Johannesburg celebrates 21 incredible years  

The Johannesburg Church of Christ commemorated the 21st anniversary of its planting by hosting the “Johannesburg Church of Christ homecoming” celebration from Tuesday 24th to Sunday 29th July.  The main purpose of the celebration was to bring back the Johannesburg Church missionaries to South Africa and to honour them, to reach out to those who have wondered from the church and to encourage great fellowship between all in attendance.  

The six days of celebrations kicked off on Wednesday 25th July with evening services in the various Johannesburg regions during which different visitors shared about their ministries back home.  On Friday 27th July, a staff meeting was held where good news from around Africa and the world was shared.   

The celebrations continued with a Gospel Concert titled “The Life of Jesus told in a Song” which was held on Saturday 28th July.  Performed by the choirs of the Johannesburg Church of Christ regions, the show consisted of a mixture of solo, individual choir and mass choir performances sung in different African languages, with some items accompanied by instruments.  The type of music, including gospel, praise and worship as well as traditional hymns, catered for a wide range of musical tastes.  A narrator was on stage throughout the show to tell the story of Jesus.  It was an unforgettable evening of powerful harmonies that stirred the spirit and moved the soul.   

The celebrations concluded with a churchwide service at the Standard Bank Area on Sunday 29th July with over 2 000 in attendance.  It felt like a heavenly gathering as disciples from far and wide traveled to Johannesburg to partake in the festivities.  Special visitors to the service included the entire Mozambican church, disciples from Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Botswana, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town, as well as AJ and Patty Hoff from the Boston church and Mike and Anne-Bridgette Taliaferro from the San Antonio International Church of Christ.  Highlights of the service included a video profiling the history of the Southern African churches, the appointment of Araujo and Ilse Francisco (leaders of the Maputo church in Mozambique) as an evangelist and women’s ministry leader, the honouring of previous full-time ministry staff and a powerful message about having a godly foundation preached by Mike Taliaferro.   

The 21st birthday celebration left many disciples feeling encouraged and grateful to be a part of God’s movement as is reflected in the following quotes: 

“It was a privilege and an honour to be part of the birthday celebration. The concert was so fantastic!  We have such great talent in the kingdom! I loved every moment.  The Sunday service was also amazing. Watching the video, it was really inspiring to hear all the disciples’ convictions, conversion stories and how they still faithful to God. It also brought back thoughts of one day when we all get to heaven and hear how the disciples fought the good fight to get there. I am so fired up to be part such a great group of people that loves God and want to please him!”

- Yoghini Venketas - 

“The Gospel Concert was certainly one of the most professionally done and brilliantly performed events I have attended in a long time. It was not only very entertaining and a great show, but also it inspired me to be closer to Jesus/God.”

- Philip Theron – 

“I participated in the Gospel Concert and it was an incredible experience! We got to spend time with disciples from other regions, renew old friendships and make new ones. It was hard work and FUN! Towards the end we put in long hours of practice but the spirit moved among us. There was such a feeling of family that I was quite sad when it was all over. From the feedback I got, the concert reached the hearts of people and ‘wowed’ the visitors.  They were amazed at how nations of all colours ‘live’ in harmony with one another and love God and one another.”

- Melanie Sheppard - 

“The 21st birthday rekindled an appreciation for the kingdom in my heart.  It encouraged me to treasure it so much more.  The video showing the history of the Johannesburg church touched me as it showed how the early church overcame racism.  It goes to show that this truly is the kingdom of God where love reigns as colour is not an issue.  In our church we have something really great.”

- Annastasia Meerkotter - 

“The Gospel Concert was one of the best concerts I have ever been to!  You could see that the performers put a lot of work into it as the standard of performance was high throughout.  I loved the way that the choirs from the different regions sang in unison.  It was beautiful!”

- Priscilla Nukeri – 

“It was great to be back at Standard Bank Arena as it brought back many special memories.  I loved the video which showed the history of the SA church planting as it was really encouraging to see who was baptized first and started off as pioneers of our movement.  I was also encouraged to see all the previous staff members being recognized, some disciples whom I never knew actually served in the full time ministry!  Overall, the service was well organized and super encouraging.  It made me proud to be a part of God’s church!”

- Henk Barnard -