Who We Are!
Love God. Love Others. Spread the Word.
To “Love God” is the chief reason man was created, so we start here. We want every member of Calvary to passionately love God with all their heart. It’s first and primary.
To “Love Others” means that it’s not about us. Living “The Calvary Life” means putting the needs of others before our own, whether in our church family, community or to the ends of the earth.
To “Spread the Word” means that we don’t keep the good news of the gospel to ourselves. We actively share our faith with those around us. We serve in the church, our community and to the ends of the earth in order to make a difference for the glory of Christ.
Our Goal: To be a people who represent Jesus and His gospel really, really well.
The essentials of what we believe:
About God – God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three persons: the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God.
About the Father – He is all powerful, all knowing, all loving, and all wise. He reigns with providential care over the universe and the flow of human history goes according to His purposes and plan.
About Jesus – Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. Jesus has eternally existed and became man at His incarnation. He lived a sinless human life and offered himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He bodily arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven’s glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
About the Holy Spirit – He is the third person of the Trinity. He guides men into all truth, exalts Christ, convicts of sin, righteousness and judgment, cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, bestows spiritual gifts by which believers serve God and seals the believer unto the day of final redemption. His presence in the lives of believers is the assurance of God to bring us into the fullness of the stature of Christ.
About Scriptures – The Bible is God’s Word to us. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living. Because it is inspired by God, it has salvation for its end and is truth without any mixture of error.
About Human Beings – People are made in the image of God and are the supreme object of God’s creation. All of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called sin. Sin separates people from God and causes many problems in life.
About Salvation – Salvation is God’s free gift to us, but we must accept it. We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin’s penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one received Jesus Christ into his life by faith.
About Eternal Security – Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the true believer is secure in that salvation for eternity. If you have been genuinely saved, you cannot “lose ” your salvation. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the Christian. It is the grace and keeping power of God that gives us this security.
About Eternity – People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence.
About Baptism – We believe that scriptural baptism must be: (1) by being immersed under the water and (2) after salvation. Every baptism in the New Testament was by immersion. Baptism has no saving power but is a first act of obedience symbolizing (1) the believer’s faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, (2) the believer’s death to sin and resurrection to walk anew in Christ, and (3) the Christian’s belief that he will die, be buried, and that Jesus will resurrect him from the dead.
About the Lord’s Supper – The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby believers remember the death of the Lord Jesus and anticipate His second coming. The bread is symbolic of His body and the juice represents His blood.
About Tithing – We believe in giving the tithe – ten percent of our income – as the biblical standard of giving. The tithe is to be given as an undesignated offering to the ministry of one’s local church. According to the Scriptures, we are to give cheerfully, regularly, systematically, proportionately, and liberally to help spread the Word all over the earth.
About Evangelism – It is the duty of every born again follower of Jesus Christ to make disciples of all men everywhere. It is the command of Christ for every believer to seek constantly to win the lost to Christ by personal effort and by all other methods in harmony with the gospel of Christ.
About the Church – A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a local body of baptized believers who are associated by their common faith and fellowship with Jesus. A local church is to observe the two ordinances: (1) baptism and (2) the Lord’s Supper. The church should exercise their God-given gifts and extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. The church is an autonomous body serving under the Lordship of Christ. All members are equally responsible as they serve with the scriptural officers of the church, the pastors and deacons.
About Christian Unity – To live in harmony with other believers is clearly the teaching of the New Testament. It is the responsibility of each believer to endeavor to live in fellowship with each member of the congregation. It is further the responsibility of each member to bring all gossiping and backbiting to an end.
We subscribe to the Baptist Faith and Message of 2000.
Pastor Jack Homesley has been our Senior Pastor since August 2015. Saved at Calvary Baptist Church in 1983, he followed God’s call to attend Columbia Bible College and Seminary in Columbia, SC. There he majored in Bible and minored in Pastoral Ministry, earning earn a Bachelor of Arts in Theology (with languages) in 1989.
After graduating from Columbia he served as the Senior Pastor of Christ Community Church in Huntersville, NC for 25 years. By God’s grace, the church grew from fewer than fifty-five on Sundays to well over one thousand members, sending missionaries all over the world. He led the church through the acquisition of new property, a complete relocation, and construction of at least five new buildings and a worship center. After completing 25 years he knew the Lord was calling him away from what had been his life’s work. Soon Jack answered God’s distinct and clear call to return home to Calvary Baptist where he now serves as our leader, friend, counselor and pastor. Jack has served as a member of the Board of Trustees at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC and as Chairman of Trustees of that institution. He teaches and participates annually in the Tarheel Leadership Network, a cooperative venture with the Baptist Convention of North Carolina and ShareLife Ministries that mentors pastors across the state.
Pastor Jack’s driving force is gratitude for Christ’s love and forgiveness toward him. He is committed to preaching God’s Word in a way that is accurate, practical, understandable, and life-changing. His ambition is to help people exchange the lies of this world for the truth of God’s Word and see the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ carried to the ends of the earth.
Pastor Jack was born in Charlotte, NC and is married to his wife Kim. They have three children; Jonathan, who is the pastor of Lake Wylie Baptist Church, Amy, and Rachel, both of whom have served in various mission fields and ministries and two grandchildren, Olivia and Lincoln. Pastor Jack and His wife Kim enjoy the beach, camping, motorcycling, and fishing.
We are located at: 10301 Harwood Lane, Charlotte, NC 28214
Office Phone: 704-394-6181