Harvest Bible Chapel is a nondenominational church and member of the Southern Baptist Convention convention. The church was founded in 1988 in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, and now has seven campuses in the Chicago metropolitan area. Each weekend, more than 13,000 gather across all campuses to sit under the preaching of founding and Senior Pastor James MacDonald.
The church's unusual scale led to its inclusion in Outreach Magazine's "Top 100 Fastest Growing Churches in America" and "Top 100 Largest Churches in America".
Video Harvest Bible Chapel
Purpose
The mission of Harvest Bible Chapel is to glorify God through the fulfillment of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). The church's purpose is to be obedient to the mission and make authentic disciples of Christ, who follow His ways in their Worship, Walk and Work.
Maps Harvest Bible Chapel
History
Founded in 1988, Harvest Bible Chapel grew from 18 people meeting in a local high school, to more than 13,000 attending on seven campuses in the Chicago area. MacDonald's preaching emphasizes the authority of the Bible, practically applied in a compelling and understandable way. Known for its racial and economic diversity, the congregation moved into a converted warehouse in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, in 1995, adding campuses in Elgin and Niles in 2004; Crystal Lake in 2007; the downtown Chicago Cathedral campus in 2010; Aurora in 2011; and Deerfield Road in 2012. The church's scale led to its inclusion in Outreach Magazine's "Top 100 Fastest Growing Churches in America" and "Top 100 Largest Churches in America."
James MacDonald
Born in London, Ontario, MacDonald is a graduate of London Baptist Bible College (BA in Theology, 1984), Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (MA in Religion, 1988) and Phoenix Seminary (D. Min, 1996).
MacDonald was ordained at Riverside Baptist Church in Windsor, Ontario, in 1985. In 1988, recruited by a small group of ministry partners, MacDonald and his wife, Kathy, founded Harvest Bible Chapel.
Since 1997, his daily Bible-teaching ministry has been extended through Walk in the Word, which is available by radio and television. Further extension of his ministry includes: Harvest Christian Academy; the church planting network Harvest Bible Fellowship which continues today at Vertical Church Network; Harvest Training Center for church-planting pastors; a recording ministry, Vertical Worship; and a feature-filmmaking ministry, Vertical Church Films.
MacDonald currently resides in a Chicago suburb with his wife, Kathy. They have three adult children, five grandsons and two granddaughters.
Today, MacDonald's preaching is heard around the world more than 2,000 times each day through Walk in the Word (WITW), a teaching ministry that started as a radio broadcast on one station in 1997. In 2014, the broadcast expanded to television. Today, the program airs daily on the Trinity Broadcast Network, and many other radio and TV networks. In 2016, WITW received the National Religious Broadcasters award for "Best Television Teaching Program". Through this television program, the Bible teaching from James MacDonald that happens each week in the pulpit of Harvest Bible Chapel can now be seen in 98% of households in America.
Campuses
Known for its racial and economic diversity, the congregation moved from the local high school into a converted warehouse in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, in 1995. Additional campuses were founded in Elgin and Niles in 2004; Crystal Lake in 2007; the downtown Chicago Cathedral in 2010; Aurora in 2011 (permanent location in 2016); and Deerfield Road in 2012 (permanent location in Highland Park in 2015).
Additional Ministries
Walk in the Word
Launched in 1997, Walk in the Word became the radio outlet for MacDonald's teaching ministry at Harvest Bible Chapel, and began on local FM station WYLL. In 2000, the program was added to the Moody broadcasting network, and by 2010 was heard more than 2000 times a day across North America. In 2012, the program received the "Billy Graham Award for Excellence in Christian Communication". In 2014, Walk in the Word expanded to global television and, in 2016, received the award for "Best Television Teaching Program". Today, the program airs daily around the world on the Trinity Broadcast Network and many other radio and television networks.
Harvest Christian Academy
In 2004, the scope of the Elgin Campus afforded MacDonald and Harvest Bible Chapel the opportunity to launch a private school for students in preschool through grade 12. With more than 700 students and 90 faculty, the school's purpose is to develop students who are grounded in God's Word, building strong academic skills, and given opportunities to participate in athletics, arts, and community service.
Harvest Bible Fellowship / Vertical Church Network
The church planting organization Harvest Bible Fellowship was founded by MacDonald in 2002 and has planted more than 170 churches on four continents. Prospective church planting pastors receive post-seminary training through the Harvest Training Center before being sent out to plant a church. In early 2018, the work of Harvest Bible Fellowship continued through the Vertical Church Network, which upholds the ministry "pillars" and distinctives with many of its original churches and leaders through a leadership team based out of Harvest Bible Chapel Winston-Salem, NC.
Vertical Worship
Vertical Worship is the worship and songwriting ministry of Harvest Bible Chapel. Launching formally in 2012 (as Vertical Church Band), their song "Open Up the Heavens," co-authored by MacDonald, was nominated for the Dove Awards Worship Song of the Year in 2014 and is at #23 of "CCLI's Top 100 Songs in 2016." The band has released five live worship albums: "Bright Faith Bold Future" (2018), "Frontiers" (2016), "Church Songs" (2015), "The Rock Won't Move" (2014), and "Live Worship from Vertical Church Band" (2013).
Vertical Church Films
Vertical Church Films was launched in 2012 to produce professional feature-length films that proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. The ministry has produced two critically acclaimed short films, The Ride in 2012, and Once We Were Slaves (retitled The Two Thieves) in 2014. Vertical Church Films' first feature film, The Resurrection of Gavin Stone, starring Brett Dalton, Anjelah Johnson, Shawn Michaels, and D.B. Sweeney, released in nearly 1000 theaters across the United States on January 20, 2017.
Camp Harvest
In 2003, the church was given 650 acres of property in Croton, Michigan, where it now runs Camp Harvest, a year-round youth/family camp and retreat center with facilities for 300, and a pastoral training center, which sleeps 40.
References
External links
- Official Website
Source of article : Wikipedia
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