As already mentioned, the church of Christ is not a denomination founded by man nor a part of any religious organization founded by man. It originated in Heaven in the mind of God and was set up on earth in the city of Jerusalem on the first Pentecost following the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Lord (Ephesians 3:8-11; Acts 2). Instead of working with denominations, members of the church of Christ plead that all believers in Jesus Christ heed His prayer for unity and become one in His blood bought body, the church (John 17:20-21; Ephesians 4:4-6; Acts 20:28). Some might call that non-denominational or anti-denominational; we call it Biblical.
The foundation of the church of Christ is Jesus Christ Himself (1 Corinthians 3:11). A building is only as strong as its foundation. The same is true of a church. If a church is built upon a man or a human creed, it will fall. Only Jesus Christ has a right to build a church for He alone is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:13-19).
As for our particular congregation, early in the 1930’s a small group of Christians conducted afternoon meetings in Visalia off of Court St. between 1932 and 1933 using the title of “Visalia Church of Christ”. This body of believers has met in many different locations over the years and has gone through different periods of transition. From this original group the West Visalia Church of Christ was started in 1964. Since 2001 our congregation has met and served our community from our facility on Caldwell and Linwood Ave.