Bellevue Christian Church has stood on the north side of Lincoln Avenue in Bellevue, Pennsylvania, since the 1890s, and it still has the feel of a neighborhood church. From the front steps the church is just a short walk from the borough's main street of shops and restaurants, and the people in the pews on a Sunday morning tend to be the same folks you pass on the sidewalk during the week. The church describes its own mission as inviting ordinary people to live everyday life like Jesus for the good of the neighborhood, and that framing shows up everywhere from the way it talks about itself to the partnerships it keeps and the rhythms it builds around Sunday morning.
What Sundays Look Like on Lincoln Avenue
Two identical services meet at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. each Sunday, and the order of the morning is intentionally simple. Greeters hand out coffee at the door to the left, the live band leads a set of contemporary worship, a host runs through the announcements, the lead pastor works through the week's sermon (usually part of a series based on a book of the Bible or a specific passage), and there is a moment for communion and a time for prayer at the front. The full service runs somewhere between seventy-five and ninety minutes. Communion is open to anyone who has accepted Christ as savior, and visitors who are still exploring are welcomed simply to use the time for reflection.
The teaching pastor, Austin Gohn, preaches in a t-shirt and jeans, and that sets the tone for what people wear. A Steelers jersey on a game-day Sunday is not out of place. Visitors who drive in for the first time will find a few street spots reserved directly in front of the building with signs marking them as first-time guest parking; handicap-accessible parking sits in the alley behind the church off North Starr Avenue; and everyone else is welcome to use the free street parking on Lincoln Avenue or the WesBanco and Goodyear lots. Just avoid the Kuhn's lot. There is coffee to the left when you walk in, and the bulletin, the kids check-in desk, and a host ready to answer questions are all clustered near the front door.
BKids: Nursery Through Fifth Grade
BKids is the name for everything the church does for children on Sunday morning. Programming is offered at both services, but the two hours are not identical. The 9 a.m. service has rooms for nursery through third grade, with the nursery doubling as a cry room for parents of infants. The 11 a.m. service opens up the full stretch from nursery through fifth grade, including a separate preteen room for fourth and fifth graders. There is no formal preteen ministry at the early service, and any preteen is welcome to sit with their family in the main room.
Every classroom follows the same basic shape: free play for the youngest children, a couple of fun worship songs everyone can dance to, an age-appropriate Bible lesson tied to Scripture, and time for crafts or games. All volunteers are interviewed, background checked, hold Pennsylvania clearances, and go through safety training. A check-in system in the front lobby matches children to their parents at the end of the service, and first-time families fill out a quick form so the system can recognize them on the next visit. A monthly BKids newsletter keeps parents up to date on what their children are learning and any special events coming up.
BYTH: Bellevue Youth on Sunday Nights
Middle and high schoolers have their own gathering called BYTH, and it meets at the church from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday nights. The youth pastor describes BYTH as a place for sixth through twelfth graders to make real friends, have real conversations, and find real meaning, and the students who have grown up there describe it as the one place in their week that breaks the cycle of school, college search, and social anxiety. Programming runs through the school year and includes regular teaching, small groups, social events, and service opportunities.
BYTH shares the same safety practices as BKids: volunteers are interviewed, background checked, and cleared through the state. Parents can sign a photography release form and a participation form ahead of time, and a parent newsletter keeps them connected to what is being taught and what is coming up on the calendar.
The Foster and Adoption Ministry
The Foster and Adoption Ministry, nicknamed BFAM, is one of the distinctive ministries of Bellevue Christian Church. It exists to walk alongside individuals and families who are caring for vulnerable children through foster care and adoption, whether that means opening a home, becoming a respite family, providing meals, or simply being part of a supportive community. The team welcomes people who are considering fostering, families already fostering or adopting, and people who want to support those who are. The church has connected with a number of local families who have moved through the foster system, and at least one of the staff families is currently providing foster care themselves.
Anyone curious about getting involved can reach out to the BFAM team by email or fill out a short survey so the team knows how best to respond.
