I have to address Hayden's review because she apparently left to go to the restroom during the…read moreservice and was asked to sit at the back. This is addressed each and every service ahead of time, so everyone knows while they still have plenty of time to visit the restroom before the teaching begins. It is simply a matter of respect to ask people who must get up and return during the teaching to not disrupt the service. It causes a distraction no matter how quietly you try to re enter, it distracts people's attention away from the teaching. If only one or two people do it, it wouldn't be that much of a distraction, however, if it is acceptable to do that, it would be constant distractions throughout the teaching. At the beginning of each service, there are approximately 40 minutes between worship, announcements and greeting one another that anyone can go visit the restroom if necessary and return to your seat before the teaching begins. It is only once the teaching has started that they request anyone returning sit at the back or in the cafe area. I hope this clarifies it for everyone.

We moved to Knoxville for this church!! Pastor Mark has the gift of teaching and we enjoy the…read moreservices very much. I've gone to a Calvary Church for the last ten years and this location for the last 4. I love how he breaks down scripture and explains it in a way I can not only understand but also remember. I grew up in a topical preaching church and was amazed at how ignorant I was at 34 despite going to church my whole life. The signs posted about no young children in the sanctuary are very clear and this has always been a policy in every Calvary chapel I've attended. It makes sense. The services are like a class and distractions make it very hard to listen. Thankfully they have multiple other spaces where children can go with their parents if the parents don't want them in the children's ministry. My kids love it though, so I enjoy my one hour a week to listen to the Word. I also listen to all their past teachings when I'm driving or have time to myself. Can't say enough good things about this place. Must be why it's growing so much!!

My wife and I sought a church that unashamedly taught God's Word. We visited many "feel good about…read moreyourself" emotional-level churches in the area and kept looking. We were praying to find a vibrant church family, regardless of size, that enjoyed being together and was serious about living out their faith. A church family unafraid to dig into the Word, pray, and seek God's will for any issue. A church that prayed and waited expectantly to see how God would work, including healing or other challenges to overcome. At Victory, we found a community of imperfect Believers walking together, seeking to know Christ more and follow Him closely. As the church has grown, we've seen so many young families become members, filling us with hope for the church's future. We know the church is healthy and thriving, with insightful, caring Pastoral staff and leadership. We're excited to see how the Lord blesses and increases our influence for Christ in the community and worldwide through missions. We are thankful we didn't "settle" but kept on searching. It was a blessing to find Victory at Pistol Creek. Thanks, Pastor Steve, Jeremy, Luke, and Brandon, for your godly leadership.

My family was publicly humiliated by the church. My family was thrown out a week or so before the…read moreChristmas performance (our kids were in the play). Greg Floyd informed the church staff that if my family wasn't told to leave the church, he was quitting. Mike Damron, a local family practice doctor and the head deacon lead the meeting of staff and deacons (the church doesn't believe in having elders, I didn't really understand the consequences of this until they were throwing us out, but it basically gives unquestionable authority to the pastors). When I was asking why no one came to me privately like Matthew 18, or even what my charges were, they had no exact point or even a charge against me, or my family. Mike Damron informed me the ruling was incontestable and even if the head pastor had an open affair on his wife even that would be beyond contestation... I wasn't aware this was the policy of the church. Mind you, I still have been given no actual explanation of wrong doing. No charge was ever brought against me by the church, we got left that night with nothing but the unexplainable judgment they laid upon us. They would later go to individuals I was selling my house too and tell them to not do dealings with me. Like I'm a criminal. Greg Floyd went to my wife's friends and told them not to contact her or my kids, to separate from us completely. Mind you, it had been about a year since my wife had recovered from cancer, against all odds and when a half dozen doctors said she would die due to the cancer. So that next Christmas, Mike Damron, Greg Floyd, & Jeremy Wallace decided that my wife and I believing God healed us was unacceptable. We were very clear, the Lord healed us! The conversation was recorded by the church and subsequently they refused to share it. My advice, before you join this church ask for that recording and judge for yourself the character of these men and see if it's a place you'd like to worship God. This situation was religious persecution, plain and simple. Even if they do not believe the Lord healed my wife, someone should have come to us in private to talk, before 15 men who I have never even had a discussion with threw my family out and publicly called us unbelievers. Even then, why go to my wife's friends and tell them to not speak to her. It's unloving, cruel, and shows the hearts of the men who did it. For the sake of transparency, I will share a fact that I have always questioned if it was a part of the reason why. There is a well known deacon who made a comment about my wife's backside (my wife is a very beautiful woman, so I do understand to a degree). My wife came home and told me and we avoided the gentlemen and blocked him from socials. we shared this with one close set of friends to seek advice and then never mentioned it again, but when they threw us out I always suspected this to be a joint cause. It just comes down to weak men. It's why the church is set up without elders, so there can never be a challenge to the pastoral staff (mind you I didn't even challenge anyone, this is all just wisdom learned in reflection). So when you are setup in an unbiblical fashion you get unbiblical results. I believe the judgment brought upon my family was a result of an inability to perform Matthew 18 with integrity, because frankly it's difficult, it's easy to throw a family out no questions asked and hush it up by destroying the wife's relationships & attacking me financially with gossip and slander. I have refrained from writing this for about a year or so, but I felt it time today. I am past all forms of anger about it and don't mean anyone any wrong, I just thought I would warn the next guy with this review. Life is hard, people make mistakes and they don't always judge right, I don't know where these men are in their lives now, and I wish them the best, but this is our testimony at victory, it built us into stronger Christians, as persecution does.

