Thomas Road Baptist Church Praying for Others
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Church #1 Name: Thomas Road Baptist Church
Church #1 Website: www.trbc.org
- Ministry is…praying for others.
- Does the church have a prayer ministry? What does it look like?
The church has a prayer ministry. The culture of prayer is a core value of the church and Jeremiah 33:3 is quoted to support this. However, not much is said about the Prayer Ministry
- Ministry is…following Jesus’ example by practicing spiritual mentoring and multiplying.
- Does the church have a strategy for evangelism?
The mission of the church is “to change our world by developing Christ-followers who love God and love people” and this shows the church’s commitment to evangelism. Additionally, one of the six core values of the church is to share. The church sees to start from their local region and go to the uttermost parts of the world and quotes Romans 10:14: “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? In addition, how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?”
The strategy of evangelism in the church is to reach out to the local population, and national and global populations. National and global evangelism programs include mission trips and educational materials.
- Does the church have a strategy for discipleship?
- Yes, the church seems to have a strategy for discipleship.
- Briefly describe what they look like.
The strategy is to segment believers in small groups according to their age, geographical location, and or interests and disciple them through these groups.
- Ministry is…leading small groups.
- Does the church have a small group ministry? What can learn about their small group ministry from their website?
Yes, the church has a small group ministry known as Life Group. There are groups for all the age groups, meeting schedules, and locations. The groups study the bible together, pray together, and share their life challenges. Groups are available for high school students, college students, adults, women, middle school students, and 1st-3rd grade and 4th-5th grade pupils.
- Ministry is…biblically balanced preaching and teaching
- Does the website exhibit that the church has a strong Bible base?
Yes, the website exhibits that the church has a strong Bible base. It talks about love for God and humanity, encourages readers to join and get into a ministry to serve God, and encourages prayer and fellowship right from infancy. This is encapsulated in the mission “To change our world by developing Christ-followers who love God and love people” and is exhibited in the core values. The core values are commitment to scripture, culture of prayer, lifestyle of worship, connection to the community, heart for serving, and passion for sharing.
- Are verses used throughout the website to support ministries, doctrinal statements, etc.?
Verses are used throughout to support ministries, doctrinal statements, and others. For example, all the six core values are supported by biblical verses. One of the six core values of the church is to serve and it draws upon John 13, Acts 2, and Ephesians 2 and 4. Other core values are evangelism (Romans 10:14), commitment to scripture (Psalm 119:105), lifestyle of worship: (Matthew 22:37), connection to community (Galatians 6:2), and culture of prayer (Jeremiah 33:3).
- Does the church have an organized Christian Education program? If so, what does it look like?
The church has a strong and organized Christian education program that includes an e-bookstore with sermons, devotional books, worship CDs, and other resources. Newsletters are produced periodically to inform and educate members and there are EquipU classes that teach members new skills, increase their knowledge, and help them do hobbies together. Additionally, there is a counseling and recovery program and ministries for each age group and gender that provide education.
- Ministry is…cultivating a culture of godly accountability for yourself and for those you serve.
- Does the church have an organized accountability program? If so, what does it look like?
The church does not have an organized accountability program
- What do you feel is the church’s priority?
Teaching, pastoring and shepherding
Church #2 Name: Church of the Highlands
Church #2 Website: www.churchofthehighlands.com
- Ministry is…praying for others.
- Does the church have a prayer ministry? What does it look like?
Yes, the church has a prayer ministry. The prayer ministry has dedicated intercessors who pray ceaselessly for those in need. One can use a request form for prayers online.
- Ministry is…following Jesus’ example by practicing spiritual mentoring and multiplying.
- Does the church have a strategy for evangelism?
The church has a strategy for evangelism
- Does the church have a strategy for discipleship?
The church has a strategy for discipleship
- Briefly describe what they look like.
On evangelism, the church seeks to reach people through local and national missions and through mission trips and tours throughout the world. Evangelism and discipleship is through multimedia broadcast, CDs and DVDs, leaflets, and various ministries.
- Ministry is…leading small groups.
- Does the church have a small group ministry? What can learn about their small group ministry from their website?
Yes, it has a small group ministry. There are active ministries for kids, students, college students, and adults.
- Ministry is…biblically balanced preaching and teaching
- Does the website exhibit that the church has a strong Bible base?
Yes, the website shows that the church has a very strong biblical base. It has a strong statement of faith, which professes belief in the Bible as the word of God, belief in the Holy Trinity, belief that Jesus Christ is the son of God, belief in the virgin birth, and belief in the redemption of man. The church also believes in the regeneration of man as contained in John 6:44, 65; Matthew 19:28; Titus 3:5, in salvation, in repentance, and in sanctification. Moreover, it believes in the power of Jesus blood to save lives (I John 1:7; Revelation 1:5, 5:9; Colossians 1:20; Romans 3:10-12, 23, 5:9; John 1:29), believes that Jesus indwells in all believers based on John 1:12; John 14:17, 23; John 15:4; Romans 8:11; Revelation 3:20, believes in baptism in the Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28-29; Matthew 3:11; Mark 16:17; Acts 1:5,2:1-4, 17, 38-39, 8:14-17, 10:38, 44-47, 11:15-17, 19:1-6), believes in the gifts of the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 2:4; Romans 1:11, 12 :4-8; Ephesians 4:16; I Timothy 4:14; II Timothy 1:6-7; I Corinthians 12:1-31, 14:1-40; I Peter 4:10), believes that the church is the body of Christ and has a duty to fulfill the Great Commission (Ephesians 1:22, 2:19-22; Hebrews 12:23; John 17:11, 20-23), and believes in the resurrection of Jesus (Luke 24:16, 36, 39; John 2:19-21, 20:26-28, 21:4; Acts 24:15; I Corinthians 15:42, 44; Philippians 1:21-23, 3:21). The church believes in the second coming of Jesus as contained in Matthew 24:30, 26:63-64; Acts 1:9-11; I Thessalonians 4:15-17; II Thessalonians 1:7-8; Revelation 1:7, believes in punishment in hell for sinners as contained in Matthew 25:41; Mark 9:43-48; Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 14:9-11, 20:12-15, 21:8, believes that Heaven is the dwelling place of the righteous Matthew 5:3, 12, 20, 6:20, 19:21, 25:34; John 17:24; II Corinthians 5:1; Hebrews 11:16; I Peter 1:4, and believes in God’s provision of our spiritual, physical, financial, and mental and emotional needs.
