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Getting to Know Gashland
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! A Course of Gashland Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Kansas City, Missouri. ! ! ! ! !
Welcome to Getting to Know Gashland! We are honored to have this opportunity to share with you information about Gashland Evangelical Presbyterian Church and how to become part of our church family. Getting to Know Gashland also aims to address common questions about what it means to be a Christian in general, and a member of Gashland in particular. In Getting to Know Gashland, you will learn about (and hopefully resonate with!) our vision, our core
beliefs, our ministry philosophy, and our desire for missional ministry. It is very likely that along the way, you will have questions. When this is the case, please feel free to ask any question, or to contact any of the church staff members for answers. We hope that Getting to Know Gashland will be a positive experience for you. We’re very glad you are here!
Getting to Know Gashland
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Getting to Know Gashland Table of Contents
Part One Introductions & Essentials …………………………….……………….Page 4
Part Two Who We Are…………………..………….…………………………..………Page 8
Part Three Who We Are, Part 2 and The Sacraments……………..………Page 15
Part Four Ministry Values…………….……………………………………………….Page 19
Part Five Following Christ at Gashland Our Membership Process & Commitments……….………….Page 20
Part Six re:shape Overview and Q&A……….…………………………………Page 26
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!! Part !! One: Introductions & Essentials !! ARE COMMITTED TO BIBLICAL ESSENTIALS !! WE At Gashland, we believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God, is without error, and !! contains everything we need to know about having a right relationship with God and the community. The Bible is the basis for the following essential beliefs (2 Timothy !! human 3:16-17): !! 1. God is one (Mark 12:29), yet mysteriously exists in three Persons (Father, Son, and !! Holy Spirit), who are to be equally loved, honored, and adored (Matthew 28:19). is fully God and fully human. He is the one and only Mediator able to restore !! 2.theJesus fractured relationship between God and people (John 14:6; Acts 4:12). !! 3. The Holy Spirit is God and long ago participated in the creation of the world, !! protecting it and giving it life. That same Spirit is given to Christians as a Helper, one opens our eyes to our condition and to the saving work of Christ and changes our !! who hearts. He continues to help us by convicting us of sin and drawing us to the Savior. He us new life, is present within us, and empowers us and imparts gifts to us for !! gives service. He instructs and guides us into all truth, and seals us for the day of redemption. !! ! People are created by God, in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Therefore, all people !! 4a. must be treated with dignity, honor, and respect (James 3:9-10). At the same time, in quest for independence and self, all people have been alienated from God, and are !! their without hope apart from His loving and gracious intervention (Romans 6:23; Ephesians !! 2:1). Our sin has created a “debt” to God that we cannot pay. ! !! ! Notes: ! ! ! !! !! !! !! !! !! ! www.gashland.org
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4b. Good Works do not and cannot make a person acceptable to God (Ephesians 2:8-9), but are the natural outcome of authentic faith in Jesus (James 2:17). However, we become more fully human—the very best version of ourselves—to the degree that we follow God’s loving commands. His commands, properly understood, are neither limiting nor oppressive. They are life-giving, and submission to them is essential for human flourishing. 4c. Restoration between God and people (also called ‘salvation’) is completely dependent upon the work of God's free gift (also called “grace”). God takes those who are in debt to Him because of their failure and sin and credits to them something they do not deserve. Through Christ alone, God takes away our unrighteousness and gives us (credits to us) the righteousness of Christ. This restores us to Him and “justifies” us in His sight. In this we become children of God and are made heirs of eternal life. God will also restore the entire universe to a place of beauty, rest, joy, and freedom through Christ (Romans 8:18-30). 5. The Church is the family of God, and consists of those who place their functional trust (faith) in Jesus. God wants all members of His worldwide Church, together with their children, to be active in a local church which meets regularly to worship God, serve each other, and be a life-giving presence in local community and world (Acts 2:42-47; Hebrews 10:24-25). The church can be defined both as “visible” and “invisible”. 6. Jesus Christ Will Return to the earth-personally, visibly, and bodily-to judge the living and the dead, and to complete history and the eternal plan of God. "Even so, come, Lord Jesus." (Rev. 22:20)7. 7. Our Mission given to us by Jesus Himself, is to “proclaim” and “demonstrate” the Gospel throughout the world. We are given the privilege to participate with God as He opens the hearts of men and women and grows them into followers of Jesus.
