The Kingdom of God
The kingdom of God is a central concept in God’s word. Prophecies of its coming, details of its establishment by our Lord Jesus Christ, and descriptions of its future form a large and important part of God’s revelation to us[i].
Our vision is for our church to reflect the centrality of the kingdom in every area of life. We desire that our decisions and activities revolve around the fact that we are part of the kingdom God has established. We want to recognize that this kingdom is God’s instrument for His reclamation of the world[ii]. Therefore, we desire to be a church with a vision for Christ’s growing kingdom[iii]. We rejoice in the events that brought about the kingdom of God (the incarnation of Jesus Christ, His life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension to rule and reign at the right hand of the Father) and seek to be an active part of its growth, primarily through preaching the gospel[iv].
Our vision for the kingdom of God is not dependent, however, on us acting on our own. This kingdom is the project of the Almighty Lord. He has revealed to us that it will be overwhelmingly successful in history—in this church-age dispensation—and in human culture[v]. God has ordained that it transform the world. We desire, therefore, to be filled with the Holy Spirit so that His power working through us will advance kingdom purposes[vi].
Our vision is to reflect our kingdom orientation in our relationships with other churches. We desire to make common cause with all whom we believe show allegiance to Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection[vii]. While maintaining our Baptist heritage, we want to engage our brethren from other denominations in charitable dialogue and mission[viii]. We hope to remove unnecessary walls between ourselves and our brethren.
[i] Psalm 145:11-13, Isaiah 9:7, Daniel 2:44, 7:14,18,22, Obadiah 1:21, Micah 4:8
[ii] Isaiah 35:1-7, 62:7-12
[iii] Acts 8:12
[iv] I Corinthians 2:3-7, I John 1:1-4
[v] Psalm 72:7-8,10-11, Ps. 110, Isaiah 45:14, I Corinthians 15:24-25, I Timothy 6:15
[vi] Romans 14:17
[vii] Romans 16:1-15,23,
[viii] Acts 11:27-30