A Community on Mission Over all mission and vision statements of the Church sits the following statement about being A Community on Mission We are a community of Christ followers who are Empowered by the Holy Spirit, Grounded in the truth of Scripture and Marked by love. We are united in a shared mission to see lives transformed by Jesus Christ. Our strategy is to connect with our communities and our world to: - Show God s Love - Share God s Truth and - Invite people to follow Jesus All to the Glory of God the Father. 1
Our Heart Our Mission To be unified in having a richer relationship with God. Unconditionally expressing God s love to each other and the wider community, To make disciples of Jesus Christ If these three things, with a richer relationship with God in first place, are close to the heart of the Church, we will be in a good place to be a life giving community. 2
Our Flavour Our Values Prayer (value goal) Invest yourself in intimacy with God and reliance on Him. Bible Centred Preaching Invest yourself in knowing God and being transformed by Him. Discipleship/ Fellowship Invest yourself in growing to be like Jesus and loving and encouraging others to grow in their faith. Community Engagement Invest yourself in being a blessing to the community and pointing the way to Jesus. Ministry to Children and Young People Invest yourself in the next generation building spiritual champions. World Mission Invest yourself in impacting the world for Jesus Christ. Values are things that are not just talked about but also seen in action. 3
Our Vision The river in Ezekiel 47 flows from God s presence and wherever the river flows there is life. What if Wyong Baptist Church was like that river? What if wherever the Church (as a community and individuals) went there was a life giving effect? Of course the life giving effect of the river in Ezekiel comes from the presence of God himself. What would it take for us to be a life giving community? What if Wyong Baptist Church became a community where people were growing in faith and equipped for service? A Church that had programs but was encouraging and equipping individuals and groups to be listening to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and walking across rooms, starting ministries, and engaging people right where they are a river of life streaming out in as many different directions as the people of the Church go in the course of their everyday lives. Not all these streams would always lead back to WBC, but all would be used for God s Kingdom. 4
Ezekiel 47:1-12 1 In my vision, the man brought me back to the entrance of the Temple. There I saw a stream flowing east from beneath the door of the Temple and passing to the right of the altar on its south side. 2 The man brought me outside the wall through the north gateway and led me around to the eastern entrance. There I could see the water flowing out through the south side of the east gateway. 3 Measuring as he went, he took me along the stream for 1,750 feet and then led me across. The water was up to my ankles. 4 He measured off another 1,750 feet and led me across again. This time the water was up to my knees. After another 1,750 feet, it was up to my waist. 5 Then he measured another 1,750 feet, and the river was too deep to walk across. It was deep enough to swim in, but too deep to walk through. 6 He asked me, Have you been watching, son of man? Then he led me back along the riverbank. 7 When I returned, I was surprised by the sight of many trees growing on both sides of the river. 8 Then he said to me, This river flows east through the desert into the valley of the Dead Sea. [b] The waters of this stream will make the salty waters of the Dead Sea fresh and pure. 9 There will be swarms of living things wherever the water of this river flows. Fish will abound in the Dead Sea, for its waters will become fresh. Life will flourish wherever this water flows. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shores of the Dead Sea. All the way from En-gedi to En-eglaim, the shores will be covered with nets drying in the sun. Fish of every kind will fill the Dead Sea, just as they fill the Mediterranean. [c] 11 But the marshes and swamps will not be purified; they will still be salty. 12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow along both sides of the river. The leaves of these trees will never turn brown and fall, and there will always be fruit on their branches. There will be a new crop every month, for they are watered by the river flowing from the Temple. The fruit will be for food and the leaves for healing. 5
Statement of Belief In the essentials Unity In the non-essentials Liberty In all things Charity (Love) Wyong Baptist Church is affiliated with the Baptist Churches of NSW & ACT, with whom we share a statement of belief. The Nature and Unity of the Godhead There is one God, who is an eternal, personal Spirit. He is infinite in power, wisdom, holiness, and love. God is Triune in essential being, and revealed to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Deity and Humanity of Christ Jesus Christ as the second Person of the Godhead, is eternally one with God the Father, of whose person and glory, Jesus is the accurate expression. To become human, He was conceived of the Holy Spirit, and born of the virgin Mary, so that two whole and perfect natures, the nature of God, and human nature, were united in one Person; truly God and truly human. The Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, as the third Person of the Trinity, is eternally one with the Father and the Son, yet He is sent by Them to achieve the divine purpose in the world and in the Church. The Divine Inspiration of the Scriptures The Scriptures, consisting of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, are the infallible Word of God. They were written by holy people of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and have supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. 6