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God direction to His leadership structure through an office in the church known as “elder”. The elders together create a team called “The Session”. The Session is responsible for the primary leadership and oversight of the church. In the Bible elders are specifically responsible for two items, 1) ministry of the word and 2) prayer. There are four ministry teams that seek to oversee the ministry of the word. Those teams form the acronym, W.O.R.D., which stands for Worship, Outreach, Relationships, Discipleship. There is a fifth team, the Coordinating Team, that oversees other duties assigned to the elders by our denomination, the EPC.
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WORSHIP TEAM
The Worship Team’s primary responsibility is to facilitate and implement biblicallybased Christ-centered worship services focused on God’s redemptive work for sinful people thru the death and resurrection of God the Son – Jesus Christ!
The Outreach team plans and oversees GPC’s ministries that focus on bringing the power and hope of the Gospel to a lost and broken world. They oversee outreach events of the church as well as the missionaries Gashland supports. Elders: Bill Pearce, Roy Stewart
Elder: Paul Weatherford
RELATIONSHIPS TEAM
The Relationships team initiates and oversees the various ministries that foster loving relationships among the members of GEPC. It also functions to encourage the Session and individual members to grow in relationship with one another. Elders: Larry Harris, Fontaine Tebo
OUTREACH TEAM
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DISCIPLESHIP TEAM
The Discipleship Team provides leadership, perspective and oversight for all Christian education ministries. The Discipleship Team encourages spiritual growth and development—“ Teaching these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.” Elders: Matt Martinie, Chris Taylor
COORDINATING TEAM
The Coordinating Team provides oversight and facilitates the functioning of the body, members and staff, in accordance with the Holy Scriptures, the EPC Book of Order, and Book of Government through service to the glory of the Almighty God. Elders: Dallas Reeve, Mark Lancaster www.gashland.org
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! ! ! ! !In the book of Acts, the office of Deacon (Acts 6) falls under the umbrella of leadership !of the Session. The Deacons are an office of service, and seek to manage the material !items of the church as well as help in the areas of mercy and benevolence within the !church and the surrounding community. The four teams listed below oversee these !aspects of ministry. Finance and Property oversee the material items of the church, !while Mercy and Helps serve and meet other needs. ! !
! ! ! MERCY TEAM ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! FINANCE TEAM !! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Notes: ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
The Mercy Team provides help and care for the sick, elderly, and those in need within Gashland Presbyterian Church as well as assist with walk in requests and catastrophic situations outside Gashland. Deacons: Mary Lancaster, Cindy Taylor
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HELPS TEAM
The Helps Team serves Gashland by presenting a warm welcome on Sunday mornings, as well as working with the above Session teams to help serve any ministry event needs. Deacons: Linda Reeve, Gail Stewart
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PROPERTY TEAM
The Finance Team records and reports the financial resources of the church. They also seek to give the Session financial information important for them to carry out Gashland’s ministry vision.
The Property Team seeks to keep the property functional and operational, and maintain the integrity of the building so that the ministries of the church can forward unhindered.
Deacon: Jeff Overton
Deacons: Tom Clapham, Matt Armstrong
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! WORSHIP TEAM- Paul Weatherford ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Two: Who We Are Part ! ! ! OUR DENOMINATION Evangelical Presbyterian Church ! ! Gashland is part of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. The following is a list of ! how this fits into from Broad to Specific. ! ! 1. We are Christian ! ! 2. We are Evangelical ! ! 3. We are Reformed ! 4. We are Covenantal ! ! 5. We are Presbyterian ! ! 6. We are a Part of the EPC ! ! ! ! !Notes: ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! The Worship Team’s primary responsibility is to facilitate and implement biblically-based Christ-centered worship services focused on God’s redemptive work for sinful people thru the death and resurrection of God the Son – Jesus Christ!
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WE ARE CHRISTIANS, WE ARE ‘GOSPEL PEOPLE’ A Christian is anyone who trusts and follows Jesus—that is, anyone who believes the Gospel or ‘good news’ that Jesus gave his life to renew the world and to rescue a broken humanity from itself. A Christian is also a person whose life gives evidence to this belief through surrender and obedience to God. All Christians will affirm and embrace each of the seven beliefs stated above (also summarized in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds).
