Why do we exist as a church?

Why do we exist as a church? What do we share in common? What are our responsibilities?

As we go through or everyday life together, it’s important to have clear answers to these questions so we can be and remain unified. First Corinthians 1:10 (ESV) says, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.”

God has made clear His purposes for His church. If each one of us will embrace the same biblical principles, our church will become unified and focused on the tasks God has for us. A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission will build a great church.

The Great Commandment:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39, ESV).

The Great Commission:

“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, ²⁰teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20; ESV).

• To “love the Lord your God” is to glorify.

• To “love your neighbor” is to give.

• To “make disciples” is to go.

• To “baptize” is to gather.

• To “teach them to observe all” is to grow.

These words of Jesus became the heartbeat of the early church. The same five principles Jesus highlighted in the Great Commission and the Great Commandment found their fulfillment in Acts 2:41-47. May these words find their fulfillment once again in us.