Steve & Kelley Gardner
Lead Pastor
In 2004, Pastor Steve and Kelley felt the call of God to move from their pastorate of 14 years in Milwaukee, WI and plant CTR Church. Founded upon the vision of Matthew 16, Christ the Rock Church is now celebrating 18 years of successful ministry.
With over 40 years of ministry, Pastor Steve and Kelley have served in various positions, specializing in Pastoral restoration and ministry development. Pastor Steve studied at Northwest Bible College, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and most recently, at the Pentecostal Theological Seminary. Kelly studied at Lee University and Northwest Bible College. Pastor Steve and Kelley have two Children, and four Grandchildren!
In addition to their Pastoral responsibilities, Pastor Steve is a Published Author and also heads up Reclamation Ministries, a ministry dedicated to the purpose of leading people in the Last Days outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and in the renewal of the leadership of the Body of Christ! To find out more about Reclamation Ministries, please visit that website by CLICKING HERE!
You can contact Pastors Steve and Kelley Gardner at: PastorSteve@CtrCog.com
Our Team
Meet Our Dedicated Team Members...
Mario Viera Rodriguez and Ruth Agosto
Associate Pastor and Hispanic Ministries Pastor
Pastor Mario Viera Rodríguez and his wife, Sister Ruth Agosto are the Associate Pastors of Christ the Rock Church of God. They have served the Lord for many years as pastors, evangelists, and teachers in Puerto Rico. His love for souls and the teaching of the word of God is tireless. He is a Spanish teacher and he studied at the Missionary Bible Institute of the Fuente de Salvacion Misionera Council, staying as a professor for 28 years until his transfer to Knoxville, TN."We are only servants of the Most High God, to Him be all the glory.
Contact Pastors Mario and Ruth at: PastorMario@CtrCog.com
Rob and Leah Rupnow
Discipleship Pastor
Pastor Rob and Leah Rupnow have seved the Lord in Ministry for many years! Pastor Rob was brought up under the ministry of Pastor Steve Gardner in Wisconsin, and Leah is the Daughter of a Pastor, growing up in ministry! Together, they have a wonderful gifting and calling from the Lord to minister in Discipleship at CTR and the Community!
Contact Pastors Rob and Leah at: PastorRob@CtrCog.com
Bryan and Shipra Cote
Evangelism and Outreach Pastor
Bryan and Shipra Cote are devoted Followers of Jesus, with a heart for Evangelism! Bryan loves doing outreach and mentoring others in the ministry of Evangelism. His desire is to reach people with the life-saving Gospel of Jesus Christ and advancing the Kingdom of God!
Contact Pastors Bryan and Shipra at: PastorBryan@CtrCog.com
Paul and Dawn Goers
Mens Ministries Pastor
Paul and Dawn Goers have been Followers of Jesus for many years. Paul now serves CTR as our Mens Ministries Pastor. Paul has a heart for the men of our Church, and wants to see them grown in Christ and step into action for the Lord!
Contact Paul and Dawn at: PastorPaul@CtrCog.com
Phylliss Payne
Pastoral Administrative Assistant
Phylliss Payne is very dedicated Follower of the Lord Jesus Christ who loves her Lord and her church! She brings to CTR her Administrative and Management abilities to keep all the ministries of our church flowing and moving together.
Contact Phylliss at: PhyllissP@CtrCog.com
Trecia Todd
Ladies Ministries Director
Trecia Todd serves CTR as our Ladies Ministries Director. She is the Daughter of a Pastor in the Church of God and has spent her life in the service and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ! Her love and committment to the ladies of CTR is very obvious. She leads the ladies in times of study, fellowship, and ministry.
Contact Trecia at: TreciaTodd@CtrCog.com
Kelley Gardner
Children's Ministries Director
Kelley Gardner is the First-Lady of CTR, the wife of Pastor Stephan Gardner. Along with her husband, she planted this church approximately 18 years ago! She attended Lee University and Northwest Bible College and studied Early Elementary Education. She serves CTR as the Director of Children's Ministries.
