our purposes
Connecting People to Christ, Community, and World
ChristAll of humanity is in need of a Savior. The gospel of Jesus is at the forefront of our ministries at NHBC.
|
CommunityHumans were not meant to live alone. We, therefore, encourage all at NHBC to live in and invest in community.
|
WorldChristians are not meant to keep Jesus to themselves. Our goal is to equip and challenge NHBC to make disciples.
|
CHRIST
PURPOSE #1 "KNOW AND BELIEVE THE GOSPEL"
The very first purpose in our spiritual life is to know and believe the true Gospel of Jesus. What is this Good News? That we were all lost in sin, unable to save ourselves, and so Jesus, full of love and mercy, came to earth and saved us from sin and death! We did nothing to deserve this! Even the faith we have came through God's grace! Throughout the whole growth process that follows, we need to be ready to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others! You might be tempted to think that you must mature and grow first before you can share the good news of Christ but you don’t have to wait.
PURPOSE #2 "WORSHIP JESUS IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH"
The next purpose in the our lives is to understand what it means to worship God, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Worship is an everyday adoration of and surrender to Jesus as LORD. Worship takes on many expressions. Some of which happen publicly (like in church on a Sunday Morning). Worship, though, is never limited to these expressions. Instead Jesus explained the depth of worship...
PURPOSE #3 "GROW AND MATURE IN CHRIST"
The exciting truth is that when we understand the Gospel (Purpose #1) and what true worship is (Purpose #2), and begin to live out these purposes, we will begin to grow in Christ! This part of the spiritual life has confused many Christians. The belief is that after one is saved (by grace alone) it is up to them to mature. The truth is we did not save ourselves and we cannot perfect ourselves. While we work alongside the Holy Spirit to grow and mature, ultimately, it is God that grows us up to be more like Christ! This purpose continues in the "COMMUNITY" section...
The very first purpose in our spiritual life is to know and believe the true Gospel of Jesus. What is this Good News? That we were all lost in sin, unable to save ourselves, and so Jesus, full of love and mercy, came to earth and saved us from sin and death! We did nothing to deserve this! Even the faith we have came through God's grace! Throughout the whole growth process that follows, we need to be ready to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others! You might be tempted to think that you must mature and grow first before you can share the good news of Christ but you don’t have to wait.
PURPOSE #2 "WORSHIP JESUS IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH"
The next purpose in the our lives is to understand what it means to worship God, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Worship is an everyday adoration of and surrender to Jesus as LORD. Worship takes on many expressions. Some of which happen publicly (like in church on a Sunday Morning). Worship, though, is never limited to these expressions. Instead Jesus explained the depth of worship...
PURPOSE #3 "GROW AND MATURE IN CHRIST"
The exciting truth is that when we understand the Gospel (Purpose #1) and what true worship is (Purpose #2), and begin to live out these purposes, we will begin to grow in Christ! This part of the spiritual life has confused many Christians. The belief is that after one is saved (by grace alone) it is up to them to mature. The truth is we did not save ourselves and we cannot perfect ourselves. While we work alongside the Holy Spirit to grow and mature, ultimately, it is God that grows us up to be more like Christ! This purpose continues in the "COMMUNITY" section...
COMMUNITY
PURPOSE #3 "GROW AND MATURE IN CHRIST"
Many of this purposes flow from one category to the other. Growing and maturing in Christ is not just a personal journey. We must grow in community with other believers in a local body of Christ!
PURPOSE #4 "FELLOWSHIP WITH OTHERS BELIEVERS"
Our next purpose as a believer is to move outside ourselves, and spend time with other followers of Jesus. Many western church cultures have fallen into the belief and trap of individualism: the belief that we can do this on our own. God created believers to need one another. That is why He likened it to a "body": a whole, made of many united parts that need each other! (1 Cor. 12:14-20)We do not have to live out our lives, struggles victories, alone. God has given us family to live life with us and encourage us, if we will simply spend time together.
PURPOSE #5 "SERVE OTHERS INSIDE/OUTSIDE THE CHURCH"
Purpose #5 is all about looking beyond ourselves to the needs of others. The two greatest commandments (given to us by Jesus) are to love the one true God, and to love others like we love ourselves (Matt 22:37-39). How should one love others? The same way Jesus did, serve them. Jesus even said that being a servant should redefine our idea of greatness in this life. We should not want to be great, we should serve others. This purpose continues in the "WORLD" section...
Many of this purposes flow from one category to the other. Growing and maturing in Christ is not just a personal journey. We must grow in community with other believers in a local body of Christ!
PURPOSE #4 "FELLOWSHIP WITH OTHERS BELIEVERS"
Our next purpose as a believer is to move outside ourselves, and spend time with other followers of Jesus. Many western church cultures have fallen into the belief and trap of individualism: the belief that we can do this on our own. God created believers to need one another. That is why He likened it to a "body": a whole, made of many united parts that need each other! (1 Cor. 12:14-20)We do not have to live out our lives, struggles victories, alone. God has given us family to live life with us and encourage us, if we will simply spend time together.
PURPOSE #5 "SERVE OTHERS INSIDE/OUTSIDE THE CHURCH"
Purpose #5 is all about looking beyond ourselves to the needs of others. The two greatest commandments (given to us by Jesus) are to love the one true God, and to love others like we love ourselves (Matt 22:37-39). How should one love others? The same way Jesus did, serve them. Jesus even said that being a servant should redefine our idea of greatness in this life. We should not want to be great, we should serve others. This purpose continues in the "WORLD" section...
WORLD
PURPOSE #5 "SERVE OTHERS OUTSIDE THE CHURCH"
Jesus said that we would be known as His disciples by our love. We need to be on the lookout for how we may serve those in our community and show them the love of Christ. The greatest way we can show the world love is found in our final purpose.
PURPOSE #6 "BE ON MISSION WITH THE GOSPEL"
The neat thing about these purposes is that we have now come full circle from where we started: the Gospel. From the very beginning we can be sharing the testimony of our salvation but as we grow we should be purposefully on mission with the Gospel. What does this mean? Going, intentionally, into our communities, neighborhoods, coffee shops, jobs and globally sharing the Gospel. Jesus said go to your hometown, your neighboring community, the people you hate and the whole world with the great news of Jesus!
Jesus said that we would be known as His disciples by our love. We need to be on the lookout for how we may serve those in our community and show them the love of Christ. The greatest way we can show the world love is found in our final purpose.
PURPOSE #6 "BE ON MISSION WITH THE GOSPEL"
The neat thing about these purposes is that we have now come full circle from where we started: the Gospel. From the very beginning we can be sharing the testimony of our salvation but as we grow we should be purposefully on mission with the Gospel. What does this mean? Going, intentionally, into our communities, neighborhoods, coffee shops, jobs and globally sharing the Gospel. Jesus said go to your hometown, your neighboring community, the people you hate and the whole world with the great news of Jesus!