THE CHRISTIAN GOSPEL ESSENTIALLY MEANS THREE THINGS: 1. ‘I am a treasure and I am a mess.’ According to the Bible: We are God’s creation. We are designed to be in relationship with Him. We belong to Him, we are valuable to him, and we owe Him gratitude, worship, and obedience because He is our sovereign, benevolent Creator. “We are starved for the glory of God, not self. No one goes to the Grand Canyon to increase self-esteem. Why do we go? Because there is greater healing for the soul in beholding splendor than there is in beholding self...The point is this: We were made to know and treasure the glory of God above all things; & when we trade that treasure for images, everything is disordered. The sun of God’s glory was made to shine at the center of the solar system of our soul, and when it does, all the planets of our life are held in their proper orbit. But when the sun is displaced, everything flies apart. The healing of the soul begins by restoring the glory of God to its flaming, all-attracting place at the center.” - John Piper, ‘Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ
• We are sinful and therefore incomplete. We are not everything we could
be. As fallen creatures, we want to be the center of the universe. Rather than submit to God’s will, we prefer (to put it bluntly!) that God submit to our wills. We want to be in control because of the functional belief that we know better than God does how the world should be run. The root of this tendency to stray is what the Bible calls idolatry—ascribing ultimate glory/weight to, loving and centering our lives around, created things instead of our Creator.
2. ‘God is grieved by my proneness to wander from Him. Still, He loves me more than I ever dared to hope. This is true when I am at my best and when I am at my worst.’ God, not a self-renovation project, is our single, sure hope. God is:
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“God is a Spirit; infinite, eternal, and unchanging in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. - The Westminster Shorter Catechism, Question 4
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• Love and anger. God’s love is both His desire to be in relationship with
us, and His active concern for our flourishing. He wants what is best for us, all the time. Because He is good and loving, He is also just—He will not be passive about the presence of sin, and the idolatry that causes it, in us (Habakkuk 1:13). Because sin and idolatry will destroy us, He is committed to driving it out of us. “We tend to be taken aback by the thought that God could be angry... We take pride in our tolerance of the excesses of others. So what is God’s problem?...But love detests what destroys the beloved. Real love stands against the deception, the lie, the sin that destroys...The more a father loves his son, the more he hates in him the drunkard, the liar, the traitor...Anger isn’t the opposite of love. Hate is, and the final form of hate is indifference.” - Rebecca Manly Pippert, Hope Has Its Reasons
• Jesus Christ. Jesus is ‘God in the flesh,’ who came to earth and lived a
perfect life in our place (Hebrews 4:15, 2 Corinthians 5:21), satisfying God’s demand that we achieve a perfect, righteous record before Him. Jesus also died a sinner’s death in our place, taking all of the anger of God toward our sin upon Himself (John 3:16-18)!
3. ‘God’s loving response to my resistance to Him calls me to a new life. I cannot stay the same.’ What this means is:
• We believe the truth God has shown us. To believe or ‘have faith’ is to
transfer our functional trust from our own efforts to the efforts of Jesus on our behalf. We were relying on other things to make us acceptable, but now we consciously begin to rely on what Jesus did to gain our acceptance before God. We daily ‘preach the Gospel to ourselves’ and to each other.
• We repent as a daily way of life. To repent is to admit that we often
desire to live as our own masters, worshipping the wrong things, savoring ‘forbidden fruit,’ resisting God’s loving laws. ‘Repentance’ means receiving God’s forgiveness through Christ, and turning toward God daily with fresh resolve to live for and center our lives upon Him.
• We pursue life in community with fellow Christians. There will be
more on this later. We ‘so love the world’ as God does. More on this
Notes
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WE ARE PART OF SOMETHING BIGGER There is a term used to describe our connectedness to all true Christian churches of all time that is often misunderstood. The term is “catholic”. By “catholic” we’re not referring to the Roman Catholic Church, but to the original meaning of the term which is “according to the whole” or “universal”. “Catholic” is a terms that recognizes our unity with all true Christians, and that expresses our desire to be connected with the historic and global body of Christ. We embrace the basic (i.e. “Essential”) teachings believed by all true churches throughout history that have proclaimed historic Christianity. These teachings have been confessed in the ecumenical creeds, particularly the Apostle’s and Nicene Creeds. The three basic teachings of this history are: TRINITY. There is one God, who eternally exists in a community of three persons —Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. INCARNATION.The 2nd person of the Trinity—God the Son—became human in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is both fully God and fully human. ATONEMENT. Jesus died on the cross and was raised from the dead for the salvation of everyone who trusts in Him.
