Purpose Statement

We seek to exalt God, edify believers, and evangelize the world. These three purposes, which are all to be part of the chief purpose of man to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, are what we believe the Bible teaches as the guiding goals of the church. The focus of these purposes are "upward" in exalting God, "inward" in building up the church, and "outward" toward an unbelieving world.

Exalting God
The "upward" aspect of the church's purpose of exalting the Lord should be the chief end of all that the church is and does (Eph 1:6, 12, 14; Rev. 4:11). The glory of God is displayed in His exalted Son Jesus Christ who is the foundation and head of the church ,which worships Him as supreme (Eph. 3:21; Phil. 2:9-11). God has created man to enjoy the worship of Him through Christ in all of life, valuing Him and His glory above all else (Matthew 22:37; I Corinthians 10:31).

True worship for the glory of God must have a proper understanding of and knowledge of who God is and what He has done (Jer. 9:23-24) and is not only expressed in Godward praise and adoration, but also in a church life that overflows into ministry to one another and to the world, showing the supremacy of Christ in all things. [See Statement of Faith on the "Doctrine of God"]

Edifying the Church
The "inward" aspect of the church's purpose involves the building-up and edifying of the church in the life of faith and in conformity to Christ (Eph 4:13; Col. 1:28-29). When Jesus gave the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20, He instructed His followers to make other followers of Christ - to make disciples, which includes baptizing and teaching.

A disciple of Jesus Christ is one who follows Jesus through His teaching and His word, having been regenerated by His Spirit, and acknowledging Him as the Master of his life - the determiner of right and wrong, and who is desirous of being obedient to Him in ever increasing conformity to His character. A disciple is not a more dedicated (second-stage) Christian - all Christians are disciples; the Bible does not teach a two-tiered Christianity (Acts 11:26, cf. Acts 4:32 & 6:2; 6:7, 9:26, 14:21-22).

As such, discipleship is not merely a program; it is the Christian life and it is a ministry of the church that is ongoing. The church should be always seeking how abiding in the Word (John 8:31-32), loving one another (John 13:34-35), and bearing fruit (John 15:7-8) can be developed and fostered in every believer and in the church as a whole.

In building up the church and in ministering, the Bible recognizes differing functions and giftedness, though every believer is to be involved in the life and ministry of the church (1 Cor. 12;: 1 Peter 4:10) As such, leadership is to strive to gain involvement of the whole flock and provide nurture to build them up to maturity in the faith (Col. 1:28).

Evangelizing the World
Part of what God intends for His people during the present age is to live as an interdependent community that is a testimony to the world. The church has not been left here to bide time until Christ returns for it, nor simply to become more Christ-like in individual sanctification - that could take place in an instant with the appearing of Christ (1 John 3:2). While the church's overarching purpose is to glorify and exalt the Lord and should be the chief end to all the church is and does (Eph 1:6, 12, 14; Rev. 4:11), this is something that will be done for eternity. While in this age, the church is to glorify God in her primary mandate toward the world in making disciples-to be the instrument to bring others into a redeemed relationship with their Creator. The roles the church has and does for this mandate includes the proclamation of the Word of God and living as the unique people of God who adorn the gospel with holy, obedient, and loving lives.

To support this mandate, they need to treasure and worship God and love one another within the church in ways that are apparent to a watching world (cf. John 13:34-35). So, while the church fulfills the role to build up believers in their valuing of God and Christ-likeness, it also equips and encourages the body to proclaim the Lord's excellencies to those outside. Christ makes the outward focus clear by His commands in the various "commission" passages (Matt. 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8) in which the church is to be the instrument to bring others into a redeemed relationship with their Creator as His people.

The primary means for redeeming those alienated from God is through the proclamation of the Word of God through people who adorn the gospel with holy, obedient lives. Thus, the Word in all its fullness is to be applied to all areas of life of believers, who are in contact with the world, with the final end of pointing others to repent and acknowledge God and glorify Him (Mt. 5:16, 1 Peter 2:12; 3:1).

This outward purpose, then, is accomplished in conjunction with the inward and outward purposes - it involves the total life of the church in its being and doing (not just through missionaries and evangelists), in word and in act, as a community and as individuals.

These three overarching purposes are not opposed to one another but are in service of one another. The "being" of the church is a praise to God's glory (Eph. 1:12) and the evident "doing" in love and good works among believers has evangelistic power (John 13:35, 1 Peter 3:1-2).