaffiliating from the United Methodist Church (UMC).

The members of Journey voted 65 to 5 for disaffiliation (93%), surpassing the two-thirds requirement, to approve the motion to disaffiliate from the UMC. The disaffiliation process requires the approval of the West Ohio Annual Conference, which will gather (virtually) on November 19th, 2022 to vote on church disaffiliation matters. Once approved by the Annual Conference session, the Leadership Team will finalize the work necessary to disaffiliate from the UMC by our official disaffiliation date of December 31, 2022.

Our Church Conference gathering on October 30th also voted, contingent upon the completion of the disaffiliation requirements, to affiliate with the Global Methodist Church (GMC) 69-0 (100%) effective January 1, 2023. You can learn more about the GMC at www.globalmethodist.org.

Every person who is part of our Journey Community Church family is invited to prayerfully consider how you can best live out your call as a disciple of Jesus Christ. A congregational letter was sent out this week detailing potential next steps you can take as part of the Journey family. Click here to read the congregational letter and view the response card options.

This season of transition will bring a unique mix of emotions from joyful anticipation to sorrowful grief, and everywhere in between. We trust the Spirit of God in us to give wisdom, grace, courage and peace in this process. Our commitment, as it has been throughout this discernment process, is to love and bless one another as we seek to be faithful to the call of Christ on our lives.

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.” -Philippians 1:9-11

UPDATE 10/18/22

We have spent the past several months in a congregational discernment process to help us answer two essential questions: 1. Is it time for Journey Community Church to disaffiliate (ie. Exit) from the United Methodist Church? and 2. If we exit the UMC, what denominational alignment fits best with the mission, vision, theology and values of Journey Community Church?

After two months of prayerful dialogue and discernment, our District Superintendent has called a Church Conference for the purpose of voting on these questions.

When is the Church Conference? The Church Conference and vote for disaffiliation is taking place on Sunday October 30th at 7:00 PM.

Who Will Vote? The decision to disaffiliate from the UMC requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of members present and voting at a duly called Church Conference. Please confirm your membership status BEFORE the church conference date.

How Can You Prepare? If you have participated in the four congregational discernment meetings, you are well-prepared to make this important decision. If you have not, see FAQ #7 below. You can also review most of the information shared throughout this process and find links to additional articles, websites and videos right here on this web page. Additionally, we will host one final congregational discernment meeting on Tuesday October 18 @ 6:30pm. This family gathering will seek to address any lingering questions as we move toward a Church Conference vote. Most importantly, let’s continue praying that we “may be able to discern what is best.” (Phil. 1)

What is Our Leadership Team Recommending? The leadership team of Journey Community Church has concluded that we are no longer aligned with the current reality or future trajectory of the United Methodist Church. We believe it is time to respond proactively by disaffiliating from the UMC. We also recommend aligning with the Global Methodist Church. While the Leadership Team is making these two recommendations, these decisions ultimately rest in the hands of the members of Journey Community Church. We encourage you to prayerfully engage in this process, educate yourself about the significant issues at stake, and attend the Church Conference to vote according to the leading of God’s Spirit in you.

May our “love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that [we] may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:11-9).

Why Exit the United Methodist Church?

Alignment Issues

  • The differences among UMC traditionalists and UMC centrists/progressives are irreconcilable. The divide goes much deeper than mere differences about human sexuality to the very foundations of our faith, including fundamental beliefs about the authority of scripture, the nature of humanity, the sufficiency of salvation in Christ and the call to repentance that leads to holiness.

  • The Trajectory of the UMC is clearly set to move away from traditional, historically orthodox beliefs toward progressive, historically unorthodox beliefs. Journey is not aligned with a UMC that is becoming extremely progressive and wants to abandon the authority of the Bible and make LGBTQIA+ inclusion a main priority of the church.

  • There is a lack of accountability for bishops, clergy and general church leadership to abide by the UMC Book of Discipline. Our denomination currently has an openly lesbian Bishop and many LGBTQIA+ clergy who are living in open defiance of our Book of Discipline without any consequences. The practices of the UMC do not align with the stated theology of the UMC. Without accountability to our Book of Discipline, the UMC has become ungovernable.

