Crossroads Bible Church, Christian and Missionary Alliance(C&MA), Los Alamos, NM

title, Crossroads Bible Church, Christian and Missionary Alliance, C&MA

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The Christian and Missionary Alliance

Trinity Bible Church, now Crossroads Bible Church (after the merger with Christ Community Bible Church in 1999), joined the Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA) in 1965 to foster its focus on missions. What follows is a short summary of some aspects of the C&MA. There are a lot of good references on the internet that explain these subjects in greater detail. You'll find some links to these resources on this page.

Guatamala
47 Churches

In 1881, Dr. Albert B. Simpson, as a result of God’s healing and work in his heart, resigned his pastorate in order to work full time in evangelism. By 1887, he had generated enough interest in missions that a convention was held in Maine from which a movement was born, a movement to “take the whole Bible to the whole world”. Dr. Simpson felt that bringing the gospel to others was a fundamental part of being a Christian. His intent was to encourage churches to increase their involvement with personal spiritual growth and missions. The convention members voted to create two societies: The Christian Alliance and the Evangelical Missionary Alliance, which ten years later merged to form the Christian and Missionary Alliance. This movement was not popular with everyone and, enthusiasts, discouraged or rejected by their churches, formed their own groups called “branches” that often functioned as churches themselves. More and more churches began to affiliate themselves with the C&MA over time so that, in 1974, they formally became an evangelical denomination. The primary emphasis of this new denomination, as always with the C&MA, is to glorify God through spiritual growth, evangelism and missions. Hence there is room for churches with various doctrinal and theological backgrounds.

Headquarters

Indonesia
1740 Churches

The C&MA is now headquartered in Colorado Springs, CO. Central to their mission is planting and encouraging Great Commission churches and Christians in all parts of the world. C&MA now sponsors over 1000 missionaries in 52 countries. Many of these are specialized, meeting local needs was well as bringing the gospel to others: medical, communications, translation, etc.

Today the Alliance includes over three million people in 57 countries. A fascinating fact about the Alliance is that, though founded and fostered in the United States, the majority of members now reside outside North America. Today we North American C&MA churches are outnumbered by 4 : 1 and foreign membership outnumbers North Americans by 6 : 1. (These are approximations are derived from the US and Canadian 2001 & 2002 Annual Reports).

The Logo

The logo that you see in the upper left corner of our website is the symbol for the C&MA. It is made up of several parts, all emphasizing the centrality of Christ to the Christian life and work:

The cross – Christ our savior.

The laver (cup) – Christ our sanctifier. The laver was used in the Old Testament by priest’s to wash their feet before entering the temple, signifying cleansing from sin.

The pitcher – Christ our healer. The pitcher is used to hold the oil for anointing the sick.

The crown – Christ our coming king.

The globe – Completing Christ’s commission.

For a more complete description, visit C&MA’s logo page.

Personalities

As in every church, there are a few people in its history that stand out, that have influenced the mission and culture of the church or Christendom. There are two historical figures that often come up when discussing the cultural and theological foundation of the C&MA:

Albert Simpson

AB Simpson
1843-1919

Albert Benjamin Simpson, C&MA founder, educated at Knox College in Toronto. Simpson was extremely prolific, publishing over 70 books, many songs and poems, and founded and edited a magazine for nearly 40 years (now called Alliance Life).

Gospel Tabernacle
New York

He was called to preach at the young age of 15. At the age of 21, he accepted his first pastorate in fulfillment of that calling. The key to Simpson’s spiritual life, according to a friend, was to find a private spot and silence his mind in the presence of the Lord until he could hear the ‘still small voice’ of God. The impact of this practice was amazing. God gave him a vision for a city-wide revival while pasturing in Louisiville, Kentucky. Hundreds were saved in the campaign resulted and churches swelled.

God continued to increase his burden to reach the lost until finally, in 1881 he began a full time ministry that focused on evangelization. From humble beginnings, this ministry soon moved into its first headquarters, in New York, that Simpson called the "Gospel Tabernacle". In time (skipping many details), it became the C&MA, an independent denomination that focused on missions and evangelism as a core principle.

Simpson eschewed anything that prevented a person from fellowshipping more deeply with God. He also believed that divine healing and spiritual gifts were a natural part of Christian life, a view that departed from more conservative Christian bodies of the day. Simpson, however, could not deny that he had experienced God's healing touch personally. He had struggled with illness since childhood and eventually a doctor told him he had only a few months to live. Not long after, God granted him complete healing.

He continued to seek the lost until his death; his last prayer were for the missionaries he aided in sending all over the world.

Aiden Tozer

AW Tozer
1897-1963

Aiden Wilson Tozer, 1897-1963, a contemporary with Simpson for a short period. He had no formal education, yet he was theologically well read (received two honorary doctorates), authored more than 50 books (some of which are still published), and became editor of Alliance Life in 1950. His homespun style, commitment to a spiritual life of prayer, identification with the common man and uncompromising message made him a very popular and profitable preacher and teacher, all of which earned him the reputation of "a 20th-century prophet".

His first call was to a small storefront C&MA church in 1919 and he continued to pastor in C&MA churches until his death.

The Web Site

You are encouraged to visit the C&MA website
They have tons of information therer. Some of the things you’ll find:

About the Alliance News and stories from around the world An 11-point doctrinal statement History of the C&MA Mission statement	Auxiliaries Publications Investment and development Retirement centers Colleges and seminaries
Ministries Women’s Youth Disabilities Stewardship Church multiplication CAMA (world relief)	Missions Mobilization Opportunities to serve Status and News by country Missionary Locator Resources