RivesBaptist.org

Many who visit a church for the first time want to know what the church has to offer. "How can the church minister to my needs." This thought is not wrong nor discouraged as we exist to serve you. The unfortunate reality is that many who call themselves Christ followers don't ever mature beyond this state of mind.

At RBC, we are teaching and experiencing with one another the importance and true joy of serving others. Jesus said himself that the 2nd greatest commandment is to "love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:31)." Mark said in his gospel that "even the Son of Man [Jesus] did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many (Mark 10:45)." As a church family, we have a lot to learn when it comes to sacrificially serving God and each other. The good news is that we desire to follow Christ...and to be like Him.

Our church leadership desires to be biblically accurate and thorough in our philosophy of ministry. As as church, we need to be engaged in the following ministries in order to be obedient to God's Word.
 

Ministry of the Word—Instruction Through . . . 

• Preaching (Ezra 6:14; Neh. 8:8; 2 Tim. 4:1-3, Eph. 4:11).
  The Word of God must be faithfully preached by those who God has appointed/gifted to do so.

• Teaching (Ezra 7:10; Acts 20:20; Col. 1:28).
  The Word of God must be taught in both large and small group settings. This involves questions and answers, and practical dialogue together around the Word with practical applications that hit people where they live.

• Training (2 Tim. 2:2-4).
  Believers must be trained in such practical aspects as how to study their Bibles, how to pray, how to witness, how to walk in the power of the Spirit, etc., that they may, in turn, be able to train others.

• Exhorting (Col. 1:28; 3:16).
  The church must be exhorted to positive decisions for Christ that promote commitment and Christ-like values and living.

Ministry of Worship—Exalting God by . . .

• Giving Praise and Thanksgiving (Heb. 13:15; Col. 1:12; 3:15-17).
  Believers need to be taught and challenged to live by praise and thanksgiving as they share together in the riches of Christ. To encourage this, the church needs some public opportunity to express its adoration to God individually as well as corporately.

• Singing and Making Melody (Acts 16:25; 1 Cor. 14:26; Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16).
  As with all other aspects of worship, music must be the product of spirit-motivated expression to God and should be designed to encourage and unite hearts together in adoration of Him.

• Baptizing (Matt. 28:19; 1 Pet. 3:21).
  Baptism is to be a public demonstration of a believer’s faith, understanding of his or her position in Christ with its ramifications, and this includes commitment to walk with Christ in newness of life.

• Taking Communion (1 Cor. 11:23-24).
  As a public act of worship, the communion service is designed to promote soul searching, evaluation, and reflection on the Savior and what He means to our life. It is a Redeclaration, a testimony of one’s faith in Christ in both His first and second advents, a Remembrance, an act of worship by which we remember and count on the person and work of Christ as the source and means of life, and an expression of the Relationship of harmony and oneness of mind in love, values, and commitment that should exist in the body of Christ.

Ministry of Fellowship—Sharing Together by . . .

• Encouraging (Heb. 10:24-25).
  Believers must be challenged to encourage one another in the practical areas of the Christian life. A key part of this could be small groups which provide for individual sharing, encouragement, and accountability.

• Counseling (Rom. 16:14; 1 Thess. 5:14).
  As believers within the body are built up in the Word, trained for ministry, and exercise their gifts, they should naturally be able to meet many of the counseling needs within the church.

• Disciplining (Matt. 18:15-20; Gal. 6:1-4).
  Because of the clear mandates of Scripture, church discipline is not an option. It is vital for the purity, power, progress, and purpose of the church. Without this restorative ministry, conditions continue which defile, weaken, hinder, and divert the church from its holy calling. However, discipline must be carried out with biblical attitudes, motives, and goals.

• Sharing, Giving (Acts 2:42; 1 Cor. 16:1-2; 2 Cor. 8-9; Gal. 6:7; 1 John 3:16-17).
  The church must be taught the principles of grace giving, eternal priorities, and encouraged to sacrificially meet the needs of the ministry of the church and others through words, deeds, and gifts of love.

• Laboring Together as a Team (1 Cor. 12:4-11, 14f; Phil. 1:27; 1 Pet. 4:10-11).
  Recognizing the body concept and learning to work together as a team with every believer knowing and using their gift(s) is critical for the proper and effective functioning of the body of Christ.

• Helping (Rom. 15:1-3; 16:2; Phil. 2:4; 4:3; 1 Thess. 5:14; Tit. 2:14; 3:1, 8, 14).
  As members of the body of Christ, we need one another and we must learn to care for one another. Another dimension of a healthy church is taking interest in those who need help, being zealous and ready for every good deed in order to meet pressing needs.

Ministry of Prayer—Calling on the Lord by . . . 

• Confession (1 Cor. 11:28; 1 John 1:9; Ps. 66:18; Prov. 28:13).
  Believers should be encouraged to keep short accounts with God in order to keep a conscience void of offense and stay in fellowship for the purpose of God’s glory, effective prayer, meaningful worship, biblical understanding and growth, and effective ministry by the power of the Holy Spirit.

• Adoration (Eph. 3:20-21).
  Believers need to be challenged to make every aspect of their life an act of worship to God by which they count and act on the glories of God’s person and grace. Unless this is true, the Sunday worship service becomes mere lip service, an exercise of self-worship by which people seek to satisfy selfish ends while they manage to keep their hearts from God (Isa. 29:13).

• Intercession and Petition (Eph. 6:18-19; Col. 4:2-3, 12; Phil. 4:6-7; 2 Tim. 2:1f).
  Effectual prayer for others, for oneself and family, for the nation and its leaders, and for the ministry of the church is crucial to all that the church is and does.

Acknowledement: Outline and verses authored by J. Hampton Keathley, III , Th.M.
http://www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=533
*** Adapted by RBC to communicate our thoughts on each subject.