Frequently Asked Questions


Because we are unique in our community, we get many questions about Main Street. We have posted some of the most frequent questions we receive. If you have a question, please forward it to info@sievechurch.org and we will see it gets answered. Thanks.

Q: What is a "Sieve" church?
Q: Why do we worship the way we do?
Q: What “kind” of church are you?

Q: What is a "Sieve" church?
A: It is printed on our bulletin. It is represented in our budget. It is the catch phrase heard in every corner of our church. "Our vision is to be a 'sieve' church." "How can I be a 'sieve' individual?" "That is so 'sieve.'"

So what is a sieve? Why is being a sieve church so important to Main Street? Why do we use metal sieves as offering baskets?

If you looked the word up in a dictionary, you would find a definition something like "a sieve is a utensil of wire mesh, or closely perforated metal, used for straining, sifting, rinsing, or puréeing." They have other names like a "colander," "strainer," and "drainer." You use them when cooking pasta or sifting flour. The tool is quite simple: you pour something into the sieve and some things stay in the basket and some things flow through.

We believe that churches fall into three broad categories in how they relate to people, facility and money resources: siphons, funnels and sieves.
Siphon churches move resources from one place to another. Often those resources are never seen again.
Funnel churches receive a lot of resources and direct a smaller amount of those resources in a carefully controlled manner.
Sieve churches catch what they need and pass the rest along as quickly as possible in a multitude of directions.

So why is our church striving to be a sieve? Main Street is committed to sharing the abundance of resources, gifts, and talents that God has given to us with others in as many directions as possible.
Our vision statement clearly defines the objective: We will use the resources God gives to us to GIVE to others. We will continually SEEK new ways to be an avenue of God’s blessing to our community and to our world.

Q: Why do we worship the way we do?

A: When a student approaches a difficult verse in the Bible, there is a guiding principle that they must follow: "Context is King." This means the student must understand what is going on before and after the verse. They must also try to determine meaning of the chapter as a whole, not just the single verse.

This principle of "Context is King" is also applied to the way we design our corporate worship services here at Main Street. The whole message, or context, of the day is examined. We ask questions like: "What is it that God's word is trying to convey? What action does the key scripture passage call us to do? What worship elements best develop the message of the morning?"

In this way, we plan worship to be content-driven, not style-driven. Main Street strives to never be classified as contemporary, blended, or traditional. We do not want to be ultra-stuffy or overly casual. We want to be what God intended us to be; a place focused on worshiping the Savior, not a style.

Being content-driven provides the pastor, staff, worship leaders, and the congregation an opportunity to sample from all styles and expressions of worship, assembling the best of the best in passing along the message of the day. If a traditional hymn speaks the best, we will sing a hymn. If a funny drama speaks the best, we will use a drama. If silence, applause, tears or laughter are the most appropriate form of worship, then by all means follow the Spirit’s leading.

Being content-driven is very freeing for those who plan our times of corporate worship. Being content-driven spans the generations, linking young with the not-so-young. Being content-driven allows Main Street to avoid the trap of being classified by a worship style. Being content-driven allows us to reach a much wider spectrum of people from all walks of life.

Finally, being content-driven is simply a Main Street blessing.

Q: What “kind” of church are you?
A: We are a community of people who have publicly committed to follow Jesus Christ. Each one of our members are required to give testimony to their personal surrender to the Lordship of Jesus in their lives and to have followed Jesus’ command to be immersed in water as a public witness to a private event in their lives.

We believe God is Sovereign over all and that God has given to us the Holy Bible as the exclusive guide to know His character and work. The Bible is the only authoritative source for humans to understand our position before God and to comprehend what is required of us as individuals and as a community.
Our head is Jesus Christ. We are led by a group of Elders, served by a group of Deacons and empowered by the Holy Spirit’s presence in the lives of every individual upon whom that Spirit rests.

We voluntarily cooperate with the Northern Kentucky Baptist Association, the Kentucky Baptist Convention (www.kentuckybaptist.org) and the Southern Baptist Convention (www.sbc.net).