Contact Kelley at: KelleyG@CtrCog.com
Cay Cate
Worship Leader
Cay is a passionate Worshipper of Jesus Christ! Her love and passion comes through in the songs she leads and sings. She is an anointed Woman of God, who has a deep desire to lead people to the throne of God in worship! She brings to this position a variety of experience and talent. Besides singing, she plays the keyboard and guitar. She is married to her husband Jordan, and they have 2-beautiful children!
Contact Cay at: CayCate@CtrCog.com
What We Believe
- In the verbal inspiration of the Bible.
- In one God eternally existing in three persons; namely, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
- That Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of the Father, conceived of the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary. That Jesus was crucified, buried, and raised from the dead. That He ascended to heaven and is today at the right hand of the Father as the Intercessor.
- That all have sinned and come short of the glory of God and that repentance is commanded of God for all and necessary for forgiveness of sins.
- That justification, regeneration, and the new birth are wrought by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ.
- In sanctification subsequent to the new birth, through faith in the blood of Christ; through the Word, and by the Holy Ghost.
- Holiness to be God’s standard of living for His people.
- In the baptism with the Holy Ghost subsequent to a clean heart.
- In speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance and that it is the initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Ghost.
- In water baptism by immersion, and all who repent should be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
- Divine healing is provided for all in the atonement.
- In the Lord’s Supper and washing of the saints’ feet.
- In the premillennial second coming of Jesus. First, to resurrect the righteous dead and to catch away the living saints to Him in the air. Second, to reign on the earth a thousand years.
- In the bodily resurrection; eternal life for the righteous, and eternal punishment for the wicked.
Vision Statement:
Christ the Rock Church of God is a church that is formulated and exists upon the foundation of Jesus Christ as described in Matthew 16:13-19. Our church is made up of Followers of Jesus, who are committed to advancing the Kingdom of God, and living life in such a manner so as to honor the Lord Jesus Christ!
Mission Statement:
Because the life of a Follower of Jesus is a formative process, the following “keys” will be how we will fulfill the Vision the Lord has given us:
- Through the centrality of the Lordship of Jesus Christ!
- Through the preaching and teaching of the Word of God in an unadulterated context!
- Through the enablement, power, and anointing of the Holy Spirit!
- Through being a place of healing for the total person; body, soul, spirit, and relationally!
- Through the development, training, and mentoring of Ministerial and Lay Leadership!
- Through the identification and development of each individual’s Spiritual Giftings!
- Through the genuine heartfelt Praise and Worship of Christ!
- Through outreach, recovery, and supportive Ministerial endeavors!
- Through Fellowship opportunities to promote a “Familial” relationship!
- Through Ministry Endeavors that are directed towards various groups!
- Through seeking Genuine Revival by seeking the Glory of the Lord Jesus Christ to be more deeply manifested in our lives: Personal, in our Family, in our Church, in our Communities, and in our Nation!
- Through seeking and facilitating the Last Days outpouring of the Holy Spirit and His enablement, as prophesied in Joel 2:28-29, fulfilled in Acts 2:4, and available for each of Christ’s Followers today for the proclamation and validation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
- Through the utilization of various “Media” and Media Ministries!
- Through seeking the unity of the body of Christ by bringing together Followers of Jesus from various denominational backgrounds for the purpose of combined worship, fellowship, networking, and ministry!
With these items in place, we seek to fulfill the vision the Lord has given us, and to become that Church Jesus described in Matthew 16 as a “Christ-Exalting; Holy Spirit-Empowered force; “that the gates of hell cannot resist” for the city of Knoxville and its surrounding communities!
History
Christ the Rock Church of God began September 12, 2004 in the living room of our Pastors, Steve and Kelley Gardner. Shortly thereafter, we moved into the Disabled American Veteran's building in Fountain City. In 2006, the Lord blessed us with a new building!
In 2006, we moved into our new building at 4306 Washington Pike in Knoxville Tennessee! Since that time, we have been seeking ways to reach our community with the love and power of the Lord Jesus Christ and His message!
Now, the Lord has blessed us with yet another New Building! A bigger and better building, located at 7321 Bell Road, Knoxville, TN. 37918. This is truly a WONDERFUL BLESSING from the Lord to Christ the Rock Church of God! Come and begin to be a part of making OUR history YOUR history........YOU ARE WELCOME AT CTR!
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