At the end of Peter’s second letter to the early church, he signs off with this desire for those who read his leter…
“…Grow in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”
Peter’s hope and vision for the church and all the folks in the church is that they would be captured by the beauty of Christ! Another way to say it would be that the Church is to focus only on growth that is centered around Christ and His grace.
I am convinced that is what Living Fellowship must embrace as our vision and hope as a church. To continue to move toward the vision of becoming…
A home in Christ for all, partnering with God in His Mission,
…we must focus on the beautiful and simple growth Peter is pointing us to. We must focus our hearts, community, worship, and design our activity and goals around Christ.
Our strategy for growth in our vision and community is simple and powerful, focusing on the sort of Growth that Christ is able to bring. As we focus on Christ, the results will be Hearts Changed by Christ, a growing community that embraces the Great Commission with seriousness, and a beautiful church that will be an Environment of Grace for all.
What will Growing in the Grace and Knowledge of Christ look like?
A People Growing in Grace
We are forming a community, and the Great Commission is our foundational mission. We desire to be faithful to Christ’s Great Commission by forming hearts, hands, and minds for God’s Kingdom. We desire to engage in both common and private worship, prayer, discipleship, and leadership development for the glory of God and the growth of the gospel in our hearts, homes, and community.
One area where we, as a church, will prioritize this growth is in our Fellowship Groups. Fellowship Groups are communities that provide the context for welcome, connection, spiritual formation, evangelism, and mission. Groups are gatherings of 6 to 12 people led by a trained and supported leader from Living Fellowship Church. Fellowship groups will meet in homes, coworking spaces, offices, and coffee shops during the week. In Fellowship Groups, people come to know God and grow in Grace, experience relational community, are equipped, and released for God's work in the world together.
Growing in Extending Grace
Having been welcomed home in Christ by His reconciling work, we are now called to be God’s ambassadors in our community. We believe that we are called to be God’s welcoming presence. We hope that through our welcoming of all people, the grace of God’s message of reconciliation would be communicated in our community. As well as serving our community and the world as his ambassadors in word and deed.
