About Our Church
The Church of Christ at Lehigh Valley strives to follow the path and example set for us in 33 AD.
​
We follow no man-made doctrines, being careful not to add or take away from scripture (Revelations 22:18-19).
​
Churches of Christ are independent, with no centralized leadership, as Christ is the only head of the Church (Ephesians 1:22-23).
​
Following scripture such as Ephesians 5:19, Colossians 3:16, and Hebrews 13:15, we sing praises to the Lord acapella.
​
We take communion every Sunday, the first day of the week (Acts 20:7)
​
We believe the steps necessary for salvation are quite clearly defined as hearing the Word, repenting of sins, confessing Christ is the Son of God, being baptized by full immersion, and obeying His word (see Plan of Salvation).
Our Minister - Tony Tarole
"encourage the weak, challenge the Christian, and convict the sinner."
​
Tony Tarole has a long-standing history with the Lehigh Valley Church of Christ, being present for the church planting in 1980 and preaching at the LVCC between 1980 and 1990 before setting off on his exceptional journey of worship and preaching across the US. For over forty years Tony has faithfully served the Lord, serving as a minister to ten congregations, organizing fifteen evangelistic campaigns, ministering to prisoners for seven years, conducting worship services at nursing/assisted living homes for thirteen years, and even hosting radio and television broadcasts for ten and five years respectively. Most importantly, Tony has led over 500 people to Christ.
“As a minister, my primary work is preaching and teaching. My lessons must always be prepared to the best of my ability in both content and effective delivery. My sermons must always be doctrinally sound and very practical for everyone to understand and apply to their everyday life. I love preaching the Gospel of Christ. I consistently strive to preach sound, Bible-based sermons that will encourage the weak, challenge the Christian, and convict the sinner.”
Our History
The Lehigh Valley Church of Christ was started in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The first official service was on Easter Sunday, April 6, 1980 at the home of Tony Tarole, the first minister at Lehigh Valley Church of Christ and his wife, Tricky Tarole. Approximately 15 met for worship on that Sunday. Dan Gulley and Tony Tarole were the founding ministers. They both graduated from Williamstown Bible College in Williamstown, West Virginia in the fall of 1979, and moved their families to Bethlehem to begin a congregation in the Allentown area.
On April 13, 1980, the church rented a conference room at Howard Johnson Motel in Allentown, PA. This room was used for worship for about eight months. Then on January 4, 1981, the church began meeting in the Chapel of the United Wesleyan College at 1414 East Cedar Street in Allentown. On September 4,1988 a dedication was held at the new church building located at 3400 Brodhead Road in Bethlehem. A special thanks to the Wood Avenue Church of Christ in Florence, Alabama that provided support that was able to take care of minister’s salaries. Special thanks to congregations in Texas (Kerrville Church of Christ), Oklahoma (Broken Arrow Church of Christ), Kentucky (Elizabethtown Church of Christ) that provided support, the church had a mortgage burning ceremony in the year of 2000. The Ministers of the Gospel that have served at the congregation are Dan Gulley 1980—1988, Tony Tarole 1980-1990, Billy McClain 1992-2004, Gary Kreuzweiser 2004-2012, Matt Fortunato 2013-2015 and Derrick Bean 2016-2024.