HISTORY OF CALVARY CHAPEL

A Brief History of Calvary Chapel Churches

Calvary Chapel of Concord is an affiliate church of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, pastored by the late Chuck Smith. Pastor Chuck Smith founded Calvary Chapel in the late 60's in a time when most traditional churches were turning away the next generation because of the length of their hair and the counter-culture lifestyle which they practiced. Driven by a burden for that generation, Pastor Chuck reached out to them with love and understanding and without compromise of Christian principles. A result of this outreach was the birthing of the "Jesus Movement." 

Thirty years later, with 1200 plus affiliates nationally and several hundred internationally, ministering to approximately 300,000 people, Calvary Chapels are still reaching out to the lost and attempting to love the unlovable. They are best known for their strong emphasis on the teaching of God's Word and the application of that Word to every day life. High importance is also placed on worship which consists of contemporary style music, designed to put the believer in a place of intimate communion with God and ready their heart for His Word. Feeding the flock of God by consistently accurately teaching His Word is the primary focus of Calvary Chapel. It is also our main belief concerning evangelism, that "sheep beget sheep" and that as God's people are fed the Word, they will naturally lead others to Christ.