WE ARE EVANGELICAL As an evangelical church, we believe that we are charged with the task of taking the gospel message to those who have not heard it. See “Essential #7” listed above.
Notes
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WE AIM TO BE GRACIOUSLY REFORMED The Protestant Reformation, which started in the 16th century, emphasized the importance of preaching in worship, the sovereignty of God in creation and redemption, the priesthood of all believers, and the centrality of the Gospel in the life of the church. As a Reformed Church, we believe that the sacraments of baptism and communion not only represent God’s grace, but also seal and apply that grace to our lives. As a Reformed Church, we are committed to a Presbyterian (leadership by representative elders) system of church government. As Reformed Christians, we are committed to living out the implications of God’s mercy and grace in every area of our lives, and believe that all of life, at home, at work, at play, is to be lived to the glory of God. Reformed Churches will therefore answer the question, Why am I a Christian?—with the following Scriptural truths:
Notes
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A REFORMED RESPONSE ‘WHY AM I A CHRISTIAN?’ • Because God opens the eyes of those who see. A major tenant of the
reformed tradition is the “depravity” or sinfulness of man and the sovereignty of God. At Gashland, you may occasionally hear an illustration of a character named “Everett Body”. Everett is a reminder of our condition in our sin. This is a significant problem! But despite this problem, we have a God who chooses to breathe life into death. We are told that God’s choice of giving life to us is not based on anything we have done, good or bad (Romans 9:11-13). God doesn’t ‘foresee the good guys’ because there are no good guys. We all fall short of the mark (Romans 3:10-12). If God’s decision to give us life were based on merit no one would ever be selected! (Deuteronomy 6:9; 1 Corinthians 1:27; Romans 9:23). God shows His mercy to people who neither want nor deserve it (Romans 5:8). So why did God choose us? The answer is a mystery. It was for His own glory, and because in His mercy He was pleased to do so (Ephesians 1:1-14).
GETTING TO KNOW EVERETT BODY
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• Because Christ died for you personally. Christ’s atonement is personal.
He died for His church (Ephesians 5:25-27). He ‘laid down His life for His sheep,’ who hear His voice (John 10:15, 26-29). Christ came to give His life for ‘all the Father had given Him’ (John 6:39; 10:29; 17:2, 24), and promised to raise all of them up on the last day (John 6:39-40).
• Because God made you alive when you were spiritually dead. We
have free will, in that we are free to do whatever we desire. However, no one naturally desires to love or obey God (Romans 3:23; 8:7; 1 Corinthians 2:14). We are not sick with sin—we are dead in it (Ephesians 2:1-2). Our only hope is for Christ to make us alive (regeneration), for Him to draw us to Himself (John 6:44). Just as God created the world out of nothing by calling it into being, so He calls us into life out of death (2 Corinthians 4:5-6). The ability to repent and place our faith in Christ is a gift (2 Timothy 2:25; Ephesians 2:8-9). God acts first in our salvation—He is its author (Hebrews 2:10; 12:2). Regeneration (God’s action) must come before faith (our response), or faith wouldn’t be a gift and our salvation would be ultimately based on our good works. We must be born again to see the Kingdom (John 3:3), and that new birth comes from God (John 1:12-13). God’s grace is the only reason one person is a Christian and another is not. ‘For who makes you different than anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive?’ (1 Corinthians 4:7).
• Because God wants you forever and will preserve you. God begins
our salvation and promises to carry it through to completion—that is, complete restoration to the image of Christ (Philippians 1:6; John 10:27-30). Once we are in His hands, we can never be taken out of them (John 10:27-30; Romans 8:34- 39; Philippians 1:6). The growth of our character is a matter of cooperation with God’s Spirit (Romans 6:11-14; 12:1-2; 13:12-14; Ephesians 6:10-18). But God is the ultimate source for the growth (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Ephesians 2:9; Philippians 2:12-13).to be self-governing, self-supporting and self-propagating.
