In Oklahoma City, Northwest Bible Church is known as a Reformed congregation holding to Calvinistic theology. Its motto, “Proclaiming the Historic Gospel to a Contemporary Generation,” captures a church that gives careful attention to biblical doctrine while making the historic gospel central to worship and teaching. The congregation was formed in 1988 and centers its identity on Soli Deo Gloria, the glory of God alone.
The church is especially known for verse-by-verse expository preaching and teaching, believers' baptism, and elder rule. Its recurring rhythm includes Sunday classes, worship, prayer, Bible study, home small groups, and the Bible Institute. These activities support the congregation's stated goal of glorifying God by making disciples of Jesus Christ in homes, churches, vocations, and communities.
Soli Deo Gloria: A Church Built Around the Word
Northwest Bible Church's formal name is Northwest Bible Church of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It describes itself as a local body of believers united by a common salvation and committed to the principle of Soli Deo Gloria. The congregation's purpose is to glorify God by making disciples of Jesus Christ. It connects that purpose to maturity in Christian faith and to ministry among people outside the body of Christ, describing itself as committed to proclaiming God's Word through a caring church family.
Northwest Bible Church was formed in the fall of 1988. Alan Conner was one of its founding elders, and Alan Loeffler has been associated with the church since its formation. That history places the congregation within a much older theological tradition. It holds substantial agreement with the London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689 and the Westminster Confession of Faith, and it embraces the five solas of the Protestant Reformation: Sola Scriptura, Sola Fide, Sola Gratia, Solus Christus, and Soli Deo Gloria.
These convictions explain three features for which the church is distinct: verse-by-verse expository preaching and teaching, believers' baptism, and elder rule. The church also joins F.I.R.E., the Fellowship of Independent Reformed Evangelicals, a network of Reformed and primarily baptistic churches and individuals that gathers for fellowship, encouragement, and ministry opportunities.
Salvation by Grace and the Authority of Scripture
The Bible is central to the church's teaching and life. Northwest Bible Church holds that the 39 books of the Old Testament and 27 books of the New Testament are inspired, inerrant, and authoritative for the church. It teaches that the Bible is the sole and final authority for faith and practice. This conviction is reflected in the church's reliance on the Word of God for doctrine, correction, and Christian living.
Its doctrine begins with one eternal God existing in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God is the creator, savior, and sovereign ruler. The church holds that Jesus Christ is the virgin-born, sinless, only begotten Son of God, truly God and truly man. Christ came to save sinners from hell through his penal-substitutionary death, rose again from the dead, and is seated at the right hand of God.
Northwest Bible Church teaches that all people are spiritually dead in sin and unable to turn toward God by their own power. Salvation is by grace through faith alone in the atoning death and resurrection of Christ, not by works. The church understands salvation as God's sovereign work: the Father elects those he will save, the Son redeems those given to him, and the Holy Spirit applies salvation through effectual calling and regeneration so that people can believe in Christ. Saving faith is therefore a gift of God. The church is responsible to preach the gospel, which it identifies as the means by which God draws his chosen people to himself.
Sanctification, Assurance, and Sunday as the Lord's Day
Sanctification is described as a sovereign work in which God gradually renews believers into his image. The church emphasizes that this process does not become perfect in a person's present life because indwelling sin remains. Believers are instructed to pursue the means of grace, including careful Scripture study, public worship, prayer, godly fellowship, the fruit of the Spirit, the Lord's Supper, and good works.
Those who possess true saving faith are taught to be eternally secure in Christ and to persevere to the end. At the same time, the church says that professing faith without repentance, obedience, and progress in sanctification does not provide assurance of being born again. Its emphasis is not on passive assurance but on grace that produces faithfulness and a life oriented toward God.
The moral law of the Old Testament is regarded as eternal and incorporated into the law of Christ. Its functions are to reveal sin and set forth righteousness. The ceremonial and civil portions of the law are considered temporary and expired, although the ceremonial lessons remain valuable for their teaching about Christ. The seventh-day Sabbath is placed within the ceremonial law, and the church worships on Sunday as the Lord's day.
Elder Rule and the Order of the Church
Northwest Bible Church recognizes two church offices: elders and deacons. Christ alone is the head of the church, and a plurality of qualified men serve as elders. Their responsibilities include guarding the flock against false teaching, shepherding the congregation by example, overseeing spiritual and temporal matters, guarding sound doctrine, and providing for the teaching and correction of the church. The elders are the church's final interpretive authority regarding the meaning and application of Scripture, and decisions are made by majority vote among the elders.
