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Way of
the Lord
Statement of Purpose
I.
Worship
II.
Prayer
III.
Prophetic
IV.
Word
V.
Spirit Filled
VI.
Equipping the Saints
VII.
Maintaining Body Unity
VIII.
Discipleship
IX.
Family
X.
Pastoral Care
XI.
Evangelism
XII.
Youth
Our ultimate
goal is to exalt Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in everything we are, say
and do. We envision ourselves as a fellowship of believers who live
in harmony with God our Father and with one another - Spirit-filled,
confident, faithful men and women, happy marriages; children and teenagers
under authority; fathers who are dynamic spiritual leaders; wives and
mothers whose works praise them, homes that display the order, warmth and
joy of Christ's presence; children who are mighty in spirit; widows and
the poor with their needs met; and people, through their lifestyles, who
bring conviction of sin among unbelievers when they see the reality of
living in the kingdom of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Purpose for
the local Church Community is derived from God's purposes for the Body of
Christ. Only the Bible itself can fully declare the purposes of a
community, but the following states those which are of high priority to
our Community.
I.
Worship: We have purposed that our personal lives and corporate
gatherings be always centered around the love and worship of God.
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To
guide each individual to commit his life to the Lord Jesus Christ and to
love Him with all his heart, soul, mind and strength.
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To
challenge people and lead them to seek first the Kingdom of God and his
righteousness - Kingdom thinking, attitudes, goals and relationships.
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To
regularly assemble together the members of this church for prayer,
teaching of the Word of God, fellowship with one another, and to worship
God in spirit and in truth, both in all-body gatherings and in home
gatherings.
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II. Prayer: As
His spiritual "house of prayer", we are committed to making prayer the
foundation of all we do.
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To
pray for the needs of all men and for local and national leaders and
governments.
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To
engage in spiritual warfare against powers of darkness through prayer,
fasting, deliverance, praise, declaration of the Word and the blood of
Jesus.
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Believing He is present to us, hears our prayers, answers them, and
enters our lives expecting the Lord to do the impossible through
trusting in His power.
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III. Prophetic: We are a people who
genuinely desire to know, speak and follow God's "now" word and will for
His church. We purpose to help people live in that blessed daily
relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ - having the ability to hear His
voice and to walk in obedience of faith.
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IV. Word:
We believe the Bible to be the God-inspired, inerrant Word of God and are
committed to being a Bible-teaching, Bible-obeying church community.
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V. Spirit Filled:
We have purposed to live out and proclaim that Jesus is the Baptizer in
the Holy Spirit and that the manifestations of the Spirit are
indispensable gifts to build up the Body of Christ. We purpose to
lead people into Spirit-filled life; new birth in Christ, water baptism,
baptism in the Holy Spirit, fruit and character of the Spirit, gifts and
ministries of the Spirit, and the fellowship and communication of the
Spirit.
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VI. Equipping the Saints: It is our
priority to equip and release every person to be a contributing minister
of the church.
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To
help people experience all that is theirs in Christ, who has come to
deliver us from sin, selfishness, satanic bondage, sickness and poverty
in order that we may live fruitful lives for His glory.
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To
help each member discover his spiritual gift(s) and assist him in using
these gift(s) to express Christ's love to those he serves.
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To
call forth and equip laborers to go into the harvest fields, both near
and far.
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To
ordain ministers.
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VII. Maintaining Body Unity: In our
relationships with one another and with other local churches, we seek to
maintain and foster the unity of the Spirit in Christ's Body.
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To
train members to express their love for the Lord and their loyalty to
one another by giving only a good report of each other, following the
guidelines in Matthew 18 in dealing with offenses, with the goal of
restoration rather than criticism and judgment.
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Should
doctrinal disputes arise, we purpose to maintain the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace, until we all attain to the unity of the faith.
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To
involve our people in what the Holy Spirit is doing in calling the
people of God into a greater reality of the unity of the Body of Christ
in our city, state, nation and world.
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To
recognize, support and cooperate with the various ministries established
by God to equip believers to fulfill their respective functions as
members of the Body of Christ and to bring the whole Body of Christ to
maturity and completion.
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VIII. Discipleship:
Our goal is to make disciples, the way Jesus did, that we might help each
individual reach their full maturity in Christ.
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To
build Christ's character in individuals, in marriages and in families,
so that we will be a people who are models of what it means to be
disciples of Jesus Christ.
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To make
disciples of all nations and to build up the Body of Christ, as the Lord
specifically gives us open doors to do so.
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IX. Family:
The family is a central emphasis of our ministry. We seek to
strengthen every aspect of family life, including traditional and
single-parent families.
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To
teach every man how to love his wife in the same way in which Christ
loves the Church.
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To
teach every wife how to submit to her husband, care for their children
and manage their home.
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To
equip parents to bring up their children in the ways of the Lord on a
daily basis.
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To
motivate those called to a life of singleness to use their time and
abilities to the fullest in serving the Lord.
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To
help single, separated and divorced parents and their children to gain
acceptance, security and strength in the Lord and experience His ability
to bring about restoration.
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X. Pastoral Care: We are committed to
providing personal pastoral care for each member of the local church.
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To
baptize in water, to anoint the sick with oil, to marry, to dedicate
infants, to celebrate the Lord's Supper and to minister to the grieving.
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To
function as the Body of Christ and the family of God, with members
caring for and supporting one another.
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XI. Evangelism:
We are committed to being an outreaching church, proclaiming the Gospel of
Jesus Christ and demonstrating the power of God unto salvation.
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To
evangelize the lost, both far and near, wherever the Lord sends us.
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To be
a godly influence in society, actively involved in the life of the
community around us.
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To
help the poor and downtrodden, the widow, orphans, lame, blind, infirm,
diseased, imprisoned, abused, elderly and the forgotten through the
Gospel and material assistance when appropriate.
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To use
all creative and modern means to spread the Gospel as the Holy Spirit
leads, spoken word, art, music, drama, films, TV, literature, radio,
concerts, etc.
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To
send forth missionaries.
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To assist
in establishment, maintenance and up-building of other churches, both
domestic and foreign.
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XII. Youth:
We have a mandate from God to help raise up a Godly generation.
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To
corporately support the parents' training of their children, thereby
equipping them to stand as overcomers and leaders in their generation.
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To provide
Christian education to the next generation and preparing them for
service to the living God.
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