About TPC

Lovers and friends of God

TheoPhilus Congress is a Christian community and online home for people who love Jesus: to inspire one another, and to bring more people into love and friendship with God.

Our name

Theophilus: lover of God, friend of God

θεός theos
God
φίλος philos
loving, beloved, friend

The Greek name Θεόφιλος (Theophilus) joins theos, “God”, and philos, “loving”, “beloved” or “friend”. So it carries two meanings we hold together: a lover of God and a friend of God. (It can also be read as “loved by God”, which is where it all begins.)

Theophilus is also the name of the person Luke addressed at the start of his Gospel and of the book of Acts.

“It seemed good to me also… to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus.”

Luke 1:3 (KJV)

Acts opens the same way: “The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus…” (Acts 1:1).

Lovers of God

Love for God is always a response: “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). A lover of God is simply someone who has been loved by him and loves him back.

Friends of God

Scripture calls Abraham “the Friend of God” (James 2:23), and Jesus told his disciples, “I have called you friends” (John 15:15). Jesus’s friends are people who love Jesus. It’s in the name.

A congress is simply a coming together. We are lovers and friends of God, gathered.

Vision

A place for lovers and friends of God to inspire one another, and to bring more people into that love and friendship with Jesus.

Draft Our vision is still being shaped. This wording is a starting point.

  • Jesus first

    Friendship with God is his offer, made known in Jesus. Everything begins there.

  • Real friendship

    We gather as friends, not as an audience. Everyone brings something.

  • Rooted in Scripture

    We read the Bible together, honestly and expectantly.

  • An open door

    The point of being friends of God is to welcome others in.

Get involved

Become a friend of God

Wherever you are with faith, there’s a next step. Here are a few simple ways to begin.

  1. 01

    Read

    Start with the online book or an article. Short, honest writing about knowing Jesus as a friend.

    Open the book
  2. 02

    Gather

    Come to a gathering. You don’t need to know anyone, and you don’t need to have it all worked out.

    See activities
  3. 03

    Invite

    Share something that helped you with a friend, or bring them along. Keep the door open.

    Browse resources

Get in touch

Contact details and a sign-up form are coming soon. Coming soon