Vision & Values Statement
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Vision:
We are a worshipping church that launches God’s people into ministry and mission.
Values:
The core values of John Knox Church are:
- Outward Focus
We value all attempts which assist the church in looking beyond itself to the wider world with the gospel of Jesus Christ, as well as the process which enables God’s people to discover their giftedness for ministry and to engage the culture with the whole gospel of Jesus Christ.
- Spiritual Maturity
We value the process which enables God’s people, no matter what stage of life and faith, to become like Jesus Christ, and the church to be and become the body of Jesus Christ.
- Pursuit of Excellence
We value the pursuit of excellence in all aspects of Christian life, worship, ministry, and mission. God’s glory demands it and culture expects it.
- Leadership and Leadership Development
We value authentic leaders who will encourage all peoples, individually and
corporately, to discern and respond to God's call on their lives.
"Mere Christianity for Presbyterians"
(also known as the Essential Tenets of the Reformed Faith.)
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Reformed theology recognizes that the primary authority for us in all our faith and life is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, God's Living Word, as the Scriptures bear witness to him. However, there have been times throughout history when it has been necessary for the Reformed Church to articulate its faith and witness as lead by the Holy Spirit in response to different circumstances and challenges at certain times and in certain places. These articulations of faith and witness are found in the various creeds and confessions of the PCUSA in it's Book of Confessions.
These confessional statements are subject to the authority of Jesus Christ and subordinate to Scripture, nevertheless, they are standards giving witness to the faith of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. These statements reflect our understanding of God and what God expects of us at different times in history, but all are faithful to the fundamental beliefs described above.
The Reformed tradition has certain characteristics and convictions found in ten essential beliefs or tenets, which are reflected in the PCUSA's creeds and confessions. Even though we share these common beliefs, Presbyterians understand that God alone is lord of the conscience, and it is up to each individual to understand what these principles mean in his or her life.
The first two beliefs we share with Christians in all times and in all places taken from the faith of the Church universal, particularly the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed.
1 Trinity - God the Father, who is over us, God the Son, who is with us and for us, and God the Holy Spirit, who is in us and among us.
2. Incarnation - In Jesus Christ, the Word of God became flesh and dwelt among us. In Jesus Christ, the Triune God is revealed.
The next two we share with those who took part in the Reformation of the Church in the 16th century in their re-affirmation of God's grace in Jesus Christ as revealed in Scripture.
3. Salvation by grace through faith.
4. Scripture is the Word of God, and our only rule of faith and obedience.
In the remaining six beliefs, the PCUSA affirms the faith and witness of the Reformed
tradition. Central to this tradition is the affirmation of the majesty, holiness, and providence
of God who creates, sustains, rules, and redeems the world in the freedom of sovereign
righteousness and love.
5. Sovereignty and Providence of God
6. The election of the people of God for service as well as for salvation.
7. God's involvement in the covenant community of God's people.
8. A faithful stewardship of ourselves, our gifts, our resources, and the earth.
9. The recognition of the human sin of idolatry, tyranny, and disobedience.
10. The commitment of believers to justice, liberation, and obedience.
John Knox Presbyterian Membership Covenant
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Dear Friends,
We are often welcomed into worship at JKPC with a reminder that this is a place to “believe, belong and become”. As a church we aspire to be a place where people can come to deeper places of “believing” and trusting in Jesus Christ; a place where people can experience a deeper sense of “belonging” to God and to each other in Christian community; a place where people can “become” all that God desires for us to become. To that end, we invite all people who wish to identify with JKPC as members and friends to affirm a covenant commitment.
What is Covenanting? Great question!
That is what the Old and New Testaments are -- God making agreements or promises with us. Covenanting is affirming our relationship with the Lord, each other, and our engagement with the world. At the heart of life at JKPC is the following ways we say Yes to Jesus, one another, and the world. This can be found in Acts 2:42-47. It is important to underscore that these are aspirational and follow the five purposes of JKPC.
1. To cultivate a lifestyle of personal and corporate worship.
2. To seek places of experiencing true Christian community where people connect to God and care for each other, in order that we will all grow deeper in our relationship to Jesus as we hold one another accountable to God and grow deeper into engaging in ministry and mission.
3. To commit daily to following Jesus Christ in every aspect of life and growing in spiritual maturity, becoming like Jesus Christ.
4. To discover your spiritual gifts, passions, and abilities, and to exercise them in ministry to each other in the church for the building up of the church.
5. To engage the world where God has called you as your place in God’s mission in the world.
These five purpose-driven disciplines are not works to save us; rather, these are our grateful response to the work of Jesus in our lives. (Eph 2:8-10) Admittedly, these are high expectations, but is it possible to expect anything less for God?
Be Blessed!
The Session of JKPC
I aspire to take seriously the call to enter more fully into the three great conversions with the people of JKPC.
So, I aspire to the following:
1. To Worship regularly with the Christian community on Sunday (Heb 10:24-25) and to cultivate a lifestyle of worship through the practice of the spiritual disciplines of Bible study, prayer, fasting, etc. (Romans 12:1-2)
2. To be in a Life Group as a means of connecting to God and one another in a smaller community experience as a means of developing stronger and more authentic relationships with God and each other. (1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 3:14-21)
3. To be a life long learner of Jesus Christ by taking advantage of the various opportunities to grow spiritually (Adult Education, Spiritual Renewal Conference, etc.) as a means of learning more about loving God with my mind, living in authentic community, and pouring myself into a ministry, mission, or service project. (2 Tim 2:2,
4. To live a life of whole life stewardship that is guided by the movement of grace and gratitude, recognizing that I am graced by God with time, talents and treasure and that I am called to respond to that grace with a lifestyle of gratitude by aspiring to discover my spiritual gifts/talents and putting them into practice (giving of my time) in the worship, ministry and mission of the church; by aspiring to give a tenth or more of my income to further the worship, ministry and mission of the church. (Romans 12:3-8; Leviticus 27:30; Deuteronomy 12:4-7; I Corinthians 12:1-31; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15; Ephesians 4:1-16)
5. To intentionally seek opportunities to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed with those who do not yet know Christ because God has called each of us to be a sign of God’s love to the whole world. (Psalm 67:2; Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8; 1 Peter 3:15-16).