In his book What Makes the Church Grow? Missiologist Bob Jackson addresses the future of the Anglican Church:
“The absolute core Church activity is to worship God. But mission or evangelism leading to the growth of the Church is not a second order optional extra for enthusiasts. If we are overwhelmed by the love of God for the world then we overflow with the love of God to the world. That is why David Bosch said that “it is not the Church of God that has a mission to the world but the God of mission who has a Church in the world”. God’s mission of saving love to the whole of creation is at the heart of his being and agenda. It flows out of him both to and through the Church. The Church is not the only route by which God’s missional grace flows into the world, but he has chosen and appointed the Church for this purpose.”
The biblical reality is this: the work of evangelising large numbers of people is not the plan of the church, it’s the plan of God who is on mission in the world through his church.
With these things in mind, we are seeking to be a Growing Christian Community, devoted to maturing in Jesus for the Glory of God. This is not something the staff are doing, this is something we are and doing this is just getting on with WHO we are.
There are five things we are committed to prayerfully, to help us achieve God’s vision for his glory:
Magnification – we are made to glorify God in our lives and when we gather together as a church. We seek therefore to have church services that inspire us to live for Jesus through great preaching and music.
Membership – we are designed to love each other and care for each other. We seek therefore to foster a strong sense of community and belonging for all our members where you get to know others and are known by others.
Maturity – Our goal is to grow in Christ-likeness and in the knowledge of God. We seek therefore to encourage people to grow in their relationship with God by engaging with his Word as individuals and in groups throughout the week.
Ministry – God has saved us to serve and use the gifts he has given us for the mutual benefit of the church. We seek therefore to find ministry opportunities for people where they can serve joyfully and inspire others to action.
Mission – God’s Mission is our Mission and we want to see many people in Campbelltown come to know Jesus and our church filled to 1000 people. We seek therefore to have an outward focus, equipping and training members to share the Gospel and invite others to church.
We love hearing stories of how you see the vision being achieved. Send them through by replying to this email and we will publish some each week.
In Christ,
Nigel