Ministry is What We Do
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Send by emailAnd Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." - Matthew 28:18-20
Jesus' Great Commission (above) constitutes our marching orders in His service. We do this in accordance with His Great Commandment: "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these." - Mark 12:29-30
From these flow our ministry, which we classify into five general categories:
1. Discipleship: helping each other grow in our relationship and commitment to Jesus as Lord and Savior to be more than mere admirers of Jesus, but Disciples of Jesus who honestly strive to follow Him and live as He would have us live. This encompasses our Worship, and Christian education on many levels. While not the sole piece of scripture we look to, in the 5th chapter of Matthews Gospel, Jesus goes a long way in spelling this out for us to live as He lived.
2. Mission/Outreach: To be the healing hands of Jesus in this broken and sinful world... It includes taking care of those in spiritual and physical need in our community and beyond, and doing it in the loving way Jesus did. James implores us that faith without good works is dead: If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. - James 2:15-18. We do this in our community, region and worldwide.
3. Stewardship/Finance: We acknowledge we are owners of nothing but simply stewards of what God has entrusted us with. That includes not only our individual lives, but the corporate property we share at 166 Marion Avenue in Gilbertsville and the assets of Christ Church. We're charged with making the most of what He has given us, always to His honor and glory. We acknowledge the Biblical minimum standard of giving is the Tithe, or 10%. for Christians, and strive to develop giving toward and beyond this standard. Accordingly, Christ Church gives at least 10% of our income each year to outreach and missions in our community, region and world.
4. Evangelism/Communications: Spreading the Good News of The Gospel in our community and beyond is charged to this commission, and includes getting the word out of all we do through all five of these categories. Our website, newsletter, and all other communications flow through this group.
5. God's House/Buildings & Grounds: We have been blessed with a beautiful historic church and piece of property conveniently located on State Highway 51 in the village of Gilbertsville. It does require substantial resources to maintain this property and preserve its historic beauty. We strive to do it in a fiscally responsible manner, utilizing the talents of many to do so. It is our primary place of worship, and the primary place where much of our ministry happens. We also share this resource, by making it available for use in the wider community.
