About Vertical Church

Join Us Sundays at 10AM

Our Principles

The focus of ministry at Vertical Church is to glorify God by fulfilling the mission that Jesus gave His followers to make disciples, baptize them, and teach them to follow His ways (Matthew 28:19–20). Vertical Church makes disciples of Jesus by encouraging them to worship Christ, walk with Christ, work for Christ, and witness for Christ.

WHO WE ARE

Witness for Christ

Sharing the Good News about Jesus Christ is a vital aspect in the life of a growing disciple. At Vertical Church we encourage believers to share the Gospel with those around us in loving and intentional ways.

Work for Christ

One of the great joys of being a disciple of Christ is by serving Christ and one another. We encourage all those in the Vertical Church family to use their time, energy, and talents to build the Kingdom of God and care for one another.

Walk with Christ

Growing in your walk with Christ is best achieved in rich community. The Vertical Church family encourages everyone to join a Small Group where you experience fellowship, applicational study in God’s Word, and mutual ministry. Vertical Small Groups are a warm, relational setting where you can get to know other believers and grow as a disciple.

Worship Christ

God’s Word admonishes us to worship together regularly. We worship together as a community through music, prayer, and the preaching of God’s Word every weekend.

OUR HISTORY

Vertical Church exists because of the faithfulness that preceded it.

Vertical Church was first started as a mission and known as Victory Baptist Church, sponsored by the First Southern Baptist Church of Cleveland. It was started in June of 1957 and the meeting place was a bakery shop on Lodi Street in Elyria. 16 people attended that first service.

In 1962, the building at the corner of Chestnut and 57 was constructed and dedicated. Much of the work was done by the pastor and members. In February of 1964, Vicory Baptist Church voted to change its name to Chestnut Ridge Baptist Church (CRBC). Over the next 59 years, God used CRBC to bring the Gospel to those in and around Lorain County.

In 2023, the leadership of Chestnut Ridge Baptist Church voted to shut down its operations and give all of the resources to Gateway Church, with the dream of a replant. In 2024, Gateway Church of North Ridgeville and Vertical Church Columbus have come together to launch Vertical Church North.

OUR MISSION

We exist to glorify God through the fulfillment of the Great Commission in the spirit of the Great Commandment.

OUR MISSION IS UNASHAMEDLY UNORIGINAL.

That’s because it’s not ours to come up with. Jesus laid out the mission for his church some 2,000 years ago — and we’re sticking to it.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” — The Great Commission, Matthew 28:19–20

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” — The Great Commandment, Matthew 22:37–40

ABOUT PASTOR BRYAN & SARA NASS

Pastor Bryan was born and raised in Lorain County. After high school, he began pursuing a degree in business management but, while volunteering in the student ministry at his local church, God changed Bryan’s heart and life goals. He responded to God’s call to go into full-time ministry and attended Moody Bible Institute where he met his wife, Sara, and graduated in 2012 with a BA in Student Ministry. Sara graduated from Moody with a BA in Women’s Ministry and Biblical Exposition. Bryan then spent the next 10 years as a youth pastor while Sara worked in pregnancy help centers and taught the Bible at a Christian school.

Shortly after that, God began leading Bryan and Sara to pursue church planting. Through a series of closed doors and God’s clear direction and provision of church plant training through the SEND Network and a church planting residency at Vertical Church Columbus, the Nasses prepared to plant Vertical Church North in Lorain County. The launch date is set for Fall 2024 and meetings are happening now! Contact us for more information and to get involved.