What Is Our Mission?
Our mission at Cornerstone Bible Church is to glorify God by leading people to Know Him, Grow into His likeness, and Go make Him known to others. While know, grow, go may sound like a catchy slogan it is actually far more than that and finds its roots in the great commission given by Jesus in Matthew 28. As Jesus closed his earthly ministry and ascended into heaven his words to his disciples were, “All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded to you. And behold I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
When we derive our understanding of knowing him from this passage several key components are brought to light as to what knowing him means. It is far more than simply believing that Jesus existed or even that he is God. Knowing him means that we have a personal relationship with him and have acknowledge Him as both OUR Lord and OUR God. He is the one who has all authority over heaven and earth and therefore the one to whom we owe our allegiance and our lives. He is also Triune in nature. We see this is his instruction to baptize in the name of the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit. He does not say the names of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit but the name. There is one God existent in three persons. When we know God in this way we are adopted into his family and brought from death to life. This is not something that is not inherited by being brought up in a “Christian” family but a personal response to the call of God in our lives. John puts it this way in John 1:12 speaking of Jesus he says, “To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” Knowing God is receiving Christ and believing in his name.
While this is where the Christian life begins, we are called to Grow into the likeness of Christ. In the great commission Jesus instructs his disciples to teach others to observe all that he has commanded to them. To be faithful to Christ’s command we must know what he has commanded. Providentially, we are not left in the dark as to His commands but has given us his Word to enlighten and instruct us. Growing in him requires us to faithful preach, teach, and study the Bible. But God is so good and He has given us even more that his Word to empower us to grow into his likeness. He has given us His Spirit. We are told that at the time of our belief we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Growing into His likeness requires our active submission to the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. Paul puts it this way in Galatians 5:25 “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” When we do this the Holy Spirit produces His fruit in our lives conforms us more and more into the image of Christ.
The final aspect of our mission at CBC is to go and make God known to others. True disciples take God’s command to “Go make disciples” seriously. This is not a suggestion given by Christ or an extracurricular for the super Christians it is simply a part of being a follower of Christ. We have the good news, the message of how to be reconciled to God and brought into His family and we must share this message with the world. Not to do so is disobedience.
Knowing our mission gives us guidance in where we put our time and energy at CBC. All that we commit to doing whether, preaching, teaching Sunday School, serving in nursery, or ministering at the nursing home, everything should be tied to Knowing God, Growing to be more like Him, and Going and making him known. If we are not fulfilling at least one of these three things effectively we are not fulfilling our mission. This mission is not simply the mission of the Pastors and leaders of CBC but it is the mission of the membership. We are all called to this mission and we will all be held accountable to the one to whom all authority in heaven and on earth belongs. May we all end our earthly lives hearing, “Well done good and faithful servant enter into the joy of your master.”
Check out the associated video with this blog post HERE.
When we derive our understanding of knowing him from this passage several key components are brought to light as to what knowing him means. It is far more than simply believing that Jesus existed or even that he is God. Knowing him means that we have a personal relationship with him and have acknowledge Him as both OUR Lord and OUR God. He is the one who has all authority over heaven and earth and therefore the one to whom we owe our allegiance and our lives. He is also Triune in nature. We see this is his instruction to baptize in the name of the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit. He does not say the names of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit but the name. There is one God existent in three persons. When we know God in this way we are adopted into his family and brought from death to life. This is not something that is not inherited by being brought up in a “Christian” family but a personal response to the call of God in our lives. John puts it this way in John 1:12 speaking of Jesus he says, “To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” Knowing God is receiving Christ and believing in his name.
While this is where the Christian life begins, we are called to Grow into the likeness of Christ. In the great commission Jesus instructs his disciples to teach others to observe all that he has commanded to them. To be faithful to Christ’s command we must know what he has commanded. Providentially, we are not left in the dark as to His commands but has given us his Word to enlighten and instruct us. Growing in him requires us to faithful preach, teach, and study the Bible. But God is so good and He has given us even more that his Word to empower us to grow into his likeness. He has given us His Spirit. We are told that at the time of our belief we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Growing into His likeness requires our active submission to the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. Paul puts it this way in Galatians 5:25 “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” When we do this the Holy Spirit produces His fruit in our lives conforms us more and more into the image of Christ.
The final aspect of our mission at CBC is to go and make God known to others. True disciples take God’s command to “Go make disciples” seriously. This is not a suggestion given by Christ or an extracurricular for the super Christians it is simply a part of being a follower of Christ. We have the good news, the message of how to be reconciled to God and brought into His family and we must share this message with the world. Not to do so is disobedience.
Knowing our mission gives us guidance in where we put our time and energy at CBC. All that we commit to doing whether, preaching, teaching Sunday School, serving in nursery, or ministering at the nursing home, everything should be tied to Knowing God, Growing to be more like Him, and Going and making him known. If we are not fulfilling at least one of these three things effectively we are not fulfilling our mission. This mission is not simply the mission of the Pastors and leaders of CBC but it is the mission of the membership. We are all called to this mission and we will all be held accountable to the one to whom all authority in heaven and on earth belongs. May we all end our earthly lives hearing, “Well done good and faithful servant enter into the joy of your master.”
Check out the associated video with this blog post HERE.
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