Agape is a 40-year old non-denominational church of about 300 members with a 10 acre, three building campus in San Luis Obispo, CA. Our mission is to REACH toward God and neighbor, TEACH faith in Jesus Christ, and RELEASE Spirit-filled disciples. Over the past 25 years, we have successfully planted four Agape churches in Kenya and one Agape church in Mississippi. Our distinctive gifts as a local church are:
Heritage of Faith -1-
We believe faith is more than a belief that gets us into heaven. Faith is also an active force that brings heaven to earth. The way we cherish our identity in Christ inspires the way we pray and walk by faith. As followers of Jesus, we have authority in Jesus’ name (Luke 10:19) to proclaim “Come thy Kingdom! Be done thy will! On Earth as it is in heaven!” to every broken place in the world. (2 Peter 1:2-4)
Place of Presence -2-
We long for freedom in worship, so our services are more than sermons and musical performances. We press in to share God’s presence with one another. God Himself is our reward! In His presence, people are set free and experience fullness of joy! This is why we sing a little longer and wait on the Lord together.
Ministry of the Spirit -3-
We pursue the ministry of the Holy Spirit, Who fills believers individually and the Church corporately. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are powerful demonstrations of God’s supernatural love. (1Cor. 12:1-4)
Love for All People -4-
We celebrate the miracle of New Birth in Jesus Christ. Jesus came to reveal the Kingdom of God and invite ANYONE who believes in Him to experience God’s full measure of love, power, and purpose (Col. 1:9-14). We believe Agape is called to be a church that looks a little like heaven: full of men and women from every generation, background, color, and language. In Jesus Christ, we become more together than a sum of individual parts. Our unity is a diversity protected by Agape love!
Our history began in 1981 when two Teen Challenge chaplains, Tim Morbitzer and Norm Ezell, began leading Bible study meetings in the Odd Fellows Hall in San Luis Obispo. God moved powerfully at those early meetings with many salvations, healings, deliverances, and other manifestations of the Holy Spirit happening regularly. That Bible Study became Agape church! Tim, our founding pastor, and many of the people who connected with us in those early days continue to serve faithfully today. Although Agape is a non-denominational independent church, we have been members of the Association of Faith Churches and Ministries (AFCM) since 1986. AFCM is a worldwide ministry with spiritual roots connected to Rhema Bible Training Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Dr. James Kaseman is the president of AFCM with headquarters in Wilmar, Minnesota.
Over our 40 year history, Agape has had three lead pastors: Tim Morbitzer (1981-1994), Mike Sparrow (1994-2018), and Jeff Bower (2018-current). Tim now pastors a church in Indiana, but spoke recently at our 40 year anniversary. Mike Sparrow continues to serve as our missions pastor and as a regional director for our association (AFCM). Jeff Bower and his wife Michelle have served in various ministry capacities at Agape since 2001, and Jeff now serves as lead pastor.
We are a diverse team leading a diverse church, and we look forward to a dynamic new addition!
