Faith Covenant Christian Church

11:00 a.m. Service

CALL TO WORSHIP

*INVOCATION

*CONGREGATIONAL HYMN

*RESPONSIVE READING

*PRAYER

SONG OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP

WELCOME / ANNOUNCEMENTS / FELLOWSHIP

OFFERTORY PRAYER AND OFFERING

*INTERCESSORY PRAYER

*PRAYER OF FAITH AND COMMITMENT

SPECIAL MUSIC

WORD OF GOD – Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

*INVITATION TO SALVATION AND DISCIPLESHIP

PRAYER OF COMMITMENT

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner. I want to turn from my sins, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe that Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe He died for my sins and that You raised Him to life. I want Him to come into my heart and to take control of my life. I want to trust Jesus as my Savior and follow Him as my Lord from this day forward.

In Jesus’ Name, amen.

[You may join Faith Covenant Christian Church by: Baptism, Christian Experience,

Re-Dedication, Transfer Letter, or Watch Care]

HOLY COMMUNION (1st Sunday Of Every Month)

BENEDICTION

This Week's Message

Date: September 27, 2026

Preacher: Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Sermon: God Blesses The Grateful

Scripture: Luke 17: 15-19

15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

Seemingly Hopeless

“And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you, for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.” Joshua 2:9-11.

Rahab was a Canaanite woman, a citizen of a nation known for worshipping idols. According to the law, Rahab had no part in the promises of Israel: She was a harlot, something that was an abomination to the Lord. Because of the righteousness of Abraham, God had promised the land Rahab lived in to the nation of Israel. When Rahab and her people received word that the people of Israel were coming to conquer Jericho, a prominent city in Canaan, they feared for their lives, knowing that the same God who delivered His people from Egypt would give Israel the victory in Jericho. Despite the seeming hopelessness of the situation, Rahab did not despair. When two Israelite spies came to her home, Rahab hid them from the king. She then boldly asked the spies to ensure that she and her family be saved when Israel invaded. The men told Rahab if she hung the same scarlet cord in her window by which they would escape, then she and everyone in her house would be spared. In complete faith, Rahab tied the cord to her window and said: “According to your words, so be it.” (Joshua 2.)

What an attitude! Even though things looked quite dark and impossible, Rahab clung to hope and faith that she and her family could be saved. In Hebrews 11, the apostle writes about the power of faith. He starts the chapter by writing: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it, the elders obtained a good testimony.” Hebrews 11:1-2. The chapter continues with many examples of people who made decisions of faith, and Rahab is included in this list: “By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe when she had received the spies with peace.” Hebrews 11:31.

It hadn’t mattered to God what Rahab had – or had not done – in the past. It wasn’t relevant what family she was born into, or where she lived. It mattered that she believed in God, and believed He could save her. Being a Gentile, Rahab was never guaranteed the promises of Israel. Yet, she believed, unreservedly, that God could do for her what He had done for Israel, and this faith prompted her to act to make God’s promises her own and it was this act of faith that justified her. Rahab’s example teaches us that no matter how things have gone in the past – or how dark things may appear in the present – faith in God and obedience to His word will save us from the destruction of sin and give us a future and a hope in the kingdom of God.

In today’s society, it may not be a common concern that our city will come under siege – or that we will face death in the same way Rahab did. But God’s word tells us that “… the wages of sin is death.” Romans 6:23. We have all sinned, but if we believe, God also has a plan to save us from that destruction and makes us heirs of His promises! Let us make use of the possibilities that are open to us in Christ Jesus, and fight in this same spirit of faith, so that we too can come into the inheritance that God has promised all those who have placed their hope in Him!

SUNDAY SCHOOL NEXT WEEK

SUNDAY SCHOOL –

October 04, 2026

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A Renewed Covenant ~ Joshua 24:18–27

Lesson Aims: After participating in this lesson,

each learner will be able to:

1. Summarize Joshua’s witness and warning to Israel.

2. Compare the covenant commitments made in

Deuteronomy 29: 1-20 and Joshua 24:18–27.

3. Make a plan to memorialize their commitment to God.

Joshua 24:18-27

18 And the Lord drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God.” 19 Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. 20 If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you.” 21 But the people said to Joshua, “No! We will serve the Lord.” 22 Then Joshua said, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to serve the Lord.” “Yes, we are witnesses,” they replied. 23 “Now then,” said Joshua, “throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” 24 And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the Lord our God and obey him.” 25 On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he reaffirmed for them decrees and laws. 26 And Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak near the holy place of the Lord. 27 “See!” he said to all the people. “This stone will be a witness against us. It has heard all the words the Lord has said to us. It will be a witness against you if you are untrue to your God.”