- Are verses used throughout the website to support ministries, doctrinal statements, etc.?
Yes, the website uses verses throughout as exemplified in the statement of faith and other web pages.
- Does the church have an organized Christian Education program? If so, what does it look like?
The church’s organized Christian education program consists of ministry training and certificate and degree programs.
- Ministry is…cultivating a culture of godly accountability for yourself and for those you serve.
- Does the church have an organized accountability program? If so, what does it look like?
Yes, the church has an organized accountability program. The program is made up of a Board of Trustees consisting of seven members who act as non-staff elders and who are respected business leaders. They oversee all buildings and properties and ensure that the church acts as a good steward. The trustees are signees to a Conflict of Policy statement. Staff salaries are fixed based on accepted rates and the church complies with the IRS rules and regulations and voluntarily audited every year.
- What do you feel is the church’s priority?
The church’s priority is evangelism and discipleship.
Church #3 Name: Oak Hills Church
Church #3 Website: www.oakhillschurchsa.org
- Ministry is…praying for others.
- Does the church have a prayer ministry? What does it look like?
The church does not seem to have a prayer ministry, as it is not found in their website
- Ministry is…following Jesus’ example by practicing spiritual mentoring and multiplying.
- Does the church have a strategy for evangelism?
The church’s strategy for evangelism is not clearly elucidated.
- Does the church have a strategy for discipleship?
The church’s strategy for discipleship is not clear.
- Briefly describe what they look like.
The strategies are not clear.
- Ministry is…leading small groups.
- Does the church have a small group ministry? What can learn about their small group ministry from their website?
No, it is not evident that the church has a small group ministry.
- Ministry is…biblically balanced preaching and teaching
- Does the website exhibit that the church has a strong Bible base?
Yes, the website exhibits that the church has a strong Bible base. This is exemplified by the church’s core beliefs in one God and the Holy Trinity as found in Romans 8:22-25 and Ephesians 1:13-14 and that Jesus Christ was born by virgin Mary, lived sinless, died to save man, resurrected, ascended in heaven, and mediates on behalf of man to God. The church also believes in the Holy Spirit, salvation through Jesus Christ Romans (3:23, 6:23; John 3:16 Romans 10:9; Acts 2:38), baptism by water, communion (Matthew 26:26-28 Luke 22:19 Matthew 18), and that the church is the body of Christ Ephesians (4: 1-16). Other beliefs are that the Bible is the inerrant word of God (2 Timothy 3:16), that Christ will one day return and judge all people and sinners will be punished in hell while believers go to Heaven (2 Thessalonians 1:8-10; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18), and that women have a role to play in church.
- Are verses used throughout the website to support ministries, doctrinal statements, etc.?
Yes, verses are used throughout the website as shown in the statement of core beliefs.
- Does the church have an organized Christian Education program? If so, what does it look like?
Yes, the church has an organized Christian education program that includes teachings.
- Ministry is…cultivating a culture of godly accountability for yourself and for those you serve.
- Does the church have an organized accountability program? If so, what does it look like?
It is not clear if the church has an organized accountability program as this is not indicated anywhere in their website
- What do you feel is the church’s priority?
The church’s priority is teaching and worship.
- What 3 ministry ideas stood out to you and why?
The three ministry ideas that stood out for me were evangelism and the Legacy Team of the Church of the Highlands and the EquipU classes of the Thomas Road Baptist Church.
Evangelism at the Church of the Highlands is taken very seriously and they have adopted a segmented approach where people are organized into different groups based on age or location or psychographic features and specific messages tailored for each of the group. On the other hand, the Legacy Team is very inspiring as it is a team dedicated to giving. They make contributions that are used to spread the gospel, bankroll building projects, and provide scholarships and bursaries. This is novel to me as it helps people who are endowed with the spiritual gift of giving to utilize their gifts besides advancing the church’s mission. The EquipU classes of the Thomas Road Baptist Church is a resource with short-term classes that give information on several practical subjects and help believers learn new skills, increase knowledge and experience hobbies together.
- Do you currently participate in these kinds of ministries? If so, how can your research help you enhance what you are doing? If not, how can you include these ides in your ministry?
I participate in evangelism. The research has helped to reinforce the message in the bible about taking the gospel of Christ first to one’s locality and then gradually going to the ends of the world.
- What differences did you identify between these churches?
The Church of the Highlands website seems to be more rooted in biblical teachings. Their statement of belief is very comprehensive and supported by different bible verses. They look to very strong on evangelism and discipleship with established systems. Oak Hills church has a strong teaching program and a strong evangelism program as well. Its statement of faith is strongly founded on the bible but its evangelism and discipleship strategies are unclear.
- Do you think that size, geographic location or financial resources should influence your philosophy of ministry? If so, how? If not, why not?
I do not believe that size, geographic location, or financial resources ought to influence my philosophy in religion. This is because we are living in the modern era where the internet has breached geographical barriers and made it possible for one to minister to people located in geographical areas without leaving their locations. One can as well raise funds online to meet financial inadequacies and use the raised funds to minister to others.