Glory to God
Doing All for the Sake of His Name: God is supreme (Isaiah 46:9-10). He deserves our entire focus. He alone is worthy of all praise and honor. He is the reason the church exists. We seek to lift up the greatness and glory of God in all that we do (Romans 11:33-36) without compromise (Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 40:6-8, 12-17, 21-26; 51:6-7; Psalm 8; 1 Corinthians 3:18-23; 10:31).
Gospel Centrality
Keeping the Gospel First: There is only one gospel (Galatians 1:8) and it is central to all of life and ministry. It is the matter of first importance (1 Corinthians 15:3). The message of the gospel is timeless and unchanging. It is the focus of our daily lives and is the only message of hope for the world (Romans 1:16-17, 5:1-2, 6-11; 8:28-38; 1 Corinthians 1:18-30; 15:1-5; 2 Timothy 1:14).
Intentional Discipleship
Making, Maturing & Multiplying Disciples: We know the church is growing when we see people meeting Jesus Christ and growing in their discipleship. Reaching, leading, and helping people follow Jesus is the heart of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20). As a result, our focus is on reaching people with the good news of the gospel. We desire church growth through people experiencing genuine conversion as new creations in Jesus Christ. Our churches do not seek the kind of growth that happens when people simply transfer from another church. We realize that God, in his sovereignty, may call other Christians to leave their existing church and begin serving and growing in a Crossway Network church. We welcome these people as their hearts resonate with our vision and if they have sought to preserve the unity of the church they came from (Matthew 4:19; Luke 19:10; John 17:18; Acts 2:39-42; 1 Corinthians 9:19-22; 2 Corinthians 5:18-22; Colossians 1:3-6; 1 Thessalonians 1:8).
Everyday Mission
Reaching Your World: The gospel message calls people to repent and be reconciled to God (Matthew 4:17, 2 Corinthians 5:17-21). As we seek to proclaim it through our lives and our words (1 Thessalonians 2:8) we need to be wise in our approach (Colossians 4:5). We long to bring it into the world around us with clarity and power. This requires us to understand the cultures in which we live, and to seek to communicate the gospel in a way that connects with the people around us (1 Corinthians 9:19-22). We believe every follower of Jesus should be equipped to actively live out the mission to share the gospel and lead people to Christ. This is often best accomplished when small groups of believers work together to pray and engage those in their spheres of influence (Matthew 4:19; 9:37-10:42; 28:18-20; Luke 10:1-24; Colossians 4:2-6; 1 Peter 1:13-16).
Biblical Community
Living Out the “One Anothers”: We were created for relationships with both God and one another (Matthew 22:36-40). We believe every Christian needs to experience genuine relationships with others in the body of Christ as a way of life (Acts 2:42-47). These relationships are the primary context in which the “one-anothers” of scripture are experienced. Through these relationships, we learn to become more like Christ through serving others and being served in times of need. This is the true outworking of the New Commandment of Jesus in John 13:34-35. As we love one another, we show the world we are Jesus’ disciples, which allows us to effectively reach others for Christ. The world should be attracted to the love and joy that God’s people have amongst themselves. We are committed to foster these relationships through small group communities (John 13:34-35; 17:13-21; Acts 2:41-47; 1 Corinthians 5:5-6; 12:12-31; Ephesians 2:19; 4:25-32; James 5:16; Hebrews 3:13-14; 10:19-25).
Team Leadership
Serving Together in Plurality: We believe each church is to be led by a plurality of godly men who function as pastors (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5-9). We believe the role of pastor to be one and the same with the biblical terms overseer, elder, and bishop (see interchanging use of these terms to refer to a single role in Acts 20:28, 29 and 1 Peter 5:1-4). Among the plurality of pastors, there is recognition of differing giftedness and abilities in leadership that may set some apart from others in function, but not in authority. This may manifest itself, for example, in a “lead pastor” or some other specifically designated “leader among leaders” role (Acts 1:15; 15:13-22; Galatians 2:9; Ephesians 4:11-13; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; 1 Timothy 3; 5:19; Titus 1:5-9; Hebrews 13:17).
Expositional Preaching
Proclaiming the Word of God: We believe that God’s word is the best and greatest gift that we have to offer people. We are committed to sound doctrine (1 Timothy 3:15). For this reason, we are committed to primarily preach expository sermons through entire books of the Bible. At the same time, the local pastors will take seasons to address the needs of their body through topical sermons from time to time. As we preach, we believe the Word of God is for our transformation, not simply our information, and as such we will strive for application and life-change (Ezra 7:9-10; 2 Timothy 4:1-6; 1 Peter 1:23-25; 2:1-2, Hebrews 4:12)
Vibrant Worship
Stirring Our Affection for God: We were created to worship God in spirit and truth (John 4:23), which means worship is a way of life for the Christian and involves everything about us (Romans 12:1). As a significant part of this life of worship, our churches are committed to providing gathered worship settings and congregational singing where God’s people praise Him in spirit and in truth.
In Spirit: By cultivating a freedom of expression as God’s Spirit engages the hearts of His people and empowers them to use their gifts and voices to worship Him with excellence (John 4:23-24; 1 Corinthians 14:15; Ephesians 5:18-20).
In Truth: By singing songs that celebrate and declare gospel truths and promote a high view of God and His glory (Psalm 9:2; 95:1; 100:1-2; 150:1-6; Romans 15:9, 1 Corinthians 15:1-5; Hebrews 2:12; Revelation 5:6-10)