Rev. Chris Tweitmann, Associate Pastor

Having been called as the Associate Pastor at John Knox in August 2005, Chris lives expectantly; serving others out of a passion fueled by the grace of the triune God. For Chris, this is the heart of the gospel:

God the Father’s eternal love letter initiated through the birth of a people into a nation and sealed by the blood of a son who gave his life for all peoples and nations. God’s correspondence, the vocabulary of our faith---forgiveness, reconciliation, salvation, and eternal life--- appeals to every tongue but finds its meaning in only one name: Jesus Christ. God freely prompts by repentance and faith, each person’s entrance and participation into the transforming reality of Jesus Christ. And yet God’s invitation must be opened, must be read, must be believed and must be shared with others through the unique expression of one’s own life.

In the convergence of God’s story with the narrative of one’s own life, one’s purpose and destiny emerge. God’s story becomes our story. Our purpose, for which we have each been gifted, is to share the gospel of God through the words and actions of our own lives. This is the call of discipleship. And yet each person is unique just as each narrative is different. It is impossible to outline every decision or contingency in the development of our story with Christ. When, how and in what ways we will be called to respond and grow cannot be anticipated. No, discipleship is a matter of faith and trust. While the pathway to discipleship is the same, the journey of discipleship is distinctive for each believer.

Nevertheless, we are bound together throughout the world and across the ages because God reveals himself, his story in and through community. We are united by a shared destiny to be the unique, creative, and faithful fabric by which God weaves His tapestry of grace and love. Joined together in prayer, study, and dialogue, God informs and matures our understanding of worship, ministry, and mission:
• By our knowledge and appreciation of the history and traditions that are a part of God’s story,
• Our participation in God’s narrative as it is being retold in the lives of those God puts before us,
• Our openness to the possibilities of how God will articulate His gospel through us in the future.

In this chapter of God working through the story of our lives, my wife Beth and I, along with our two children, Emma and Ethan, are blessed to be a part of this community. Coram Deo!