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Get To Know Lanse Free Church
Explore our God-given purpose and vision, meet our pastor and leadership team, discover what we believe, learn about our 132-year history, and see how we support missionaries around the world.
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Jump to: Our Purpose | Our Doctrine | Our Leadership | Our History | Our Missions
Our Purpose
We exist to glorify God by bringing people into a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ through worship, instruction, fellowship, evangelism, and service.
Glorify God
We exist for the magnification of God's glory. Magnification, not like a microscope - that makes something small bigger, but like a telescope - making something unimaginably great visible to the eye that couldn't see it before.
Bring People to Jesus
We exist to introduce people to the Lord Jesus Christ and help them understand His amazing love and to love Him with all that is in them.
Through Worship, Instruction, Fellowship, Evangelism, and Service.
These are the five main tools in our toolbox for accomplishing our purpose:
- Worship: Loving Jesus above all things. This is shown when we gather to praise Him and in how we show His value in how we live our daily lives.
- Instruction: Learning about Jesus in His Word.
- Fellowship: Loving one another because we have Jesus in common.
- Evangelism: Sharing the good news of what Jesus has done for us.
- Service: Using our God-given gifts to help each other and serve the world.
For more about our purpose, read Pastor Matt's sermon: The Newborn Church.
Our Doctrine
Lanse Free Church is part of the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA). Pastor Matt likes to say that "the Gospel is our middle name"—"evangelical" simply refers to our belief that the good news of Jesus Christ is the center of our faith. While leaving room for flexibility and discussion on non-essentials, we are united around a common core of biblical truth expressed in the EFCA Statement of Faith.
Statement of Faith
Adopted by LEFC on December 13, 2020
The Evangelical Free Church of America is an association of autonomous churches united around these theological convictions:
1. We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.
2. We believe that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged. Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.
3. We believe that God created Adam and Eve in His image, but they sinned when tempted by Satan. In union with Adam, human beings are sinners by nature and by choice, alienated from God, and under His wrath. Only through God’s saving work in Jesus Christ can we be rescued, reconciled and renewed.
4. We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus-Israel’s promised Messiah-was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.
5. We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.
6. We believe that the Holy Spirit, in all that He does, glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ. He convicts the world of its guilt. He regenerates sinners, and in Him they are baptized into union with Christ and adopted as heirs in the family of God. He also indwells, illuminates, guides, equips and empowers believers for Christ-like living and service.
7. We believe that the true church comprises all who have been justified by God’s grace through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head. The true church is manifest in local churches, whose membership should be composed only of believers. The Lord Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which visibly and tangibly express the gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish the believer.
8. We believe that God’s justifying grace must not be separated from His sanctifying power and purpose. God commands us to love Him supremely and others sacrificially, and to live out our faith with care for one another, compassion toward the poor and justice for the oppressed. With God’s Word, the Spirit’s power, and fervent prayer in Christ’s name, we are to combat the spiritual forces of evil. In obedience to Christ’s commission, we are to make disciples among all people, always bearing witness to the gospel in word and deed.
9. We believe in the personal, bodily and glorious return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic mission.
10. We believe that God commands everyone everywhere to believe the gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God will raise the dead bodily and judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to condemnation and eternal conscious punishment and the believer to eternal blessedness and joy with the Lord in the new heaven and the new earth, to the praise of His glorious grace. Amen.
Our Leadership
Lanse Free Church is led by our pastor, staff, and elder team who care deeply about our church family and community. Together, we seek to shepherd our congregation with grace, proclaim God's Word faithfully, and equip the church to bring people into a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ.
Our History
What began in February 1892 as a gathering of Swedish families in a local home has grown into over 133 years of faithful gospel ministry in Lanse. Through every season, God has guided our congregation with a clear vision to honor Him and serve our community.
- 1892-1933 - Founded as the Swedish Free Church; built our first dedicated church building
- 1940s-1960s - Transitioned to English-language services and called our first full-time pastors
- 1970s-Present - Expanded facilities, relocated to our present church home (1977), and launched new community spaces including the Ark Park (2000), Lanse Free Fridge (2024), and Ark Park Pavilion (2025)
For more about our journey, listen to Pastor Matt's "Gospel Roots (1892-2017)" sermon series celebrating our first 125 years.
History compiled by Vera Edgren, Sue Swisher, and Pastor Matt.
Our Missions
Lanse Evangelical Free Church is committed to supporting 12 families and 4 missionary organizations around the globe. This is primarily accomplished through our partnership with ReachGlobal, in collaboration with our local primary choices, World Evangelical Alliance, and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.
Additionally, our congregation actively engages in short-term missions, sending teams and participating personally.
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Global Church Planting - Partnering with ReachGlobal missionaries to establish multiplying churches worldwide
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Local & Regional Outreach - Supporting regional care initiatives, food pantries, and gospel partnerships in Pennsylvania
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Short-Term Teams - Sending teams and individuals from our congregation to serve alongside long-term field partners