Notes
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OUTREACH TEAM- Bill Pearce ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Part Three: Who We Are, Part 2 and ! ! The Sacraments ! !WE ARE “COVENANT PEOPLE” ! !From Genesis to Revelation, God reveals a plan of salvation that comes by one !means and one only: by grace (His undeserved favor) through faith (personal ! trust) in Jesus alone. Old Testament Christians looked ahead in time by faith in ! Jesus Christ as their promised Savior. Since New Testament times, Christians ! have looked back in time by faith in Jesus: ‘Beginning with Moses and all the ! Prophets, (Jesus) explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures ! concerning Himself’ (Luke 24:27). Some implications include: ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! THERE HAS BEEN ONE, AND ONLY ONE, PLAN OF SALVATION ! SINCE THE FALL OF ADAM AND EVE ! ! The following picture seeks to answer the question, “How were people in the ! Old Testament saved?” This illustration takes us into an understanding of God’s ! promise or covenant with Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David. ! ! ! ! Notes ! ! ! ! ! The Outreach team plans and oversees GEPC’s ministries that focus on bringing the power and hope of the Gospel to a lost and broken world. They oversee outreach events of the church as well as the missionaries Gashland supports.
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THE COVENANT MEAL—THE LORD’S SUPPER The Lord’s Supper is the completed expression of the Old Testament Passover (Exodus 12:23-27; Matthew 26:26-29; 1 Corinthians 5:7; 11:17-34), and is a ‘meal’ of bread and wine which gives us a visible, tangible expression of the lovesacrifice Jesus made for His followers, by both living and dying in their place. At Gashland, based on the teaching of 1 Corinthians 11, we like to keep the following things in mind as we receive The Supper: • A reverent remembering. Receiving the Supper is one of the most authentic and most sacred moments of a believer’s life. As you approach the Lord’s Table, please do so with a circumspection that is appropriate to the occasion. Our right to partake of the bread and cup was purchased for us through the sacrificial death of Jesus. ‘As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death.’ • A community meal. Contrary to common Western assumptions, The Supper was never intended to be a private affair or solely a time of personal reflection. Jesus first shared the Supper around a table with his disciples. First century believers shared The Supper in the setting of a ‘love feast’—a rich, communal pot-luck filled with reverence and laughter, sobriety and joy, worship and sharing, prayer and mutual encouragement. ‘When you come together...as often as you (plural) eat this bread and drink this cup…’ • An appetizer. The Supper does not merely look back in time to the finished work of Jesus. It also looks forward in time to the day of his return, when he will gather his Bride, the worldwide Church of the past, present, and future, around a banquet table for the Wedding Feast of the Lamb. All of history is headed toward the greatest wedding party ever celebrated. The way we celebrate The Supper today is meant to be a foretaste of that. ‘You proclaim the Lord’s death...until he comes.’
Notes
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THE COVENANT SIGN—BAPTISM In the Bible, baptism is a sign and seal of one’s inclusion in the covenant of grace (as a ring is a sign of the marriage covenant). At Gashland, it is our belief that both believers and their children are qualified to receive the sacrament of baptism. In the case of infant or child baptism, the sacrament itself does not ensure the child’s salvation, nor is there necessarily an instantaneous filling with the Holy Spirit connected to the water. A child’s baptism becomes fully effective when he or she receives the Gospel by faith. Prior to this time, the child is considered a ‘non-communing member’ of the church, and is entitled to the same oversight, care, and instruction as a communing member. However, a non-communing member of the church may not celebrate the Lord’s Supper until faith in Christ is declared.
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WE ARE PRESBYTERIAN - Refers to Form of Government Different Forms of Church Government: EPISCOPAL & CONGREGATIONAL
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PRESBYTERIAN: Four Basic Organizational Units
• Local Church Board of Deacons - Ministry of Service and Material Items Acts 6:2-4, 1 Tim 3:8-13
• Local Church Session/Elders - Ministry of the Word and Prayer Titus 1:5-7, 1 Tim 3:1-8
• Presbytery - Regional Collection of Local Churches • General Assembly - Collection of Presbyteries!
