In our desire to be uncompromisingly faithful to God’s Word, we have sought to formulate our mission and vision solely on the basis of God’s Word. Our core values are designed to promote what we believe are essential and biblical marks of a strong and healthy church. Although we might have included things like prayer, passionate worship, or strong theology, we believe that all of these things will follow if the core values indicated below are present.
Our Mission
Our mission is to become a community captivated by the supreme splendor of God as he has revealed himself in Christ and to work as instruments through which he includes others.
Our Core Values
Seeking Uncompromising Biblical Faithfulness
Living Gospel-Centered, Worship-Fueled Lives
Pursuing Authentic Christian Community
Spreading Our Joy in the Biblical Mission
Our Core Values Explained
Seeking Uncompromising Biblical Faithfulness
We envision a church in which we seek uncompromising biblical faithfulness. Many churches affirm the authority of the Bible, but not many churches truly and conscientiously strive to be biblically faithful. We envision a church where we begin by saying that we don’t have everything figured out. We acknowledge our desperate need for God’s guidance and instruction. We cannot be content to merely assume we will be biblical because we affirm the authority of the Bible. We must pore over the Scriptures and strive to reform our lives and our church in accordance with what God has revealed. So whether it’s in preaching, church leadership, life in the church, or life in the world, we envision a church where we strive together to be uncompromising in our faithfulness to God’s word.
Living Gospel-Centered, Worship-Fueled Lives
We envision a church where we pursue gospel-centered, worship-fueled lives. The good news of the gospel is what God has done in making a way for sinners to be forgiven and reconciled to God through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We envision a church where this gospel is not only the way to get into Christianity, but the awe-evoking fuel for Christian faithfulness and obedience. We envision a church in which our hearts cry out in worship because we recognize that we have the deepest and most enduring joy that can be known because of what Jesus has done! This then leads us to faithfulness and obedience.
Pursuing Authentic Christian Community
We envision a church marked by authentic Christian community. We envision a community where we can be honest about the things with which we struggle. Unfortunately, in many churches, people look good on the outside while they might be inwardly struggling. Yet the church is not so much a museum of sinless saints as it is a hospital for struggling sinners. Jesus said, “It is not those who are well who have need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Our vision is to cultivate a church culture where we can be open, honest, and real.
Spreading Our Joy in the Biblical Mission
We envision a church in which we all conceive of ourselves as missionaries in our community. John Piper has said that missions exist because joy does not. Our vision is to spread the joy and worship we have experienced in our own lives. Jesus called his followers to make disciples of all nations through the proclamation of the gospel. To be a Christian is to be a missionary. And our mission is to both become a community captivated by the supreme splendor of Christ and to work as instruments through which God includes others. We envision a church in which we all conceive of ourselves as missionaries within the context of our community, fulfilling the mission God has placed on our lives, and spreading the joy of Christ to Chanute, and the ends of the earth.