C&MA

CMA churches to me seem very well balanced theologically speaking. Some pastors believe in the security of the believer and some do not. They believe in holy living as Christians and have a great and correct emphasis on world missions.

My Dad is 85 years old and he and my sister both attend on on the corner of Carmen Road in Schenectady, New York.

 

After I became a Christian I attended a CMA church. I found it to be quite good and have a heavy mission emphasis. They are the number one per capita giving to missions of any denomination in the US. They have more churches overseas than in the US.

Many of the CMA pastors have attended Baptist seminaries.

 

The Christian and Missionary Alliance was founded by Albert Simpson who was a Presbyterian who was also a key part of the Pentecostal movement of that time.

The Chinese Baptist churches in Toronto work quite closely with the Chinese C&MA churches in Toronto. One of the best evangelical preachers churches in the city of Toronto is Sunder Krishnan of Rexdale Alliance Church.

 

They were also one of the main supporters of the Keswick Movement in Canada. A spiritual life camp. It was also the denomination of A.W. Tozer, the best devotional preacher of all time, and was involved in the founding of Youth For Christ Ministries.

Cheers,

Jim

 

I spent seven years attending a C&MA here in central Pa. I found the congreagation wonderful Christians devoted to serving the Lord.

On a plus side they are great on missions which is the primary reason the denomination was created, not to trivalize the preaching of the Gospel.

Their weekness is in allowing their preachers too much liberty in very controversal issues which causes divisiveness within the congregations. For example. When i started attending the CMA the preacher was OSAS and KJVO and pounded it home (Praise God), but then he moved on to another calling after ten years there. The church grew from about 100 to 300 under his pastoring. After he left the board voted in a pastor who was also OSAS, but wouldn't preach it less he should offend someone, and who was an any version will do preacher which caused quite a stir in the congregation. So after years of unity with everyone teaching and learning out of the KJB things were turned upside down and folks were left bewildered so to speak.

The CMA does not take any official position on OSAS nor on preaching KJVO. They allow their preachers liberty to do either. This may seem good on the surface but I believe it would help them to become more stable if they took a one side or the other position on these issues.

But with that said, they have thrived in their work for the Lord on missions and in the church I attended they labored in discipling and sole winning. But like i said, we had one CMA preaching OSAS and KJVO and ten miles away in another town the CMA was preaching just the opposite.

Personally I could not take the liberlism of the new pastor. He is a very nice man and loves the Lord, but after sitting under a pastor who was ultra conservative I just couldn't bear it and have moved on. Last I heard the congregation was back down to about 150. This is not to reflect on liberal verses conservative nationwide because we can see that the liberal churches such as Joel Olstien's is packing the seats. But here in my area conservative prevails over liberalism in the churches. The methodist here has all but faded away. They have one pastor bouncing between three churches every Sunday because the congregations are so small they cannot support a pastor for each. Really the only ones left are those rooted in family, they just won't leave no matter what because of a this is where I was raised mentality.

Anyway, I believe the CMAs are good churches. My main concern is the lack of teaching and lack of stance on the OSAS truth of the scriptures. This truth is so important to the growth of a Christian that I personally feel it should be a number one priority in all denominations. Without knowing that my soul is kept by Jesus and not myself I would simply fail to serve Him at all. I would quit. It would have no meaning, no value. It feels good to serve out of love and not out of fear for my future. I feel the freedom that God's OSAS has given me to serve and I just love teaching others about it so they too can feel the powerful love of being forever, eternally saved.

God Bless!