abide.belong.connect.
OUR VISION
There are three areas in the life of Christ that every Christian must know to be a faithful follower of Jesus.
ABIDE: First, every follower of Christ must have a loving relationship with the Father. When you examine the life of Christ, you will see that He did nothing apart from His relationship with the Father. There were times when Jesus would retreat to be alone with the Father because it was such a close and personal time that Jesus would not share that with anyone. Other times, Jesus would pray to the Father openly in the presence of others so that their relationship could be visibly seen. Oh, how He loved the Father! Jesus submitted to the Father’s will by being obedient even to the point of dying on the cross. The obedience of Christ was a result of His love relationship with the Father, not out of obligation that it had to be done. Jesus teaches us that our relationship to God must be one of priority and personal love.
BELONG: Second, every follower of Christ must have a loving relationship with other believers. When a person enters a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, they are adopted into God’s family. We call this family the Church (or bride, or body) of Christ. When you study the life of Christ you will see that not only did He have an intimate relationship with the Father, but He also had an intimate and close relationship with His disciples. Jesus spent a large majority of His time with those who loved Him. The men that Jesus spent the most time with were not perfect, but they were genuine in their faith toward Christ. Their lives were marked with loyalty and love, and it was evident that Jesus was Lord of their lives. In Acts 2, we see that in one day, 3,000 people gave their lives to Christ and were “added to the Church.” Immediately following their decision to follow Jesus, they were placed together in community with other believers. Here, they continued each day to grow in their faith and love toward God and each other. From the very beginning of time, God said that “it is not good for man to be alone” so God created others to have a relationship with. Since then, people have lived in and craved relationships. Connecting with other believers in community is necessary for spiritual growth and the accomplishing of God’s purposes for His Church. This brings us to the third area in the life of every Christian.
CONNECT: Every follower of Christ must have a loving relationship with those who do not believe. Jesus was sent to the earth by the Father “to seek and to save those who are lost.” The very mission of Christ was to come to the earth and die on the cross so that people everywhere can trust in Him. If they will call upon His name they will find forgiveness of sin and enter into a relationship with the Father. Jesus accomplished this mission by dying on the cross and rising from the dead three days later. Jesus commissioned His disciples that they also were to “go into the world and preach the gospel to all people.” Just as the Father sent Jesus to save the world, Jesus has sent every believer to share the good news of Jesus Christ. That good news is that Jesus came as God in the flesh to take away the sins of the world and that the world, through Him, can be saved from Hell and an eternity spent apart from God. God’s plan to reach the world is through His church. Jesus Christ changed the world by using a small group of ordinary men who were in love with Him and in partnership with each other. They realized their mission, and that God, through them, would carry out His plan to save the world. The same is true today. God is using ordinary people who are in love with God and in partnership with other believers to take the good news of Jesus to the world. God’s plan is to use people to reach people!
Our congregation is fueled by a firm belief in the teachings of our Lord, and when we are united together under the Holy Spirit of God — we become one. We welcome you to join our community and discover the power of God in your life.