  • The battle in the UMC over human sexuality (and the deeper issues beneath it) is a hindrance to the mission of the church. Although the historically orthodox positions of the UMC on human sexuality were affirmed at the 2019 General Conference, the result was a deeply divided UMC still entrenched in the same battle. We cannot afford to allow the mission of the church to continue suffering while we invest more resources in this internal struggle.

  • We want to be honest and proactive in determining the alignment of Journey Community Church with our governing denomination. Staying in the UMC at this point would be less about alignment and more about taking the path of least resistance. As more pastors and congregations exit the UMC for the GMC, Journey will be unavoidably influenced by the shifting trajectory of the UMC. Instead of waiting in a passive and reactive posture, we want to respond in a proactive one to determine the future course of Journey.

Why Exit the United Methodist Church?

Biblical & Theological Issues

  • In November of 2021, when it became obvious that many churches and clergy were considering disaffiliation from the UMC, the United Methodist Council of Bishops released a statement they titled A Narrative for the Continuing United Methodist Church. Here’s an excerpt: “All of our members, clergy, local churches, and annual conferences will continue to have a home in the future United Methodist Church, whether they consider themselves liberal, evangelical, progressive, traditionalist, middle of the road, conservative, centrist, or something else. We hold on to our Wesleyan heritage that ‘the living core of the Christian faith is revealed in Scripture, illuminated by tradition, vivified in personal experience, and confirmed by reason.’” (A Narrative for the Continuing United Methodist Church from The UMC Council of Bishops, November 4, 2021)

    The bishops of the UMC are declaring the road to being a United Methodist is broad enough for everyone. Listen to the words of Jesus that offer a stark contrast in Matthew 7:13-14. “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

    A theological tent that is big enough for everyone cannot be the tent of Jesus. Is everyone loved equally by Jesus? Yes. Are all theological perspectives equally valid and true? That is an impossibility.

  • Methodism began as a movement of God fueled by the preaching of the Gospel that called people to repentance and holy living. This was the same call that was on the lips of John the Baptist in Matthew 3:2 saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” and also on the lips of Jesus in Mark 1:15 saying, “Repent and believe the good news!”

    The call to turn away from sin and follow Jesus in the way of his new Kingdom has been replaced with an agenda of ultra-inclusivity that essentially declares, “Everyone is welcome! God loves you just the way you are and does not expect you to change.” Instead of calling people to crucify their sinful natures, current leaders of the UMC want to baptize the desires of our sinful natures. An agenda of inclusion apart from repentance is not the agenda of Jesus. The church is for all people who desire to draw near to Jesus with repentant hearts to discover the treasure of the Kingdom of God.

    In his book A War of Loves, David Bennett, who self-identifies as a celibate, gay, Christian shares his journey from being an atheistic gay activist who hated anything to do with the church or religion or Jesus to becoming a passionate follower of Jesus who chooses to be celibate and enjoys incredible joy and freedom in Christ. He is still attracted to men, but he chooses not to act on those attractions. Listen to a couple excerpts from his book:

    • “Love, I have come to learn, is not God. Flip that. God is love. The God revealed in Jesus Christ is the definition of love. This difference changes everything. We are caught up in the arms greater than our own, feeing the possibility of being accepted not by our mirror but by our maker.”

    • “What a gay person really needs – as does every one of us – is to embrace a new, God-given identity. We have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer we who live but Christ who lives in us (Gal 2:20). By definition, this new identity cannot live the old way. We need to repent and put away the old identity. . . . Every Christian – gay or straight – must offer their body as a living sacrifice to God, like Jesus did on the cross.”

  • 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 says, “Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

    This passage is a declaration of good news! It’s not about excluding sinners from the Church, but a celebration that those who were formerly in bondage to sin have been set free by the power of God’s grace in Jesus Christ and included in the family of God. The way to include members of the LGBTQIA+ community is not to embrace sinful behaviors, but to embrace people of all kinds who are experiencing God’s power setting them free from the sinful ways of being and behaving that used to define them. We are not defined by our past or present sins, but by the grace of God in Jesus Christ.