Care Ministry and the Wider Ecosystem
The Care Ministry is the front door for anyone in the church who finds themselves in a season of need. The team walks alongside people pastorally, financially, or practically and helps them take the right next step toward one of a wider network of resources. The Care Ministry provides immediate crisis lines, including the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, the National Domestic Violence Hotline, and the number for the Light of Life Rescue Mission for anyone experiencing homelessness in the Pittsburgh area.
For longer-term support, the church recommends three local Christian counseling practices: Anchorpoint Counseling Ministry, the Christian Counselors Collaborative, and Orchard Hill Counseling. For specific challenges, the Care team points people to local chapters of Griefshare for grief, DivorceCare for those recovering from divorce, Celebrate Recovery for alcohol and drug addiction, and Genesis of Pittsburgh for anyone who is newly pregnant and uncertain how to proceed. A Care Form is available for anyone who wants the team to reach out, and the team responds personally.
Everyday Groups and Everyday Institute
Discipleship at Bellevue Christian Church runs along two parallel tracks. Everyday Groups are small groups of people who meet in homes during three seasons of the year (winter, spring, and fall) to go deeper into the text of the upcoming Sunday sermon using weekly discussion guides. The groups are the primary way most people in the church make friends and grow in their faith together, and they are open to anyone regardless of where they are on the journey.
Everyday Institute is a more structured classroom experience, hosted at the church on Tuesday evenings across three semesters a year. The fall semester runs for nine weeks and covers Day One and Everyday Habits. The winter and spring semesters each run for six weeks and cover Everyday Faith and Everyday Life, respectively. Each evening includes a video teaching from the lead pastor, group discussion, and time to hang out. Childcare through fifth grade is provided, and the whole thing is free. Together, the four courses form what the church calls a first year of discipleship many people never received, a step-by-step map toward the life they are made for.
The Everyday Institute brand has expanded into men's and women's ministry as well. Everyday Men runs a book study in the fall (recently working through Crossroads by Edward Welch), and Everyday Women runs a Bible study (recently working through a Jen Wilkin study on the Sermon on the Mount). Alpha Pittsburgh is the church's entry point for anyone new to faith or simply curious. It is a free dinner and conversation series that explores the big questions of life, spirituality, and faith from a Christian angle in a laid-back, non-judgmental setting, and it runs on a rotating schedule.
What Bellevue Christian Church Believes
Bellevue Christian Church identifies with the Christian Church heritage of the Stone-Campbell Movement, and it leans on the language of that tradition. Three phrases from that heritage set the tone: in essentials, unity; in opinions, liberty; and in all things, love; we are not the only Christians, but we are Christians only; and we follow no creed but Christ. The church does not require adherence to a written creed beyond a statement of basic biblical beliefs about God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, human beings, salvation, and baptism.
The statement on baptism is straightforward: commitment to Christ in faith is to be accompanied by publicly identifying with Christ through baptism by immersion. The statement on salvation is just as direct: only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God's offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin's penalty, and salvation is God's free gift that must be accepted, never earned by self-improvement or good works.
Ten values set the cultural tone of the church. They are biblical theology, cultural relevance, spiritual worship, prodigal generosity, incarnational mission, real friendships, intentional families, radical service, conversational prayer, and practical focus. Each value is anchored to a passage of Scripture and translates into the way the staff makes decisions and the way the congregation is expected to live together. Child dedication is offered alongside baptism as a way for parents to publicly commit to raising their children to follow Jesus.
Governance and the Leadership Council
The church is led by a unified Leadership Council made up of both elders and non-elders, both with equal voting authority. The Lead Pastor (Austin Gohn) sits on the council as an elder. Other current elders are Ed Hain (Council Chairperson), Graham Johnstone, and Matthew Kline. Non-elder members include Cristine Leifheit and P.J. Kemerer. The council is responsible for six areas: direction (long-term mission, vision, budget, and bylaws), delegation (selecting and supporting the lead pastor and building out a leadership community), demonstration (modeling the kind of life expected of the congregation), discipleship (shaping the disciple-making strategy and the pastoral care system), doctrine (developing and protecting the statement of beliefs), and devotion (modeling a culture of prayer).
