Christ the King Lutheran Church

About Us

What does it mean to be an “independent” Lutheran church?

Christ the King Lutheran Church is independent in the sense that it is not a member of a Lutheran synod.  Being independent provides the opportunity for us to be very intentional about our Lutheran identity. We seek to be faithful in mission and ministry in accordance with the Lutheran Confessions. 

We are independent but not isolated. We have partners in mission and ministry both in the United States and abroad. 
 
As per our Constitution:

ARTICLE 2 — CONFESSION OF FAITH

2.01 Christ the King Lutheran Church of Waseca accepts without exception all the canonical books of the Old and New Testaments as a whole, and in all their parts, as the divinely inspired, revealed, and inerrant Word of God, and submits to this as the only infallible authority in all matters of faith and life.

2.02 We accept without reservation and declare adherence to the Symbolic Books of the Lutheran Faith as the presentation and explanation of the pure doctrine of the Word of God and a summary of our faith as a Lutheran Church. This congregation accepts, confesses and recognizes the following as normative for its theology:  
a. The ancient ecumenical creeds:  The Apostolic, The Nicene, and The Athanasian;        
b. The Unaltered Augsburg Confession, The Book of Concord including the Apology of the Augsburg Confession and the Smalcald Articles;   
c. Luther’s Small and Large Catechisms, and the Formula of Concord.

ARTICLE 3 — PURPOSE AND NATURE OF THE CHURCH

3.01 The purpose of Christ the King shall be to foster Christian fellowship and love while extending the Kingdom of God by the preaching and teaching of the Word of God and by the administration of the Sacraments according to the Lutheran doctrinal standards (Ref: Article 2 of this Constitution).

3.02 Christ the King Lutheran Church is an assembly of believers among whom the Gospel is preached in its purity and the holy sacraments are administered according to the Gospel. (Augsburg Confession VII)

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Our Journey

 Christ the King Lutheran Church of Waseca is an independent Lutheran congregation that was founded on November 29, 2009, and was incorporated December 17, 2009. Drawn from other area Lutheran congregations, our congregation coalesced in our years as a diverse group of confessional Lutherans, conscience bound to Holy Scripture.

On Reformation Sunday, October 25, 2009, this small group of less than 50 Lutherans began worshiping at the Waseca County Courthouse East Annex in Waseca. Pastor Ray Peterson came out of retirement and became our presiding minister. Matt Payne was our lay leader and brought us God’s Holy Word each Sunday with Rev. Peterson’s supervision. ln less than 4 months our group had grown to over 90 and we had outgrown our worship space.

In March, 2010, we were blessed with an opportunity to lease the ground floor of a commercial building on Loon Lake (the space had been empty for over 15 years), and this building proved perfect for our needs at the time. We were blessed with continued growth.
In July, 2010, we called our first pastor. Rev. Cary Larson began his ministry with us on August 1, 2010, and our church secretary, Kristy Jenzen, was hired in the fall. By January, 2011, our membership had grown to over 180. A second Sunday worship service was added in October, 2011, when we were routinely worshiping over 130 per Sunday.

Meanwhile Sunday School attendance had grown from 9 to over 40 children in just a couple of years.  By 2012 Sunday School enrollment grew to over 50 children and it became necessary to lease additional space in the basement of the building. Worship attendance grew to over 150 by this time which caused us to begin planning for the future. On December 12, 2012, we purchased over 10 acres of land in northwest Waseca for a future church building site. ln 2013, with 250 members, it became clear that we were outgrowing the Loon Lake building. ln August, 2013 we were blessed with the opportunity to purchase our existing church building from the former Evangelical United Methodist congregation in northeast Waseca. With nearly 19,000 square feet our worship and Sunday school space problems were solved and at a price that was more of a gift from the Spirit than a purchase! 

ln January, 2012, Pastor Cary said, “Since my arrival, I have heard one constant statement at faith, ‘God grants us what we need when we need it’.” Our current building has been no exception, and  Pastor Cary has reminded us that Luke 12:48b states to “Every one to whom much is given, of him will much will be required". As Christ the King moves forward, we pray that God will continue to bless and sustain our congregation!

​Now in 2018, the congregation is about 300 members with 60% of the congregation worshipping on any given Sunday. We enjoy a fellowship of proclaiming Christ and Him crucified.  We gather around our mission statement...Worshipping Christ, Teaching God’s Truth, Making Disciples and Serving All! 

To God Be The Glory!