From the beginning, the mission of God has been all about the Glory of God. “Glory” means “weight”. His glory is “weightier” than any other thing we could enjoy or endure. All that God does is done to make much of Himself, who alone is worthy of such honor. God’s mission is that all peoples would know him, experience him, and enjoy him as supreme. In doing so, people will exchange lesser things in the sight of his glory. (Isaiah 43:6-7, Ephesians 3:1-14, Genesis 1:26-28)
As we truly enjoy the glory of God, we will exchange our allegiances and affections for His sake. The Mission of the church is to enjoy God and make Him known by making disciples. The good news of the Gospel is that God reconciled us to himself by grace alone, and in turn, commissions us to be ambassadors of that reconciliation. God has graciously given his church this everyday-all day mission of reaching persons and peoples for their good and His glory (1 Peter 3:18, 2 Corinthians 5, 2 Timothy 2:2, Matthew 28:16-20, Acts 1:8, 20:24)
Enjoy the glory of God: We believe that enjoying God is the fuel for the Christian life. The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, thus it should be where we begin as a people (Ps.16:11; Ps. 34:8; Ps. 27:4). The glory of God is inescapable. There is no one or nothing which matches His glory. It can be experienced in life through beauty, joy, heartache, and challenge. It is revealed in the heavens and the earth and through Jesus. Experiencing His glory produces hope and urges us to return glory to Him (Ps. 19:1; Isaiah 43:6-7; Romans 3:23, 5:2; 2 Cor. 3:18).
Equip the People of God: The purpose of equipping the saints is for works of service to build up the Body. We are equipping one another to make disciples of Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit to the glory of the Father. (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Ephesians 4:11-12). The people of God are those who believe in and on Christ for salvation and have been adopted into HIs family as His children (1 Cor. 6:19-20; Gal. 4:6-7; Romans 8:15).
Extend the Love of God: Simply put, we want to be an extension of the love of Christ, fueled by our enjoyment of Him. The message we extend is Christ crucified, buried, and resurrected. The method is proclaiming this Gospel in word and deed. We must be intentionally and strategically evangelistic and relational (1 Cor. 15:3-6; Matthew 28:18-20). The immeasurable love of God was best displayed when he gave His Son to die for sinful man. His love rescues and restores lives. His love for sinners like us compels us to love Him, each other, and our neighbors (John 3:16; Romans 5:8; Ephesians 3:18; Isaiah 43:6-7).
At the very center of the Gospel message is an overwhelming picture of exchange. God exchanged His Son for our sin so that we could exchange our lives for His sake (2 Cor 5:21) We believe that the Christian experience is a series of daily exchanges: my thoughts for His, my ways for His, me for us, stuff for people, consuming for serving, surviving for thriving, seen for unseen, pride for humility, lies for truth, rebellion for submission, toil for rest, isolation for community, all for Christ. We also believe that the entire narrative of the Bible can be traced through a series of foolish and wise exchanges. God exchanging nothing for something; Adam and Eve exchanging God-worship for self-worship; God exchanging Jesus for our sin; our call to exchange preferences and lives for His glory.
The Father is God, Jesus Christ is God, and The Holy Spirit is God. They are three and one simultaneously, and existed from eternity past. Genesis 1:26, John 17:24; Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-6; 46:9; John 17:3.
Because of His extravagant grace and majesty, God spoke the world into existence out of nothing. He infallibly foreknows all that shall come to pass, including the future free choices of all humans and other moral beings; concerns himself mercifully in the affairs of humanity; hears and answers prayer; and that He, by His unfathomable grace, gave His Son, Jesus Christ, for mankind’s redemption. Genesis 1:1; I Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 1:16; Ephesians 4:6
Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of a virgin. Being fully man and fully God, he was tempted in every way, yet lived a perfect sinless life. Taking on the sins of the world, he was crucified, died, buried, and on the third day, resurrected; exercising his power over death and sin. He ascended into Heaven where he sits at the Father’s right hand, interceding for us.
Matthew 1:18-25; Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 4:15
The Holy Spirit, being sent from the Father and Son, remains with us on earth and indwells believers today. Through the proclamation of the gospel, He persuades men to repent of their sins and confess Jesus Christ as Lord. He leads the Church to rightly understanding and apply the truth of God’s Word.
Galatians 5:22; John 14:1, 26; 16:8; Romans 8:26
The only way to restore our broken relationship with God is through his son, Jesus Christ who died in our place, was buried, and resurrected. By trusting and believing on Him, He will forgive us of our sin and present us to God as adopted sons and daughters.
Romans 10:9; Colossians 1:21-23, Romans 3:23; 5:8; Ephesians 2:9, James 2:19, Hebrews 9:28
The entire Bible was written by man, directly inspired by God. Scripture reveals the principles by which He judges man, how we should follow Christ, and how He has relentlessly pursued a relationship with His fallen creation. The Bible is true, without error, authoritative, and sufficient.
Psalm 19:7; John 20:31; II Timothy 3:16-17
Humanity was created by God to bear his image for His glory. All people have disobeyed God willfully through sin; thus inheriting both physical and spiritual death, separating themselves from a holy God. All human beings are born with a sin nature and into a broken environment inclined toward sin. Only by the grace of God through Jesus Christ can they experience a restored relationship with God.
Genesis 1:26-31; Isaiah 43:7; Psalm 51:5; Romans 3:23-24
Spiritual growth is a process that is only achieved through a genuine intimate relationship with Christ. As we walk in the Spirit and walk in submission and connection to Christ and His leadership in our life, He produces fruit that is seen as spiritual maturity. This is a life long process led by the working of the Holy Spirit in a person’s life.
Galatians 5:16-26, John 15:1-17, Romans 6:19; 12:2
The Church is not merely a community organization for Christians or constrained to a building, but a spiritual body of people who have placed their faith and lives in Christ and dedicated themselves to the application of His teachings. These followers of Christ are united together in love to connect and equip each other to extend the love of God and the good news of our rescue through Him to the ends of the earth. The global body of Christ consists of many local churches who genuinely and passionately follow Christ.
Acts 2, I Corinthians 12, Titus 2:11-14
