Our purpose
Today many churches are focused on "marketing" to a particular demographic or offering "cutting edge" programs. In the process, sometimes the basic purposes of the church get forgotten. In Scripture, the mission of local bodies of believers is pretty simple. The church is a family, called to focus on the Word of God, genuine community, discipleship, prayer, worship, and good works.
The purpose of this Church shall be:
1. To found and oversee a Christian community under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the leadership of capable overseers (Titus 1:5, Acts 2:42, 46, 47; Heb. 10:25).
2. To instill in its members a knowledge of the Scripture and the ability to apply that knowledge to daily life, through regular Bible study and proclamation of the Word (2 Tim. 3:14-16, Psalm 119:97-112, Rom. 15:15-16)
3. To establish a genuine Christian community, marked by unity (but not uniformity), the members of which “love one another deeply, from the heart” as Scripture entreats us, to foster an environment where everyone is involved (challenging the idea that only a few people do the majority of the work of the Church), and to pursue quality of relationship over quantity of membership (1 Cor. 12, John 17:23, Rom. 15:5, Eph. 4:3,13, Rom. 14, 1 Peter 1:22)
4. To emphasize discipleship: seeing Church as a community that fosters active and holistic spiritual growth toward maturity, to urge its members to truly live what they say they believe, involving God in every facet of their lives, whether difficult or joyous (Matt. 28:18-20, Eph. 4:11-16, Heb. 5:11-6:3, 1 Thess. 5:18)
5. To give attention to the disciplines of Prayer and Worship: experiencing how purposeful prayer and lifestyles of worship bring us into closer communion with God (Eph. 6:18, Col. 4:2, Rom. 12:1, Heb. 13:15)
6. To facilitate active outreach, being of good to ‘our neighbors’ near and far, meeting both tangible and intangible needs, and reaching others with the gospel through genuine friendship (Gal. 6:10, James 2:1-17, Matt. 6:10).
The purpose of this Church shall be:
1. To found and oversee a Christian community under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the leadership of capable overseers (Titus 1:5, Acts 2:42, 46, 47; Heb. 10:25).
2. To instill in its members a knowledge of the Scripture and the ability to apply that knowledge to daily life, through regular Bible study and proclamation of the Word (2 Tim. 3:14-16, Psalm 119:97-112, Rom. 15:15-16)
3. To establish a genuine Christian community, marked by unity (but not uniformity), the members of which “love one another deeply, from the heart” as Scripture entreats us, to foster an environment where everyone is involved (challenging the idea that only a few people do the majority of the work of the Church), and to pursue quality of relationship over quantity of membership (1 Cor. 12, John 17:23, Rom. 15:5, Eph. 4:3,13, Rom. 14, 1 Peter 1:22)
4. To emphasize discipleship: seeing Church as a community that fosters active and holistic spiritual growth toward maturity, to urge its members to truly live what they say they believe, involving God in every facet of their lives, whether difficult or joyous (Matt. 28:18-20, Eph. 4:11-16, Heb. 5:11-6:3, 1 Thess. 5:18)
5. To give attention to the disciplines of Prayer and Worship: experiencing how purposeful prayer and lifestyles of worship bring us into closer communion with God (Eph. 6:18, Col. 4:2, Rom. 12:1, Heb. 13:15)
6. To facilitate active outreach, being of good to ‘our neighbors’ near and far, meeting both tangible and intangible needs, and reaching others with the gospel through genuine friendship (Gal. 6:10, James 2:1-17, Matt. 6:10).