Second Presbyterian Church: Vision, Mission, and Foundational Principles

Vision Statement

Our aim is to glorify God by proclaiming Christ, equipping the saints, and seeking the lost.

 

Mission Statement

We at Second Presbyterian Church desire under the authority and commission of Jesus Christ to make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them to observe all His commandments.  We will therefore seek to:

    •    1. Make the worship of God primary.

    •    2. Walk worthy of Christ pleasing Him in every area of life.

    •    3. Devote ourselves to the proclamation of His Word and to prayer.

    •    4. Equip the body of Christ for works of service.

    •    5. Properly practice the sacraments to strengthen our faith.

    •    6. Rightly administer church discipline for the peace and purity of the church.

    •    7. Do good to one another and to all men.

    •    8. Promote and support evangelistic endeavors to proclaim Christ to the nations.

 

Our Foundational Principles:

    1    The Sufficiency and Authority of God's Word—God has made Himself known specially through His inerrant and infallible word, which is the only rule of our faith and practice.  Therefore all we do should adhere to, be governed by, and be consistent with the truth of His Holy Scriptures, for herein He tells us what to believe about Him and what duties He requires of us.

    2    The Sovereignty of God—The Triune God alone is all-sufficient, independent, and worthy of praise.  He is the source of all being, having dominion over all things, and all things exist for His glory; therefore He is preeminent, not man.  Our aim is thus to be God-centered in all we do so that we might walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, pleasing Him in every respect.

    3    The Centrality of the Christ—God revealed Himself by means of a covenant with man, who in turn violated His covenant plunging all into sin and misery.  God then, according to His good pleasure and grace, revealed His covenant from all eternity to save a people through the Person and Work of Jesus Christ, our covenant Mediator.  We, therefore, proclaim the unsearchable riches of Jesus Christ the Savior of sinners, the sole sufficient ground on which any man can have peace with God.  We call all men to repent and believe in Jesus Christ as He is freely offered in the gospel.  We also set this gospel constantly before believers who are commanded to remember and be motivated by the mighty of acts of God's redeeming grace.

    4    The Priority of Worship—Worship is primary because God is ultimate and not man.  He has created us to glorify and enjoy Him forever, and we shall thus worship Him corporately, in our families, and individually as the Sovereign Creator God who reveals Himself in the Word and calls us to Himself in Jesus Christ.  Our worship, then, aims to be God-glorifying, Christ-exalting, word-based, and offered from the whole man.  And as we do so we propose by the grace of God to exhibit the marks of a true church: the proper preaching of the Word of God, the proper administration of the sacraments, and the proper administration of church discipline. 

    5    Biblical Preaching—Since our worship should be God-glorifying, Christ-exalting, and word-based, there must be a diligent effort to accurately handle the whole counsel of the word of truth.  As God's word is expounded and applied, we aim to call sinners to God in Christ, and teach, rebuke, correct, and train believers in righteousness to thoroughly equip them unto every good work.  Our aim is both to instruct the mind and raise the affections that the true knowledge of God will result.

    6    Biblical Praying—In Christ we have confidence to boldly approach the throne of grace; therefore, we will devote ourselves to prayer being watchful and thankful, knowing that whatever we ask in Jesus' name, according to His will, He will do.  Believing then that He has ordained our prayers in the accomplishment of His plan, we must undergird every aspect of our ministry with corporate, family, and private prayer, praying supremely for the spiritual growth of God's people and the salvation of the lost.

    7    The Importance of the Lord's Day—God, in His mercy, has set apart one day in seven, the first day of the week in remembrance of Christ's resurrection, for His worship.  We thus aim to set aside our worldly endeavors and cares to focus our hearts on worshipping Him corporately, morning and evening, and as families and individuals so that we would remember His works of Creation and Redemption and be strengthened in our souls.

    8    The Necessity of Shepherding—Jesus Christ, the King and Head of the church, rules His church through His appointed elders, whom He commands to shepherd the flock of God which He purchased with His own blood.  Each member of the body of Christ is a sinner and prone to wander; thus each member needs both positive (encouragement and strengthening) and corrective (admonition) discipline so as to grow to maturity in Christ.  We then, as a plurality of elders, aim to engage in warm-hearted, zealous shepherding publicly and privately, teaching, modeling, and praying, so that the saints are equipped for the work of service to the building up of the body of Christ, and the peace and purity of church of Jesus is maintained.

    9    Walking Worthy of Christ—In Christ believers have been delivered from sin's dominion to walk in newness of life being conformed to the image of Christ; therefore, we press the transforming power of Christ to each man that all of life might be submitted to His reign and empowered by His grace.  In doing so we aim to see all His people bearing fruit in every good work, increasing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience, and joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.

    10    Theological Learning—God, creating us to have our living flow from our thinking, commanded that we be transformed by the renewing of our minds; therefore, in order that we might please Christ in every way, we aim to instruct the whole man doctrinally in the Scriptures.  This doctrine revealed in the Scriptures we believe to be accurately summarized in our doctrinal standards, the Westminster Confession of Faith and its Catechisms.  As this doctrine is taught we seek the conscionable submission of all to the government and discipline of the Church as we together study its purity and peace, so that all might come to maturity in the faith demonstrating in our practice that our senses are trained to discern good and evil. 

    11    The Need for Fellowship—By virtue of our saving union in Christ, we, the church of Christ, are His body, and thus members of one another as the household of God; therefore, in this local body of Christ, we recognize that we are dependant on mutual love, concern, and encouragement, along with continual prayer, which enables spiritual growth.  Knowing then that biblical fellowship fosters discipleship, we aim to provide the atmosphere for and equip the brethren unto one anothering in Christ Jesus.

    12    The Work of Evangelism—Christ as the Ruler of heaven and earth has commissioned us to make disciples of all nations, and as those redeemed by His blood we understand that we are His witnesses enabled by the power of His Spirit.  Therefore we as a church aim to model intentional evangelism and train the brethren in both a strategy for and a method to engage in spreading the word wherever we go.

    13    The Importance of Service—Part of our fellowship consists in serving one another through love; yet our service of Christ must also consist of doing good to all men.  This service is exemplified in and lead by our deacons, men called to serve, who in turn help our elders equip the brethren for service.  We aim to develop strategies for and opportunities to partake in local, national, and world missions.  We also aim to engage in local mercy ministry to embody the compassion of Jesus Christ as a means of communicating the gospel for the salvation of sinners.

 

Plan of Implementation

In order to facilitate the outworking of our foundational principles, we the Session of Second Presbyterian Church shall establish, give oversight to, and participate in the following committees:

    •    1. Christian Education: This committee shall set up the structure for and facilitate the theological learning of the congregation from the oldest to youngest. Its work will encompass Sunday school, special conferences, i.e. men's and women's retreats and family conferences, and the overall discipleship of the congregation.

    •    2. Evangelism: This committee shall develop a strategy for and method to equip the brethren in the work of evangelism, and then will aim to provide opportunities for evangelism through evangelistic home bible studies, and intentional evangelistic efforts in the community.

    •    3. Missions: This committee shall develop a strategy with elder and deacon leadership to engage in local mercy ministry, and coordinate with our missionaries to empower the congregation to give vital financial and prayer support in addition to planning short-term mission trips.

    •    4. Fellowship: This committee shall develop a strategy for enabling fellowship opportunities through church gatherings, prayer support, and mutual encouragement.