Preparing leaders to do the same

The last few months Scott and I have been blogging through the mission of Bend City Church and the 5 main areas we feel God has called us to focus on as we attempt to fulfill the mission. The final area that we are looking at is Preparing Leaders to Do the Same. The first question rightfully asked about this point is, to do the same what? Obviously this point cannot stand on its own, since it is built on the previous 4 points. So it would probably be helpful to review.

The mission of Bend City Church is we exist to make disciples that live for the glory of God, enjoying him completely. The first four vision points we see as crucial to fulfill the mission are:

1) Praying with utter dependence on Christ
2) Proclaiming the gospel to believers and unbelievers
3) Pursuing live of worship and service in community
4) Partnering in ministry for the sake of the gospel

This leads us to our fifth and final point, Preparing Leaders to Do the Same. We aim to prepare leaders to have a growing passion for first four points listed above. A fruitful church will have a vision that is continuously growing in the hearts and minds of the community of believers. As the mission is being accomplished through the community and the sense of mission is growing stronger, individual members of the body are prepared to lead others into this mission. Jesus chose 12 disciples to pour His life into. These 12 disciples became the 12 apostles and were sent on mission to change the world. From this beginning, we see preparing leaders as an important part of the early church life. The apostle we hear from the most in the New Testament is Paul. We see Paul not only give himself to the preaching of the gospel and the ministry but also to developing and encouraging his “children” in the faith. These “children” are men who he feels a direct responsibility to encourage to shepherd the flock of God. We see his heart clearly in 2 Timothy 2:2;

And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.

Paul wants not only his hearers to know the truth of the gospel, but he tells them that they need to find faithful men who will teach others also. We also see his earnestness in preparing, teaching, encouraging, and warning a few of these leaders, Timothy and Titus, in 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus. Just as Paul did, we aim to prepare faithful followers of Jesus to join us on mission. For us, that means joining us to pray with utter dependence on Christ, proclaim the gospel, pursue a life of worship, and partner with others in this ministry for the sake of Christ and the gospel.