Candidates for the council go through a six-to-twelve-month trial period before being recommended to the congregation, and new members must be affirmed by a two-thirds vote of the existing council and a two-thirds vote of the members at an annual or special meeting. The bylaws are public and can be read in full.
The Every Square Inch Building Campaign
The church is in the middle of a building campaign called Every Square Inch. The name comes from Abraham Kuyper's line that there is not a square inch in the whole domain of human existence over which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine. The first phase of the campaign is focused on the lower level of the main building, converting the existing footprint into purpose-built space for the kids ministry and modernizing the downstairs restrooms.
The work continues a long pattern. The original church was built shortly after the congregation was founded in 1896, and the building was expanded under the leadership of Pastor Milton Johnstone in 1961, a project that was photographed and is still celebrated in the church's history. The Every Square Inch campaign is the next step in that rhythm, and the entire congregation is being invited to expand their giving to fund it. Giving to the campaign goes through the church's general fund; there is no separate giving code.
Partners Near and Far
Bellevue Christian Church aims to send roughly ten percent of its annual budget out to a network of gospel partners and initiatives, both local and global. Locally, the church supports His Place, a faith-based nonprofit on the North Side of Pittsburgh that has worked to overcome poverty and trauma since 1975; the Shepherd's Door, a gospel-centered community ministry based in Bellevue; and a team of staff at Urban Impact Foundation (Jess Carleton, Laura Maffeo, Rachel Reeves, Sara Kimler, and Zack McClelland), each of whom works with at-risk children, youth, and families on Pittsburgh's North Side. The church also supports Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan University in Johnson City, Tennessee.
Globally, the church partners with Craig and Allison, who serve with CMFI in Southeast Asia training church planters and overseeing clean-water wells; with D and L, who serve with Christar in Southern Europe among unreached people groups; and with Tanner and Delaney Salva, who are planting a church with Mustard Seed Network in Sapporo, Japan. Members of the church are encouraged to pray, give, tell others, and go in service of these partnerships, whether that means a recurring financial gift, a volunteer hour a week, or a summer internship.
Pursuit Nights, Baptism Sundays, and Membership
Several one-off Sundays and evenings round out the church calendar. Pursuit Nights are intentional evenings of prayer and worship set aside from the regular Sunday rhythm, open to all ages. Baptism Sundays happen several times a year and are the designated day for anyone who has decided to follow Jesus to be baptized by immersion; the church encourages people to invite family and friends to witness the moment. Child Dedication Sundays are set aside for parents to publicly commit to raising their children to follow Jesus, with a mandatory class beforehand.
Becoming a member of Bellevue Christian Church requires attending the church for at least six months, being baptized as a believer, believing in Jesus as Lord, being at least eighteen years old, and attending an Explore Membership class. The class covers what membership means and what it entails, and it is offered a few times a year, with Membership Sunday following a week later.
The Staff and the Front Door
Five staff members and a long list of volunteers run Bellevue Christian Church week to week. Austin Gohn serves as Lead Pastor; he wrote A Restless Age, a book on the five searches of young adulthood, and founded Everyday Institute. Justin Langston is the Worship Director and a lifelong Bellevue local who also works as a Senior Medical Assistant at UPMC Bellevue Pediatrics. Isaac Eames is the Youth Pastor and manages weekly communications; he grew up in Bellevue, attended Bellevue Elementary, graduated from Northgate, and studied youth ministry at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, where he met his wife. Talia Eames is the Kids Ministry Director; she grew up in Kansas City, met Isaac at Moody, and moved to Pittsburgh. Julie Gohn, the lead pastor's wife, is the Office Administrator and Hospitality Lead. Amanda Wagner is the Discipleship Director and lives on Pittsburgh's North Side with her husband and their five sons, including children they are fostering.
Visitors who want to take a next step can reach the office at hello@bellevuechristian.church, plan a first visit through the Plan Your Visit page, and submit a prayer request online at any time. Giving is available online through the church center, and sermons are posted each week to the church's YouTube channel and its podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.