Why and When You Cannot The context of this study shows that after all the LORD God had done for the Israelites, they were still worshiping some of the gods of Egypt, and even some of the idols of their neighbors the Amorites. The Hebrews were delivered from Egypt and established as God’s covenant people by His grace and according to His promise to Abraham. When we read about their misbehavior for decades, we certainly know why they needed and received God’s mercy. They were chosen to become the nation through whom Jesus Christ, the promised Messiah, would come and the LORD fulfilled His loving purpose. When we sometimes think about how much the Almighty God has done for us, especially through the Lord Jesus Christ who came into the world to save us from sin, we know too that God has saved us by His grace and mercy. We have done nothing to earn God’s blessings or make us worthy of becoming children of God. Yet here we are studying the Book of Joshua, which demonstrates God’s grace and mercy to us! By God’s grace, as the Holy Spirit helps us, we have an interest in learning the truth from the written Word of God. Throughout the wilderness years, Moses called the Hebrews to worship the LORD alone, and Joshua continued that call after they entered the Promised Land. But they kept thinking they could worship the LORD and false gods at the same time. Not all of them thought that, because some turned from worshiping idols to worshiping the true God alone, but enough of them did for Joshua to tell the people, “You cannot serve the LORD.” Joshua insisted that they could not serve both the LORD and false gods. If they sincerely intended to serve the LORD, Joshua told them in Joshua 24:23, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD, the God of Israel.” Repeatedly, increasing numbers divided their allegiance between the LORD and false gods, until idolatry became widespread, so the LORD sent prophets to warn them and finally He punished them. Thus, the LORD led some to repentance. Finally, the LORD sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, through His covenant people as He promised. Though Jesus obeyed the LORD without sin, some of the religious leaders rejected Jesus and handed Him over to the Roman authorities to be crucified. Jesus died for our sins, and after three days Jesus rose from the dead. He saves all who receive Him and believe in His name. In John 1:11-12, we read, “He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

Today, as in the days of Joshua, many worship false gods with a variety of names. Others love money supremely because they believe it will provide security, power, status, or pleasure. Money itself is not evil, but when people trust it, love it, and dedicate their lives to get it, money becomes an idol. If people love money supremely, they become slaves to money and to the worldly pleasures it can buy. Some think they can love money and follow Jesus at the same time, but this is impossible. Joshua’s words speak to us. Moreover, Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” If we try to serve money and Jesus at the same time, we must repent and turn wholeheartedly to the Lord. Otherwise, our Father in heaven will discipline us, and He may finally judge us as one without true faith.

About Us

OUR HISTORY

Faith Covenant Christian Church began on February 27, 2014 following a fellowship dinner for displaced former members of Crossroads Christian Church. Following that first meeting, we formed a Planning Committee and began meeting @ Best Western Hotel at Cedar Bluff.

On May 7, 2014, we adopted the name Faith Covenant Christian Church, with our foundational verse being Jeremiah 50:5. On June 22, 2014 an invitation to membership was given by Rev A. David Baxter and 21 people united with Faith Covenant Christian Church. Women’s and Men’s Ministries began having regular meetings. In September 2014, we began having Sunday School and Wednesday Night Bible Study. In November, Youth Ministry began. By the end of 2014, ten more people joined, three as new converts. We moved to 1027 Summer Wood Drive on April 1, 2015. Following a yearlong pastor search, Violet P. McRoy, was called as pastor on April 18, 2016. In March 2018, Pastor McRoy resigned as pastor, due to poor health and other personal issues. God quickly responded to our prayer-laden search and Nokomis Yeldell, Jr. was elected to the pastoral position on April 16, 2018. On Easter Sunday in 2025, we moved into a new sanctuary at 1021 Summer Wood Drive. On May 03, 2026, we celebrated our 12th church anniversary and are looking onward, upward and forward to serving God faithfully.

OUR PASTOR

Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Pastor Yeldell was born in Mt Pleasant, Texas, the third of five children of Nokomis and Dollie Pearl Yeldell. His father, also a Pastor for over 60 years, was called to Memphis, TN, where Nokomis Jr. grew up. Following graduation Pastor Yeldell attended Southwestern Christian College. He then served four years in the United States Air Force. He then decided to move to Knoxville, TN to further his education. After serving in leadership capacities in various ministries at Foster Chapel Baptist Church, Pastor Yeldell was called into the ministry in 2010.

Faith Covenant Christian Church represents Pastor Yeldell’s third and prayerfully final pastorate.