A pastor-teacher is understood as a spiritual gift and function rather than a separate office. The pastor-teacher is to be an elder and is primarily responsible for preaching and teaching Scripture for the sanctification of believers and the salvation of unbelievers. Deacons are qualified men appointed by the elders who serve the church family and assist the elders in whatever needs the elders identify.
The church also teaches the importance of biblical discipline. When serious, unrepentant sin occurs, those who are spiritually mature are to seek restoration in a spirit of gentleness. If the person does not repent, the congregation is to follow the process described in Matthew 18. The goal expressed in the teaching is restoration and the purity of the church's fellowship.
Baptism, the Lord's Supper, and Membership
Northwest Bible Church recognizes two ordinances: baptism and the Lord's Supper. Both are for those who profess faith in Christ. The church teaches that all Christians should be baptized in obedience to Scripture and as a public proclamation of faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Lord's Supper is regularly provided for the church family, and members are strongly encouraged to participate in remembrance of Christ.
Membership is open to people who manifest evidence that they are in Christ. That evidence normally consists of a profession of faith in Jesus Christ as Savior, obedience to baptism, a basic understanding of the Christian faith, and a desire to live in accordance with the Word of God. Members are encouraged to use their spiritual gifts for the building up of the body of Christ and may participate in church decisions when called upon by the elders.
The first Sunday of each month has a distinct rhythm. The congregation observes the Lord's Supper in connection with the 10:45 AM worship service, followed by an all-church lunch. This recurring gathering places baptism, communion, teaching, and fellowship within the same Sunday pattern.
What the Church Teaches About Human Life
Northwest Bible Church teaches that marriage is ordained by God as a covenant between one biological man and one biological woman. It regards sexual relationships outside marriage and homosexual relationships as contrary to Scripture. The church's facilities are reserved for marriage ceremonies that conform to its biblical definition of marriage.
The church teaches that God created each person as male or female according to physical anatomy at birth. It also holds that all human life is sacred because every person is created in God's image. Its stated commitment to protecting life extends to the preborn, the aged, and people who are physically or mentally challenged, from conception through natural death. At the same time, the church believes Jesus will return literally and physically, that the dead will be resurrected, and that final judgment will separate the righteous to eternal life and the wicked to eternal punishment.
Verse-by-Verse Preaching With a Deep Sermon Archive
Expository preaching is one of the clearest marks of Northwest Bible Church. Messages are tied closely to biblical texts, and individual sermons often provide audio along with written notes for further study. The extensive sermon archive reaches back to 1995 and allows preaching to be explored by preacher, series or year, topic, biblical book, and service type.
The subject matter reflects the congregation's commitment to the whole counsel of God. Messages from Matthew treat the Golden Rule, prayer, fasting, forgiveness, spiritual worry, treasure, the kingdom of God, and entering through the narrow gate. Messages on Ephesians emphasize the church as a household built on the foundation of Scripture with Christ as the cornerstone and the creation of believers for good works. Other messages examine Christ's death and resurrection, the character of God, the grace of God, spiritual gifts, the law of God, assurance, sanctification, and the doctrines of grace.
The archive also preserves extended instruction in church history and Reformed theology. Series have addressed the history of the Reformation, the five solas, the TULIP, the Calvinistic worldview, and particular books of the Bible. The church recommends Reformed reading resources associated with figures and organizations including John Calvin, Charles Spurgeon, R.C. Sproul, the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, Ligonier, the Founders Library, the Puritan Library, and the Chapel Library. These emphases make the congregation's theology visible not only in its beliefs but also in the subjects it studies and teaches.
Sunday: Classes at 9:30, Worship at 10:45, and Groups at 6:00
The Sunday rhythm is built around three regular meetings:
- 9:30 AM: Sunday school provides separate classes for children and adults.
- 10:45 AM: The worship service centers on biblical preaching and teaching.
- 6:00 PM: Small groups meet in homes for fellowship, Bible study, and prayer.
The children's class makes room for younger members to study Scripture alongside the adult classes. The 10:45 AM gathering is where the congregation proclaims the historic gospel through its expository preaching, and the first-Sunday observance of the Lord's Supper adds communion and an all-church lunch to the month's opening Sunday.
Evening small groups extend the church's teaching life into the community. Their home setting allows groups to remain relatively small and centered on the Word. This pattern reflects the church's wider conviction that discipleship is not confined to the Sunday gathering but should take root in homes and daily life.
Wednesday Prayer and the Bible Institute
Midweek activity begins with a prayer service at 6:30 PM. It is specifically identified as a time of corporate prayer, giving the congregation a regular setting to seek God together. At 7:00 PM, classes for the theological and spiritual growth of church members begin. The movement from prayer to teaching gives the evening a deliberate sequence of dependence on God and instruction in his Word.