A fantastic contemporary service. My family has been coming to this church for 20 years and we…read morewould not choose anywhere else. The message is powerful and all are welcome no matter your past :)

A newbie in Knox County, this Methodist decided to visit Cokesbury UMC to determine whether it…read morewould be a good fit for my new community of faith. The "Memorial Service" at the 11:00 South Campus site was dedicated to the remembrance of 9/11/2011. Uplifting music and message by the Cokesbury Choir, Orchestra and Minister of Discipleship - the Rev. Rebekah Fetzer. Kudos! Why simply two Yelp stars? As a newbie, never having attended a service there, I asked for directions to the sanctuary, and a kindly lady led me to the door. After that, not a soul stopped to talk with me, inquire who I was, or welcome me to the church -- even though I wore a nametag provided me by my former church. During the "greet your neighbor" time, I shook hands with several people, yet no one then or later, made an effort to otherwise communicate with me. Many stopped to chat with their friends and family members or congratulate the singers and players on the musical remembrance. I sat in the pew a couple of minutes afterward to hear the pipe organ, then slowly walked out, up the hill to the parking lot farthest from the church buildings (all the visitor slots were occupied when I arrived at 10:45), got in my car with other-than-Tennesse license plates and drove homeward. Cokesbury has a lot going on: Wednesday night suppers followed by a myriad of Bible classes on its North (9919) and South (9908) campuses, and other midweek activities, in addition to both contemporary and traditional services each Sunday. Its slogan is "Loving People ... Into A Relationship With Jesus Christ To Change The World."

I attended Knoxville Christian Center years ago. I had stepped back from attending any church on a…read moreregular basis. I ,however, leave for work early and listen to pastor Barry every morning broadcast is available mon-Fri. I recently at the end of last year began paying tithe there , even tho my attendance was only through radio waves. I have received so much inspiration and direction from the Lord through Pastor Barry. I am considering stepping back into the church family and making knoxville Christian Center my permanent home. It is so awesome to know that Pastor Barry is man that listens to the Lord and preserves Gods word to give to those who will listen.

The most loving, accepting people you will ever meet. You will be taught on scripture, and you will…read morenever forget it...By the best teacher/leader there is.

Not your typical church, but Bible-based and focused on the community around us and in the church.read more

Visiting a new church where you don't know anyone can be a little stressful these days…read more Unfortunately, not all churches are on the same page regarding the bible. There are churches that believe the bible is the same yesterday, today and always. There are those (like this church) that believe the bible "evolves" to accommodate the current social culture. Just looking to help someone make an informed decision.

WARNING: negative reviews here are being taken down…read more I have been a member of this church for over 12 years. It was once a place where the gospel was alive, the leadership was relatable, and people were encouraged to follow Christ wholeheartedly. Sadly, that is no longer the case. This church now censors negative reviews and even edits sermons to hide their biases. They have shut off comment sections to silence the congregation rather than listen to feedback. I've never seen a church so determined to control its image instead of confronting the truth. What opened my eyes was how they responded to the death of a Christian man who, moments before being killed, proclaimed: "At the end of the day Jesus Christ loved us enough to die on the cross for us. He rose from the grave three days later, and at the end of the day Jesus Christ is King." Instead of honoring his courage and faith, the church leadership ignored him--and claimed it was because he was a different type of Christian. Yet this man shared the gospel more boldly than many of the pastors here and has brought far more people to Christ than they can dream of. I also experienced their misplaced priorities when I had to beg for a 10-year-old girl to be baptized. She was denied repeatedly, ghosted, and made to jump through hoops. Why? Because her testimony wasn't "polished" enough to fit into a video the church wanted to showcase. She was left fearful for her soul, discouraged from following Jesus, and confused about God's love. That should never happen in a true house of worship. This church now feels unstable, leaderless, and more focused on appearances and money than on preaching the gospel. If you are looking for God, I urge you to seek Him where leadership has not compromised, where courage is not absent, and where protecting the innocent and proclaiming Christ still matter. We will continue to pray for this church, that its leaders rediscover humility, courage, and the true heart of Jesus.

The day I visited the service was more centered on their fundraising, but the people were friendly.read more

Great church. It has a good balance between community engagement, global mission, and teaching that…read moreis faithful to scripture. Awesome people.

I love this church and the pastor at FBC. Unlike many churches, this pastor preaches the "full…read moregospel" and lights a fire in your spirit for Jesus. When I leave there on Sunday morning, I have a desire to serve others and be the best version of myself for my family.

What an amazing church! Love coming here every Sunday for worship. I am looking forward to next…read moreSunday !!!!!