    Listen to David Bennett again on this topic: “What truly matters is not our view as the church or as a society. What matters is what Jesus Christ is saying to us. The lie we’re telling ourselves is that compromising holiness will ensure church growth. That’s false. Embracing and raising up those who are sexually faithful and obedient, as witnesses to our culture, will attract the world. Without holiness, Jesus Christ can’t be seen in us by the world; and without love, the world will resist the truth of this holiness.”

    Other Scriptures around this topic: Romans 1:26-28, Romans 3:22-24, Romans 6:11-14, Romans 8:1-3

  • There are five explicit references to homosexual behavior in the Bible (Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13, Romans 1:26-28, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, and 1 Timothy 1:8-11). All these references are negative in their judgement about homosexual behavior.

    After reading and re-reading all the arguments that attempt to reinterpret these passages to explain away the negative teaching about homosexual behavior, even seeking arguments to have a valid case for embracing the behaviors of the LGBTQIA+ community, our conclusion is that the Bible does not say anything affirming about homosexual behavior or divergent sexual practices of the LGBTQIA+ community.

    In addition to this conclusion, the teaching of the Bible about God’s design for human sexuality between one man and one woman in the covenant of marriage is overwhelmingly present from the beginning to the end of the Bible. The teaching of the Bible about our sinful nature and the depravity of our selfish desires is also at odds with affirming homosexual behavior. The invitation of Scripture to crucify our sinful, fleshly nature to be led by God’s Spirit is the opposite of what is being argued in our culture and progressive theologians of the UMC.

  • This is not new in United Methodism. Retired United Methodist Bishop, Joseph Sprague, shared these ideas 20 years ago in his book Affirmations of a Dissenter. He wrote:

    • “The myth of the virgin birth was not intended as historical fact but was employed by Matthew and Luke in different ways to appoint poetically the truth about Jesus as experienced in the emerging church.”

    • “I believe in the resurrection of Jesus, but I cannot believe that his resurrection involved the resuscitation of his physical body.”

    • “I must dissent from Christocentric exclusives which hold that Jesus is the only way to God’s gift of salvation. Such an arrogant claim stands over and against the inclusive Jesus of the synoptics and limits God in ways that humans cannot and must not.”

    • “[Jesus’] humanity was given in his conception and birth through the natural processes of procreation. His divinity was derived, given as a gift, from his relationship of trust and obedience with God.”

    When Sprague was officially brought up on charges within the UMC for his heretical, unorthodox beliefs, the charges were dismissed and he received no disciplinary action. The only thing that has changed in United Methodism since Sprague wrote his book is that theological positions like his have become even more widely accepted on a broader scale. The theology that is labeled “progressive” is, in fact, evidence of the deterioration of orthodox Christian theology. It seems the warning of the apostle John in 2 John 1:8-9 is fitting for our current context. “Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.”

    Progressive Christians/leaders in the UMC have “run ahead” and abandoned the foundational teachings of the New Testament church.

FAQs

  • Next to nothing! There will be some shifts related to our connection with a new denomination, but the way we do life and ministry together will be essentially unchanged. We will still be aligned with the same statement on human sexuality from January 2020 (see FAQ #3 to read it), which was simply an explicit description of how we have been doing ministry and being the church for decades. If you have experienced Journey as a community of grace in which you can grow to connect, be, love, serve and multiply like Jesus up to now, we’ll still be the exact same community moving forward. If nothing will be different about Journey if we disaffiliate, why are we considering it? Keep reading, and be sure to attend the Congregational Meetings (see FAQ #6) to learn more.

  • The UMC General Conference 2019 created a pathway for churches to exit the denomination, but that pathway expires on December 31st, 2023. If we do not exit now, the pathway to exit beyond 2023 is unknown. We envision a future of innovative, fruitful ministry focused on the mission of Jesus as we are aligned with a denomination that shares our core theological convictions. We want to join the courageous pastors and congregations who are shaping the new Wesleyan movement that is the Global Methodist Church.

