Guiding Values
We are imitating Jesus and participating in holistic, Kingdom transformation of all life and creation, by cultivating a Biblical community, as we strategically innovate in our ministries and remain in mutual commitment to the cause of Christ and care for people.
Imitating Jesus
We live out the love and compassion of Christ, under the authority of His word, bearing witness to Him in our everyday lives, by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Imitating Jesus flows from the great commandment to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength (Deut. 6:4-7), and the work of God’s spirit in us (Ezek. 36:26-28) leads us to obedient response to imitate Christ in word and deed (Eph. 5:1-2; 1 Cor. 11:1; Phil. 2:1-5).
Kingdom Transformation
We are deeply committed to justice and righteousness; we participate with God in His Kingdom to see lives and communities transformed by the gospel worldwide.
The Old Testament emphasises concepts of God’s kingship and reign over Israel. The prophet Isaiah sketches the picture of a messenger bearing good news that, despite destruction, “God reigns” (52:7). In the New Testament, the Kingdom of God is central to Jesus’ proclamation and ministry. The good news of the kingdom breaks into our lived realities and brings about transformation (Luke 4:18-19; Matt. 4:23; Matt.9:35; Acts 1:4).
A Biblical Community
We are Jesus followers who celebrate our diversity in Him, treating all as of equal value — men and women of different cultures, ages and theological and socio-economic backgrounds — with love and respect.
God is just (Deut. 32:4) and requires those who follow Him to act justly (Mi. 6:8) by showing no partiality and by upholding the cause of the most vulnerable. In Isaiah (58), acting justly is compared to a form of worship – a theme carried through in the ministry of Jesus. As Gentile believers were added to the New Testament church, the community wrestled with more layers of diversity, and the early church leaders repeatedly concluded that all are equal and one in Christ, belonging to one body and all partakers of the gospel (Col. 3:11-13; Acts 2:42-47).
Strategic Innovation
We seek to be courageous, creative, relevant and agile in ministry, constantly evaluating progress as we pursue our God-given mission.
The creation account in Genesis (1:1-31) and the incarnation of Jesus (John 1:1-18) reveal God’s nature to innovate. In Jesus, all things have been made new (2 Cor. 5:17-21). In Acts, the Holy Spirit led the Apostles in preaching the gospel, where they went and whom they met and, at times, redirected them. Strategic thinking is about knowing and understanding the times we are living in and discerning the work and leading of the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:29, 10:19-20, 11:12, 13:2-4, 16:6-7, 20:22; 1 Chron. 12:32).
Mutual Commitment
We intentionally collaborate with those committed to our mission with humility, grace and generosity.
The doctrine of the trinity exemplifies unity and mutual partnership, and is evident in the New Testament writing. Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer in John 17 illustrates how He accomplished His mission, being sent by the only true God and sending His unified disciples into the world. The New Testament Epistles are filled with partnership in the gospel of varying degrees with individuals, households and churches. In Philippians 1:27, Paul emphasises very strongly that we stand fast in one spirit, with one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel.
