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Involvement
The Bible instructs Christians to be in the world, but not of the world
(John 17:16-18). All too often, American Christians are of the world but
not in it. Christians develop their own little "worlds" in which they
rarely come into meaningful contact with unsaved people. It is impossible
to love unbelievers when you do not seek to reach out to them with the greatest
news of all time. The early church was often found spreading the good news
in the public spaces of their communities, whether it be in the temple courts and
synogogues or in the market place (Acts 2:46; 3:11; 19:8-10; 20:20). The
light given us should not be hidden under a bowl, but should shine out like a
city on a hill, that others might see it and come to know the truth that sets us
free (Matthew 5:14-16). Worship Community seeks to encourage members
of the church to find ways to be involved in the community through their jobs,
recreation, family activities, school, and more. By opening up these
opportunities, the church can build meaningful relationships that may bridge to
lives being saved.
Evangelism
Evangelism is to communicate the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ and
is the first essential step in the discipleship process. The heart of evangelism
is that people would come to know that Jesus died for our sins, he was buried,
and that he was raised from the dead (1 Cor 15:1-8). Dr. Thom Rainer has
repeatedly asserted that those who are active in small groups are much more
likely to remain in the church. Because of this, at Worship Community
evangelism will take place primarily through the small-group and
relationship-building structure. A high priority for training in evangelism
is giving the people of the church multiple tools for evangelism, and explain the
situations in which each may be more effective. Particularly, the aspect of
the generational view of relationships is important in approaching the gospel.
In a post-modern world, evangelism that is God-centered, and explicitly
relationship and grace based, is absolutely essential. Far too often
evangelism is about praying a prayer without a relationship and life change.
Also, far too often, the church is satisfied to allow the believer to
include some element of works in their salvation. Salvation is by grace
alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone (Ephesians 2:6-9).
Outreach
In Acts 2, Luke gives us a picture of the early church. This early church enjoyed
"having favor with all the people" (Acts 2:47). Furthermore, Peter exhorts
believers to live such exemplary lives that unbelievers are attracted to the
gospel (1 Peter 2:12). Christians are called by God and come to know Him,
His purposes, and His will. By receiving such, Christians have a
responsibility to seek to bring this world into subjection to God’s will.
This can only be done by being involved in the world in such a way that the
activities of the world are changed, by the power of God, in such a way as to
bring glory to God. Events and programs that are directly geared toward
exposing the community to the Gospel of Christ in the context of social ministry
are essential to genuine Christian community. From community carnivals, to
helping with food banks and homeless shelters, to supplying facilities that
enhance the family and community atmosphere in the community and beyond,
Worship Community actively seeks to let the community know the church cares,
and there is a reason why we care: our love for the Lord Jesus depends on it (1
John 5:3).
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The WC model is an ongoing process and will be under development for several years. Check back often to see the growing vision and detailed plans for how the vision will be carried out.