Our Values
We Are Scripture-Saturated.
We Are Prayerful People.
We Are Committed To Gospel Unity.
We Are Committed To Christ-Centered Community.
We Are Committed To Grace-Driven Service.
We are scripture-saturated.
To treasure God’s Word in our hearts, in the very essence of our being, is to be very careful to take it into our lives and to act upon it (Matthew 7:24-27). In light of the multitudinous ways our minds, eyes, ears, and consequently our hearts are bombarded with error, it is vital that we become soaked, saturated, satiated with Scripture. You cannot get enough Bible. Jeremiah says that he found and ate the words of God, that they became the joy and delight of his heart (Jeremiah 15:16). Jesus said that we live by the Word of God (Matthew 4:4). The writer to the Hebrews calls it a sharp and two-edged sword that pierces the division between soul and spirit and is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the human heart (Hebrews 4:12). The Psalmist said that it was his meditation all day long (Psalm 119:97).
What, then, do I mean by ‘Scripture saturation’ and how do we do it? Every Christian ought to set aside some time every day, preferably in the morning (Psalm 5:3), to read God’s Word in a systematic fashion. There are many tools available to help you with this one option we offer at S&LC is the O.I.A method.
Observation – what does the text say?
Interpretation – what does it mean?
Application – how do I need to change?
We are a prayerful people.
Prayer is foundational. It is one of Jesus’ most direct and specific commands. We pray because Jesus said we should. Moreover, the Scriptures reveal that God will hear and respond to our prayers. We also see in the Bible that we can pray with confidence because God is good and he will not ignore our requests; rather, he will give good things to those of His people who ask.
Prayer is also a form of worship. It demonstrates our trust in God and it honors Him as the one is worthy to be asked and who is sufficient and able to answer. Furthermore, as we pray and see God’s provision and faithfulness, our worship is spurred on and increased.
Like worship, the Biblical model of prayer encourages an ongoing practice, rather than a one-time event:
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV
Prayer is foundational, we are told that it is God’s will that we do it “without ceasing.” The Scriptures call Christians and churches to a prayer life that is marked by a continual dependence on God for provision and guidance.
While prayer is first and foremost about obedience and God’s glory, it is not without benefits for the believer:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
- Philippians 4:6-7 ESV
The Bible urges us to replace anxiety with genuine prayer before the Lord. We strive to be people who are marked by our reliance on our Father.
We are committed to gospel unity.
According to Jesus, one of the ways the world would know that He was sent by God was the demonstration of unity among His people. This means the unity God intends for His people is so supernatural that it will serve as a sign and a wonder to the nations that Jesus was truly sent by God. It will be such a sign and a wonder because of the genuine love and partnership that exists between people who are very different. Unity in the midst of diversity is one of the things that God intends to use to glorify His Son and demonstrate the power of the gospel. We seek to have a multi-cultural, multi-generational and multi-social economical church that is more committed to unity in the body than personal preferences, that do not have eternal impact.
Notice that Jesus says twice in John 17 that the world will believe and know that He came from the Father when it observes the unity of God’s people. Jesus also predicted that the world would know we are His disciples by our love and affection for each other:
“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
- John 13:35 ESV
We are committed to Christ centered community.
When the gospel is central in our lives we long for and discover unity with other believers in the local church, not because of any cultural commonality, but because of our common faith and Savior. It is within this covenant community, if the community itself is Christ-centered, that we experience the kind of fellowship that comforts the afflicted, corrects the wayward, strengthens the weak, and encourages the disheartened.
12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
Hebrews 3:12-13 ESV
not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Hebrews 10:25 ESV
We are committed to grace-driven service.
As believers, we have been given grace upon grace through Jesus (John 1:16). We have received forgiveness of our sins (1 John 1:9), the right to become a part of God's family (John 1:12), eternal life (John 6:40), grace to serve (Romans 12:6-8), even the very breath in our lungs. In short, we were saved by grace to be workers of grace (Ephesians 2:8-10).
1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Romans 12:1, ESV
Scripture shows us that we are able to worship God throughout every moment of our whole lives, and not just at church-run events. We are committed to a lifestyle where we have opportunities to serve everywhere we go. Such as: in the line of our local supermarket, a broken-down car on the side of the road, or assisting an exhausted parent.
We are free from the pressure of having to perfectly perform rituals and can instead focus more on serving the real needs of those we are trying to reach. This is how we can be salt and light in a tangible way.