    Click here to read the list of Key Events leading up to this discernment process.

  • Click here!

  • As described in the congregational letter that went out on August 15th, we invite you to prayerfully engage in this discernment process in the months ahead. We will be holding a series of congregational meetings to further unpack the topics and questions surrounding disaffiliation. Reminders with times (or revisions to these dates) will be provided through our weekly Traveler’s Guide email. If you do not receive email updates, you can sign up using the form at the bottom of this web page.

    There will be five gatherings with important content shared by the pastor and leadership team followed by extended times for Q & A dialogue. One of the five gatherings will be with our District Superintendent (or his designee) to clarify the process, share reasons to stay in the UMC, and take the final vote at a Charge Conference.

    On September 29th, a second congregational letter was sent out to clarify the details of the vote for disaffiliation. To read the congregational letter from September 29th, click here.

    To read the congregational letter from August 15th, click here.

  • Visit the UMC conference website, https://www.westohioumc.org/disaffiliation, for all the details!

  • Click here to learn more about the financial aspects of Disaffiliation.

  • Mark your calendars for the following dates.

    Sunday August 28th, 2022 @ 11:30 AM = Congregational Meeting #1: Why consider disaffiliation from the UMC? What are the Biblical and Theological Issues at stake?

    Sunday September 11th, 2022 @ 12:30 PM = Congregational Meeting #2: What are the “Nuts and Bolts” of Disaffiliation?

    Sunday September 18th, 2022 @ 11:30 AM = Congregational Meeting #3: What are the detailed next steps to consider? Why Align with the Global Methodist Church? (feat. Rev. Caleb Speicher from the GMC)

    Wednesday September 21st, 2022 @ 7:00 PM = Congregational Meeting #4: Why Stay in the UMC? (feat. District Superintendent Rev. Dr. Timothy Bias from the UMC)

    Tuesday October 18th, 2022 @ 6:30 PM = Congregational Meeting #5: Family Gathering & Final Q&A

    Sunday October 30th, 2022 @ 7:00 PM = Church Conference & Congregational Vote *Only members will be permitted in the room for the 10/30 Church Conference & Vote.

    If you are unable to make the Congregational Meetings, send an email to churchoffice@discoverjourneycc.com and we will send you a private link to the meeting recordings.

  • Our Administrative Leadership Team (ALT) is made up of 10 hand-selected members of the JCC family who have longstanding track records of faithfulness to, first and foremost, the Kingdom of God, and second, the vision God has breathed into Journey to be, love, serve, and multiply like Jesus. The JCC Staff team serves on the ALT alongside its members.

    Administrative Leadership Team Members:

    Lay Leader & ALT Chair - Jeff Wheelbarger

    Staff Parish Relations Committee (SPRC) - Susie Haskins (chair) & Rene Keeney

    Finance Committee - Sharon Berry, (chair) Don Comston (treasurer), & Tammy Carlson

    Trustees - Linda Beachy, Randy Spain, Jeremy Duffield, & Mark Sajdyk

    JCC Staff:

    Lead Pastor - Blaine Keene

    Facilities Manager - Jodie Keene

    Director of Kids & Student Ministries - Chris Burneka

    Director of Worship & Communications - Sophie Lockhart

    Director of Connections & Administration - Janet Noble

  • We compiled a list of responses to common arguments & questions about same sex behavior in the Bible and in the UMC. Click here to read it and use it to lovingly engage in conversation!

  • It’s a lot! We get it! That’s why we made this resource list for you. If you’re looking to dig deeper or simply want to learn more about these topics, click here.

    To view the list of Scripture references from Congregational Meeting #1, click here.

FEAR NOT

We know this process might feel heavy, or cause anxiety and deep emotions to arise in each of us. We ask you to join us in covering these decisions and processes with prayer. Here are a few of the Scriptures we are holding on to during this time.

“And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.”

-Philippians 1:-9-11

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

-Colossians 3:12-14

“For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.”

-2 Timothy 1:6-7

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

-Romans 8:26-28

“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.”

-Isaiah 40:29-30