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WE ARE EPC History of the EPC • 1837 - Presbyterian Church Split • 1861 - Split During Civil War • 1865/70 - Old School and New School - North and South • Rise of Liberalism in 1930’s • 1958 - UPC and PCUS • 1973 Conservatives Broke off and formed PCA • 1980-83- North and South union between UPC and PCUS=PCSUA • 1980-83- EPC formed
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Unique Attributes • Adherence to the Westminster Confession of Faith and Larger, Shorter Catechisms • In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty, In All Things Charity • “Essentials of Our Faith” • Balance View On Three Persons of Trinity • Two Ruling Elders For Each Teaching Elder • Local Church Has Certain Inalienable Rights • Focus on Gospel Over Against Good Works • No “Per Capita Tax” • Use of Position Papers
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DISCIPLESHIP TEAM- Matt Martinie ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Part Four: Ministry Values ! ! MINISTRY VALUES THAT DRIVE MISSION & VISION ! ! 1. We are biblical. ! ! 2. We are Gospel centered and grace driven. ! ! ! 3. We do things with excellence. ! ! 4. We are relational. ! ! 5. We are equipping (we make disciples). ! ! 6. We are participatory ! ! 7. We are missional & incarnational. ! ! 8. We are creative. ! ! 9. We deal with problems and “unhealth” head on, but we do it ! with grace. ! ! 10. We share what we learn. ! ! ! ! Notes ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
The Discipleship Team provides leadership, perspective and oversight for all Christian education ministries. The Discipleship Team encourages spiritual growth and development—“Teaching these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.”
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COORDINATING TEAM - Dallas Reeve ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Part Five: Serving Christ at Gashland & Membership ! ! This final section of Getting to Know Gashland describes membership in ! ! the Presbyterian Church in general (we are part of the Evangelical ! Presbyterian Church), and at Gashland in particular. Hopefully, this ! section will be helpful in guiding you in your understanding of, and/ or ! your decision related to becoming, a covenant member of Gashland. ! ! How do I become a member of Gashland? ! ! Step 1: Completion of the Getting to Know Gashland Course ! ! Your first step is attending Getting to Know Gashland. Attendance of the ! course does not obligate you in any way toward membership—you may ! simply find out more about Gashland’s mission, values, and doctrine if ! you wish. ! ! Step 2: The membership interview ! ! When you have decided you want to belong to the Gashland family and ! have completed Getting to Know Gashland, you will need to meet briefly ! with a leader of the church known as an elder. Generally, this ! opportunity is given toward the end of Getting to Know Gashland. ! ! The interview both enables us to get to know you better, and gives you ! an opportunity to ask any questions, or offer any feedback, that you may ! have. This is your opportunity to interact with leaders, to make sure you ! are comfortable with your decision to join Gashland. ! ! ! ! Notes ! ! ! !
The Coordinating Team provides oversight and facilitates the functioning of the body, members and staff, in accordance with the Holy Scriptures, the EPC Book of Order, and Book of Government through service to the glory of the Almighty God.
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Step 3: Session approval After the interviews, the elders meet to officially enter the new members into our body. This is technically the official point of member reception— after that date you may be considered a full voting member. All that remains is your public acknowledgment before the congregation. Step 4: Public vows After the Session meeting, we will confirm the date and service you will attend to make your public promises. When the time is called, you will go forward and affirm the promises after they are read by a pastor. Step 5: Baptism If you have never been baptized, and are making your first public profession of faith, you may be baptized during the worship service. Let the elder know during your interview and we will schedule your baptism (or for parents, a child baptism). On the date of baptism, please arrive 15 minutes before the service to meet with a pastor. The baptism will take place after you have affirmed the promises of membership.
Notes
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What are the expectations of active membership? How do you grow into active membership at GEPC, fleshing out your promise to support the Church? What does God intend for His people to do as part of His Church? We encourage our members to live out their membership in the context of Scripture’s expectation for their life as a Christian. The Christian walk is a practical walk:
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Commit to weekly worship with fellow sons and daughters of God • Worship even when you are away from your home congregation. See Hebrews 10:24-25. Commit to ministry involvement • Besides participating in Worship and other community events, each member should find ways to minister to others. Use your gifts! See 1 Peter 4:10-11. Commit to active participation in a GEPC Community • Communities accomplish the upreach component of Christianity by worshiping together with the larger family at GEPC. Communities also are/ will be the primary way that inreach (Gospel ‘one anothering’—living life together along the lines of Acts 2:42-47) and outreach (serving our Kansas City neighbors in fulfillment of the Great Commandment and the Great Commission) occurs at GEPC. For your own spiritual growth as well as others, involvement in a Community is a top priority. See Acts 2:42-47, Ephesians 4:15-16.