WHAT WE BELIEVE

FAITH COVENANT Christian Church accepts the Holy Scriptures as the revealed will of God, the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice, and holds to the following foundational truths:

1. The One True God

GOD IS… He is the eternally existent and immutable Father, Creator of the Universe and everything therein. He is the Lord of heaven and earth, and in Him we move and have our being. He is Spirit, and His worshipers must worship Him in spirit and in truth. Our Triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—is One God in three distinct persons: one in essence and purpose and distinct in personality and function. He is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. He is the essence of love, goodness, faithfulness, kindness, mercy, grace, holiness, righteousness, and justice.

2. The Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the eternally existent Son of the living God, the fullness of the Godhead bodily, the image of the invisible God, and the firstborn of all creation. Through Him was made everything that is made—things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things are held together.

He was born of a virgin, and lived a sinless life. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God through His substitutionary death on the cross. He was resurrected bodily from the dead, and sits at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us.

3. The Work of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the Counselor, the Spirit of Truth, who goes out from the Father and testifies about the Son. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of guilt in regards to sin and righteousness and judgment. He is given to all who believe, for Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit according to the promise of God the Father, who gives the Spirit without limit. The Holy Spirit lives with us and in us, bringing about the endowment of power for life and service, as well as the bestowment of the gifts and their uses in the work of the ministry. These gifts of the Holy Spirit, distributed according to His own will (Hebrews 2:4) include: prophecy, service, teaching, encouragement, contributing to the needs of others, leadership, mercy (Romans 12:6-8), message of wisdom, message of knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, distinguishing between spirits (discernment), tongues, interpretation of tongues (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).

4. Salvation from the Penalty of Sin

By grace, through faith, we are saved from the penalty of sin. Mankind, though made in the image of God, has inherited through the first man, Adam, a sinful nature. By this nature, all mankind has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and thereby, was alienated from God; dead in transgressions—gratifying the cravings, desires, and thoughts of the sinful nature; following the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air; stirring up wrath against himself for the day of God’s wrath, when His righteous judgment will be revealed. But God did not appoint mankind to suffer wrath, but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—and saved us by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

5. Salvation from the Power of Sin

By grace, through faith, we are saved from the power of sin. Having been crucified with Christ, we put to death the deeds of the body so that sin shall have no dominion over our mortal bodies. We have received the Spirit who is from God so that we may live by faith, understanding what God has freely given us to accomplish His purpose:

He has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our personal knowledge of Him as Savior and Lord.
He has given us His precious and magnificent promises by which we may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
He has given us apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ, His church, may be built up.
He has given to us the manifestation of the Spirit through spiritual gifts for the common good.
He has given us the ministry of reconciliation: that by word and deed we might aim to bring others into harmony with Him.

6. Salvation from the Presence of Sin

By grace, through faith, we are saved from the presence of sin, for the Lord Jesus died and rose again, and will Himself come down from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God. The dead in Christ shall rise first, and we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth will pass away. And we shall dwell with God in the Holy City, the New Jerusalem. We shall be His people, and God Himself will be with us and be our God. He will wipe every tear from our eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things will have passed away.

7. The Inspiration and Inerrancy of Scripture

God’s Word is TRUTH. The Holy Scriptures (both the Old and New Testament) is the inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word of God. We are saved from the penalty, power, and presence of sin by grace through faith that comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God, which testifies of Jesus Christ. By His Word, God has revealed Himself, His plan, His purpose, and His ways—so that we would come to Him to receive eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord.

OUR MINISTRIES

Faith Covenant Christian Church operates under a FIVE FOLD Ministry concept

I EXALTATION

Deacons- Bro. Reggie Lindsey

Holy Sacraments And Sacred Days – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Media- Sis. Tiaeshia Kelso, Bro. Anthony Lindsey

Music- Bro. Reggie Lindsey

Program – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Public Relations – Bro. Reggie Lindsey, Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Pulpit – Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Reconciliation – Ministerial Council

Ushers – Sis. Teresa Farmer

II ENABLING

Benevolence – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Food Pantry – Bro. Karl Townes

Hospitality – Sis. Teresa Farmer

Intercessory Prayer – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

Missions – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

III EDUCATION

Bible Study – Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.

Youth Church –

Sunday School – Bro. Reggie Lindsey

Supplemental Education And Training – Bro. Reggie Lindsey

Vacation Bible School –

IV EDIFICATION

Church-Wide Edification – Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Men’s Ministry – Bro. Karl Towns

Women’s Ministry (WICS) – Sis. Teresa Farmer

Youth – Sis. Earlenia Lindsey

V EQUIPPING

Administration – Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Finance – Sis. Teresa Farmer, Sis. Tiaeshia Kelso, Sis. Sabrina T. Wilson

Transportation – Bro. Karl Towns

Trustees – Bro. Karl Towns

Kitchen Ministry / Special Events – Sis. Teresa Farmer

Comfort And Care Ministry - Pastor Nokomis Yeldell, Jr.