What Will Hold Us Together?

This week our church beginning our transition toward regular meetings in multiple locations. I am sure I am not alone in feeling like everything is changing. What was theory only a few days ago is becoming reality right now.

It is fair to ask, "What will hold us together as we meet separately on Sundays?" The center will hold us. What we as a church have at the core will keep us one church even though we meet in many locations. When you compare the strength of these core ideas, it makes three miles down the road seem like a small separation.

Below is the core ideology of our church. You've seen this before without much explanation. The last core value has been rewritten. These central values and purpose will form the outline for the next few messages at the Riverfalls location.

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CORE PURPOSE:

To treasure God, and as a result, spread the news of His excellence, trust His promises, and give our lives away for His purposes.

CORE VALUES:

As a multi-site church we value these following things which shape our church:

1. THE CENTRALITY OF GOD
We believe God is supremely glorious and the fountain of all true and lasting joy. God must, then, be center stage in our ministry. We believe the deepest human needs are met only as we find our satisfaction in the person of God. It follows that our gospel is good news not good advice -- good news about God, not good advice about what to do.

2. THE AUTHORITY OF THE BIBLE
The Bible is important to us because in it we come to know God who is supremely valuable. It is the treasure map. The Bible makes the link for us between God and the events of everyday life. The Bible is the means by which we increase our faith and gain access into God’s grace.

3. A COMMUNITY OF FRIENDS
We understand church to be a caring community that offers to each individual a sense of support and belonging. “Community” means we are drawn together because we have Christ in common. The church is like a family in the best sense, with God as our Father, in which we experience warmth and acceptance. In an impersonal world of rapid transitions, a community or family to belong to, where we can love and be loved, is a profoundly precious thing.

4. LIFE TRANSFORMATION
We expect the Holy Spirit to change people, no matter where they are on the spectrum of spiritual interest. We anticipate lives will be transformed when they encounter the living God together as a church. We are intensely interested in experiencing life fully lived for God’s glory. That can only be done as God radically transforms us as believers.

5. TEAM MINISTRY
We will not do alone what we can do together. The New Testament saints did things together. They always served with a team. We do this between congregations and ministries. God is glorified not only by serving him, but by our relationships while we work together.