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Commit to walking daily with Jesus Christ • In other words, prioritize the spiritual disciplines in the daily use of the means of grace—Bible reading and prayer—methodologically for your own spiritual growth. See Mark 1:35. Commit to faithful stewardship of finances through tithes and gifts • Generosity is not only part of how the mission of the church is accomplished. It is also essential for human flourishing. God, who needs nothing from us, tells us to cultivate regular patterns of generosity because he loves us and wants what is best for us. See Malachi 3:8-10, 1 Corinthians 16:1-2. Commit to bring and include new people. • Let the Gospel overflow from your life into the lives of those around you—at home, at work, in your circle of friends. Help those you bring to GEPC connect into the life of the church. See Acts 2:41-47.
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What if I choose not to become a formal member? If you decide to stay involved with GEPC without membership, there will be no effort to pressure you into joining. Do not join unless you are ready to be committed! A broken promise is worse than no promise at all. Non-members may worship with us, attend meetings on the church’s future, be active in a Community or other ministry, attend GEPC events, etc. Many regular attendees have been quite active with our church without a membership commitment— but we prefer to have you inside the family.
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What are the formal membership promises? GEPC belongs to a wider family—the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC), a denomination in the Reformed and Covenantal tradition. Membership at GEPC means you have committed yourself to our family of believers—that you have agreed to participate as fully as you are able in the life, ministry, and government of the church. Therefore, GEPC members must affirm the following promises as a vow to the Lord. 1. Do you acknowledge yourselves to be sinners in the sight of God and without hope for your salvation except in His sovereign mercy? 2. Do you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the Savior of sinners, and do you receive and depend upon Him alone for your salvation as He is offered in the Gospel? 3. Do you now promise and resolve, in humble reliance upon the grace of the Holy Spirit, that you will endeavor to live as becomes the followers of Christ? 4. Do you promise to serve Christ in His Church by supporting and participating with this congregation in its service of God and its ministry to others to the best of your ability? 5. Do you submit yourself to the government and discipline of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and to the spiritual oversight of this Church Session, and do you promise to promote the unity, purity and peace of the Church? • Accountability promise: You hold yourself accountable to the Bible, the leadership, and one another to live according to the promises, and you seek to be a biblical peacemaker in your relationships, according to Matthew 5:23-26, Matthew 18:15- 35, and Galatians 6:1-2.
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Coming to Gashland is much more than a Sunday morning experience. It is about engaging with God and with one another.
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God did not design us to be alone. He designed us to be in a relationship with Him and also with one another. As we serve along side one another and open up our hearts when we are in need, we reect the calling on our lives to participate in the furtherance of the Kingdom of God in a world that desperately needs to hear and experience the Gospel message.
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We have various opportunities to serve and engage with each other and in the redemptive work of God. We have needs within our church where you can use your gifts/skills and pursue your ministry passions. Also, GEPC wishes to minister to you! Each ministry has a lead contact person, and you may call the oďŹƒce to be put in contact with them.
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RELATIONSHIPS TEAM- Larry Harris, Chair ! Melissa Cable, Presenting Team Member ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Part Six: re:shape Overview and Q&A ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! At Gashland we believe that every Christian has been given at least one, and ! often times many, spiritual gifts from God. re:shape is a ministry of Gashland ! that takes you through a process to help you see how God has shaped you. ! We look at the spiritual gift set He has given you, the way in which He has ! "wired" you, and finally the passions He has given you. It is our hope that ! you can find a place to serve in ministry where all three of these things are ! satisfied. Sign up at www.gashland.org/reshape to begin the process! ! ! ! ! Q & A Time ! ! ! Notes ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
The Relationships team initiates and oversees the various ministries that foster loving relationships among the members of GEPC. It also functions to encourage the Session and individual members to grow in relationship with one another.
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Extra Notes:
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