Our History
TBBF (The Bridge Bible Fellowship) was originally two churches in the San Fernando Valley that became one in December 2007. First Baptist Church of Reseda (also known as “Heart of the Valley Community Church” or HVCC) was founded in 1942 at our present main campus location. Shepherd’s Community Church (SCC) was founded in 1984 in Woodland Hills. SCC originally met in the backyard of one of its members and then began to rent space at different schools until it moved to our now “West Campus” in 1998 (22222 Saticoy Street, Canoga Park). Pastor Paul Brown was called to serve as the Senior Pastor of Shepherd's Community Church in 1990.

In May 2007 SCC was looking for a larger property for its growing congregation and HVCC was looking for a pastoral staff. The leadership of the two churches began prayerfully considering a merger which was affirmed in the Fall of 2007. We began joint worship services at the Reseda location on December 2, 2007 with a new name, “The Bridge Bible Fellowship.” TBBF is affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA).

What's Distinctive About The Bridge Bible Fellowship?

• God-sensitive. There is a lot of talk today about being "seeker-sensitive." Churches are rightly looking at how they might reach their culture with the gospel and show that it is relevant for all people at all times. We believe the church needs to be "God sensitive." Our priority is to glorify God and please Him in all things. We believe that as we honor the Lord and preach His truth faithfully and without compromise that He will draw people to Himself (Jn. 6:44; Acts 2; 1 Thess. 2:13).

• Committed to the Scriptures and to expository preaching. At The Bridge we believe the Bible is the inerrant, inspired, authoritative Word of God. That is why we preach the Bible verse-by-verse trying to understand what it means in context (Neh. 8:1-8). How thrilling it is to find out what the author meant when he originally wrote the Scriptures and then find principles and applications for our lives today. Expository preaching not only helps protect us from taking verses out of context; it also helps train our church members how to study the Bible for themselves.

• Relationship-oriented, not religious. Religion (man trying to earn his way to God) often produces rules, legalism, and prideful people (Lk. 18:9-14). But Christianity is a relationship where we come to God in humility and acknowledge that we have nothing to boast of in ourselves. This gives us the freedom to be honest with each other and admit that we make mistakes on a regular basis. At TBBF we strive to be transparent and honest about our weaknesses so we can help each other grow. People have the freedom to fail and learn from their mistakes.

• Committed to discipleship, not just decisions. We are not content to have people simply make a profession of faith in Christ; that is just the beginning. We are focusing our attention on helping each person move forward in his or her relationship with Jesus and become more like Him every day. Our focus is not simply that people would change on the outside but the inside as well! We offer small groups for men, women, couples, singles, etc., so we can focus on our hearts and not just our heads. We strive to see every believer grow to maturity inside and out (Col. 1:28-29; 2:7).

• Committed to function, not just form. At The Bridge we are not consumed with "programs" for program sake. We seek the Lord in prayer and in His Word to find out what He wants us to do, then we seek the best way to accomplish His purposes. Function is the priority, not the particular form or program that has worked in the past.

• Worshipping God, not a worship style. At The Bridge we believe that God is awesome in His beauty and creativity. He has given us many ways to express our worship of Him (arts, literature, music, etc.). God has given us great songs and liturgy in the past and He continues to do so today! We are not focused on "traditional" or "contemporary." In reality there is no such thing as "traditional" music (only music that is traditional to you or me). What is "traditional" to one person may not be "traditional" to another. We believe that both "traditional hymns" and contemporary songs have their place and we attempt to blend the two together.

• Equipping Seniors to re-fire, not retire (Titus 2). We believe that older believers must be equipped and challenged to continue giving their lives to service in the church. Instead of moving out of the way to "let the young people serve in the church," our seniors are moving on to greater involvement in the church than ever before. Praying, mentoring, teaching, serving and counseling are just some of the ministries to which our seniors are giving their lives.

Thank you again for coming to visit us. Please pray for us as we strive to fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission in our local church. May the Lord Jesus richly bless you as you love Him and obey His Word.

Our Doctrine 

Recognizing that the Bible is the very Word of God to man, and understanding the priority of obeying its truths, the elders and staff at The Bridge Bible Fellowship are deeply committed to studying and teaching His Word with diligence, conviction, and authority.  Thus the central ministry at The Bridge Bible Fellowship is teaching the Word of God to the people of God so that they may be equipped to know, worship, and serve God.

The major tenets addressed by our doctrinal statement include the following: 

• The Doctrine of the Holy Scriptures

• The Doctrine of God

• The Doctrine of Man

• The Doctrine of Salvation

• The Doctrine of the Church

• The Doctrine of Last Things  

These reflect the heart of the teaching of The Bridge Bible Fellowship. Click here for the complete doctrinal statement.