Grace Baptist Church

The purpose of Grace Baptist Church is to honor Jesus Christ as Lord by obeying Him in all things, through worshipping God in spirit and truth (revering Christ), through building up believers in the faith (imitating Christ), through evangelizing the lost in the power of the Spirit (proclaiming Christ).

Explanation of Principles

* Worshipping God in spirit and truth
We express our worship through private, family and corporate devotion to God as prescribed in His Word.

* Building up believers in the faith
We encourage the development of Christian character by teaching God's Word, equipping believers for ministry and by sharing our lives together in practical expressions of love.

* Evangelizing the lost in the power of the Spirit
We proclaim the gospel of Christ so that people will repent of sin, trust Christ, follow Him in baptism and join a local church. In order to pursue this goal we build relationships with the lost, recognizing that ministries which meet practical needs are often the means to this end.

Application to Grace Baptist Church

1. For Worship

Since all of life is coram Deo (before the face of God) we emphasize worship as a priority of life. We offer our worship to God individually in our private devotions, domestically in our family gatherings and most importantly corporately in our congregational meetings. Congregational worship is intentionally God-centered. It is not entertainment oriented nor governed by what might attract or please the worshipper. God is the audience. It is His pleasure which we seek. Consequently, our worship is guided by the Bible as we try to understand what God Himself has revealed there about the ways that He is to be worshipped. Our congregational worship gives emphasis to the Word of God and prayer and we regard the exposition of the Word as a high priority. Since everyone is called on to worship God our corporate gatherings are for all ages. Families are encouraged to worship together. We hope and desire that every opportunity of worshipping God will be a transformational event in the life of each participant.

2. For Building Up the Church

Discipleship cannot exist without discipline. In order to grow in our faith as followers of Christ we are committed to disciplining our lives by the Word of God. As the Word is carefully studied and applied it both forms and corrects us. We make teaching the Bible a high priority in the church. From their earliest years our children are taught to memorize Scripture and to systematize revealed truth through catechisms. Spiritual vitality and sound doctrine are very important to us. We are a confessional church, believing that God's truth should not only be studied and understood but also expressed as clearly as possible. Fellowship involves sharing our lives together. We therefore accept the responsibility to encourage each other to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ. We are committed to praying with and for each other. We recognize that, as a spiritual family, we belong to one another and should help bear each other's burdens in practical ways. Because we know that we always have more to learn and apply from the Bible, we follow the Reformation model in seeking to be a church that is reformed and always reforming according to the Word of God.

3. For Evangelism

Evangelism exists because worship doesn't. We gladly join the Lord's quest to seek worshippers for Himself. Salvation is the doorway to true worship. People receive salvation through the power of the gospel. Consequently, we are committed to proclaiming the biblical gospel in all its fullness. This means that we are willing to patiently teach unbelievers God's way of salvation. Where the gospel has been lost or distorted by misunderstanding, we have an obligation to work for its recovery and restoration. Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ brings salvation. So we proclaim the exclusivity of Christ as Lord, affirm the obligation of everyone to repent and believe the gospel, and call on everyone we have opportunity to evangelize to do so immediately. Our aim in evangelism is to make disciples who will be baptized and incorporated into the church. We recognize both the sovereignty of God and our own responsibility in the evangelistic task. We cannot do for unbelievers what must be done in order for them to be saved. But we must do for them what can be done because God has ordained to use such means to bring about salvation. Our evangelistic concern is not limited to our immediate geographical communities. It extends to all the world. We are committed to spreading the gospel around the world by cooperating with other churches in supporting missionaries. We are committed to praying that God will call out from among our membership many who will serve as missionaries. We are committed to training and sending such missionaries as God raises them up.