The Bible Institute also meets on Sundays at 9:30 AM. Its course offerings have addressed newcomer orientation, personal financial responsibility, church history, systematic theology, the minor prophets, biblical manhood, and the Christian worldview. Courses such as church history and systematic theology complement the church's commitment to the historic gospel by helping students understand how doctrine has been understood and how biblical principles relate to life.
Online registration is available for the Bible Institute. The curriculum serves the congregation's aim of equipping people to think carefully about the Christian faith and bring that formation into homes, churches, occupations, and communities.
Training the Church and the Next Generation
Children and adults study Scripture in separate Sunday school classes, while the Bible Institute offers deeper course-based work. The church's language of discipleship is deliberately broad: it names homes, churches, vocations, and communities as places where Christians are to be equipped. Its statement of purpose says that ministries, programs, and schools are all designed to equip the present and next generation of Christians as disciples of Christ.
That emphasis connects the children's class, adult Sunday school teaching, Bible Institute courses, and home small groups. Each serves a different stage of formation, but all are directed toward the same result: a church grounded in Scripture and a people able to carry that teaching into everyday life.
The Elders Who Serve Northwest Bible Church
Alan Conner was born and raised in Duncan, Oklahoma. He attended the University of Oklahoma, where he earned a B.A., and came to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior during his college years. He then attended Dallas Theological Seminary and graduated in 1979 with a Th.M. After seminary, he was involved in church-planting ministries from 1980 through 1988. He became one of Northwest Bible Church's founding elders in the fall of 1988.
Alan Loeffler was raised in a Christian family in Oklahoma City and converted to Christ in high school. He studied engineering at Oklahoma State University, where he also became involved with Campus Crusade for Christ. After graduation, he served full time with the ministry for seven years in Illinois, Lebanon, and Oklahoma City. He has been associated with Northwest Bible Church since its formation in 1988.
Mike Southerland grew up in the Dallas area and professed faith in Christ at age five. He remained in the charismatic movement until he says the grace of God rescued him from it in 2005. Reading A.W. Pink's The Sovereignty of God and Ralph Erskine's Gospel Sonnets helped him discover the doctrines of grace. He earned a B.S. in Computer Science Engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington, began attending Northwest Bible Church in 2014, and was installed as an elder in March 2018.
J. DeWayne Bolin was born and raised in Oklahoma City and converted to Christ in 1960. After a call to preach, he earned an M.A. and a B.A. He entered ministry in 1964 and pastored churches in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Illinois. After returning to Oklahoma City in 1995, he joined Northwest Bible Church and later served as Bible Institute director from 2004 until his retirement in 2017. He is identified as a retired elder.
Missionary Faith Beyond Oklahoma City
Missionary teaching has a recurring place in the church's preaching life. Messages have addressed the Great Commission, providence, God's character, missions, and the need to share the gospel. Paul Snider has shared reports about missionary work in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, and Daniel Deeds and Daniel Norén have preached missionary messages. These messages connect the congregation's confidence in the gospel with the responsibility of proclaiming Christ beyond its own community.
Northwest Bible Church is also a member of F.I.R.E., the Fellowship of Independent Reformed Evangelicals. The fellowship unites Reformed and primarily baptistic churches and individuals for fellowship, encouragement, and ministry opportunities. Participation in this network supports Northwest Bible Church's commitment to the historic gospel while connecting its local ministry with other churches sharing similar convictions.
Giving as Cheerful Stewardship
Northwest Bible Church presents giving as an expression of God's grace and good stewardship. Its teaching asks believers to offer time, money, and talents cheerfully because everything they have comes from God. Online giving is available through the church's secure giving form, allowing members to participate in that stewardship without being physically present.
A Reformed Witness on North Tulsa Avenue
Northwest Bible Church gathers at 6316 N Tulsa Avenue in Oklahoma City. Sunday worship is livestreamed through Rumble and YouTube, with Rumble identified as the more reliable option. For those who want to revisit the church's expository preaching or trace a biblical theme across decades, the sermon archive provides an unusually deep record of biblical instruction.
Northwest Bible Church's identity remains centered on the authority of Scripture, salvation by sovereign grace, expository preaching, believers' baptism, the Lord's Supper, and elder-led church life. Its Sunday classes, worship, home groups, Wednesday prayer and Bible study, and Bible Institute all serve the same aim: a congregation formed by the Word and equipped to glorify God in daily life.