Every church in the world has the same mission. The terminology may be different, but the mission remains the same. The reason for that uniformity is that Jesus has instituted the church on earth for a very specific purpose – gathering and perfecting the saints. We could look to Matthew 28:18-20 for evidence.
“18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.””
As you’ve heard me say numerous times over the years, “go” is not an imperative in that passage. The command is “make disciples”. But we’re given the means by which we are to make disciples – by going, baptizing, and teaching. The implication of “baptizing” is that people are being brought into the covenant community for the first time. By “teaching” we understand what we might call discipleship – the church instructing her members so that they learn to keep all that God has commanded. Typical church-speak to summarize these two would be “evangelism and discipleship”. The Westminster Confession of Faith uses the language of “gather and perfect” (WCF 25.3). Whatever the language, the mission remains – the Church is given to the world for the purpose of establishing and growing Christ’s kingdom on earth.
How will we know if we’re accomplishing that mission? That’s the purpose of stating goals for any organization. Establishing and meeting goals is an indicator that you’re doing what you’re supposed to be doing.[1] To that end, we have four goals – Worship, Growth in Grace, Evangelism & Missions, and Fellowship & Service.
For several years now, our budget organization has reflected these goals in anticipation of the structure and organization. But, in order to better serve Christ, His people, and our community, we need to organize around these four goals.
That’s why we have four committees, or ministry teams, under the oversight of the session for the purpose of carrying out ministry through the gifts of the congregation and to one another and to Athens.
Who’s Responsible?
We need your help in serving on these ministry teams to help execute the ministry of Grace Covenant.
Responsible for What?
For example, if you feel like you’re wired for missions and want to help GCPC connect more with the missionaries we support and plan for future support for future missionaries, then the Evangelism and Missions Committee is for you .
It’s the Growth in Grace Committee that has the most responsibility, especially early on. Everything from Women’s Ministry and Men’s Ministry to adult and children’s Sunday school and nursery – all of these and more fall under the oversight of the GG Committee.
Fellowship has, to this point, technically been the lead on Sunday Night Fellowship and the coffee/snacks before worship and, I trust, Worship is fairly obvious.
Therefore
If you have a desire to serve on one of these committees, please let me (Jeff) know as soon as possible. I’ll keep you posted on our progress.
[1] If you want to have a discussion about comparing and contrasting goals in the church vs. the business world, let’s get coffee or lunch