The Sinfulness of People People were made in the image of God, and for fellowship with God. By transgression of God s command, humankind fell from fellowship with God, and their nature was corrupted. As a consequence, all people are spiritually dead under Satan s dominion and control, and are subject to God s wrath and condemnation. Therefore, apart from God s grace, people are helpless and hopeless. Christ s Atonement for Human Sin In order to redeem people from the guilt, penalty, and power of sin, Jesus Christ became human and died a sacrificial death as our representative substitute. By His resurrection, God s acceptance of His atoning death was demonstrated. This atonement is sufficient for the whole world, but effective only in those who receive it. The sinner is justified and reconciled to God, not through any personal merit, but solely on the basis of God s gracious gift of salvation in Jesus Christ received through faith. The Work of the Holy Spirit in Salvation The ministry of the Holy Spirit is necessary for the acceptance of God s provision of salvation. The Holy Spirit convinces sinners of their sinfulness, leads them to personal faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, and so brings them to spiritual birth as God s children, and to fellowship in Christ. Working within the life of believers, the Holy Spirit makes real the presence of Christ, witnesses to their relationship with God, leads into all truth, bestows gifts for effective service, and produces grace for holy living. The Church The Church is the body of people whom God has separated from the world through faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. All regenerate persons are members of the universal Church of God, which takes local form wherever groups of believers unite for 7
worship, fellowship, and service in accordance with scriptural principles. All believers are called to a priestly ministry in the offering of spiritual sacrifices, and are sent into the world to be witnesses. God calls individuals to positions of oversight and leadership, or to special ministries. The Church recognises such by ordaining pastors, commissioning missionaries, appointing deacons and other leaders, following New Testament practice. The Baptism of Believers Only by Immersion Baptism is an ordinance of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a public declaration of a person s faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. In accordance with New Testament Scripture, it should be administered only by total immersion, which symbolises the believer s identification with Christ in death, burial and resurrection, the remission of sins, and the believer s dedication of himself to God, to live and walk in newness of life. Communion The Lord s Supper is an ordinance of the Lord Jesus Christ, instituted by Him to be celebrated with the elements of bread and wine by believers in Christ until the end of the age. It commemorates and declares our thanks for the Lord s substitutionary death. The celebration of the ordinance expresses our fellowship with and in the Lord Jesus Christ as members of the Body of which He is the Head. The Return of the Lord Jesus Christ At the end of this age, according to His promise, Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in His glory to the earth. The full consummation of the Kingdom of God awaits His return. 8
The Resurrection of the Dead At the end of the age, there is to be a resurrection, both of the righteous and the unrighteous. After death, people s bodies return to dust, but their spirits return immediately to God the righteous to be with Him, and the unrighteous to be reserved for the judgment. Rewards and Punishments in a Future State God has appointed a day of final judgement for the world. At that time Jesus Christ will judge every person, and each will receive reward or punishment according to his or her deeds. Those judged righteous, in their resurrected and glorified bodies, will receive their reward, and will dwell forever in Heaven with the Lord. The unrighteous will be consigned to Hell, the place of everlasting punishment. 9
Leadership Structure Big decisions are made at the Church meeting but the Church delegates considerable authority to its Leaders to provide leadership and make decisions for the week by week running of the Church. Pastoral Leadership Group Lead Pastor, Associate Pastor & Elders Staff Team Pastors and Admin Support Ministry Leaders People with Specific Responsibility for a Ministry Area 10
Church Covenant Having received Christ as my Lord and Saviour and been baptised, and being in agreement with the church s statements, strategy, and structure, I now feel led by the Holy Spirit to unite with the Wyong Baptist Church family. In doing so, I commit myself to God and to the other members to do the following: I will protect the unity of my church. By acting in love toward other members. By refusing to gossip. By following the leaders. I will share the responsibility of my church. By praying for its growth. By inviting the unchurch to attend. By warmly welcoming those who visit. I will serve the ministry of my church. By discovering my gifts and talents. By being equipped to serve by my pastor/s By developing a servant s heart. I will support the testimony of my church. By attending faithfully. By living a godly life. By giving regularly 11