Welcome to the NewLife

Information Class

“Understanding What We Believe”

What on Earth are you here for?

Session “0”

I. What on Earth am I here for?

A. It all starts with God.

1.You can’t find life’s meaning by looking within yourself.

(Romans 12:2)

2.Your birth, your life, your being here, is no mistake or accident. God planned you

(Acts 17:26)

(Ephesians 1:4)

II. PURPOSE = Why you exist. A. You were born by His Purpose, for His Purpose

1.God loves and values you.

YOU MATTER TO GOD!

(John 3:16)

2. God made you so He could love you. This is a truth to build your life on.

(Psalm 139:15-16)

3. You were made to have meaning and to make a difference in this world.

4. Focus on eternity. You will spend far more time on the other side of death.

(Ecclesiastes 3:11)

What on Earth is NewLife here for?

Session 1

I. What on Earth is NewLife here

for?

A. It all starts with God.

1. NewLife desires to be a Biblically functioning church.

2. Therefore we look to the Word for our Purpose and Vision as a church.

(Matthew 28:19-20)

3. We are told to go to all nations and teach them to obey.

a. We, right where we are, need to take all we have seen and heard to a world that is dying to hear it.

(Acts 4:20)

II. PURPOSE = Who NewLife is and

why we exist.

A. At NewLife Community Lutheran Church

1. We exist so that people will become

devoted followers of Jesus Christ and,

in turn, lead others to God. (Purpose Statement, based on Matthew

28:19-20)

2. We are to go to people and

teach them so that they in turn obey Jesus

and lead others to Him.

3. Come as you are… just don’t plan on

staying that way!

4. God’s plan was to build His kingdom on

earth through people… called the body

of Christ (the Christian church).

B. Who are the people Jesus is

referring to when He said “all nations”?

(Acts 1:8)

1. The Bible makes it clear that …

a. Since all people matter to God, all

people matter to us.

2. Therefore a Biblically functioning church needs to address all four areas.

a. Jerusalem

b. Judea

c. Samaria

d. Ends of the Earth

3. How do these four areas apply to

us today?

a. Jerusalem = NewLife, the local church.

We need to build a relational, loving community of believers who look to

God’s Word for our church’s direction.

b. Judea = Relationships, those in

our spheres of influence.

People in our lives who are disconnected from God.

c. Samaria = Different, outside

our spheres of influence.

People who are culturally different from us.

d. Earth = Missions, outside our geographic area.

Extend God’s love beyond the walls of our church, community, state and

country.

C. What do we mean by “a devoted follower”? The Bible tells us that

the early church…

(Acts 2:42)

1. The early Christian church defines

four areas of development .

a. Apostles’ Teaching = regularly studying God’s Word.

b. Fellowship = we need to develop horizontal relationships with other believers.

c. Breaking of Bread = receive Christ’s gift to us through regular attendance of Worship. (Communion= come & union)

d. Prayer = continually focus on spiritual growth and trust.

2. We are to be always looking for

ways to reach all people and

encourage them to become a devoted

follower.

III.VISION= Where NewLife wants to go as a church?

A. At NewLife Community Lutheran Church; WE WANT…

1. We want to be a people

committed to reseeding Genesee County with biblically functioning

churches and to extend ourselves into the

world mission field.

2. We want our members to realize God’s

presence in their lives and receive

nurturing support from one another.

3. We want our church to

communicate God’s unchanging Word in a

relevant way to a changing world.

4. We want to experience _joy in our

serving and worship.

5. We want to live in happiness and

peace with one another.

6. And, in everything we do, we want NewLife Community Lutheran

Church to be led by the Holy Spirit in order

to attract people who are

disconnected from God.

B. All ministry decisions need to be

done with our Purpose and Vision in mind.

1. Our eyes are on others and not on self. 2. How do we make sure we stay on

task?

IV. MINISTRY WHEEL: How we

fulfill our Purpose and accomplish our Vision.

A. Administrative Model (Ministry Management Teams)

1. Mission Minded (God’s Mission/ The

Church’s Mission)

a. Everything we do at NewLife is with mission in mind.

b. Everyone has been called to be in mission, everyone is an

evangelist.

c. NewLife is committed to reaching out to

those who are disconnected from God.

- Jerusalem Judea-

- Samaria

Earth-

2. Master Magnification (Worship)

a. The greatest influence we have to reach

the disconnected and far from God are

through our worship.

b. Therefore, it is important that we do

everything within our ability to magnify

and elevate our God through excellence.

3. Member Maturity (Spiritual

Formation)

a. We encourage people to be active in a

Life Group.

b. We encourage people to be involved

in serving through sharing of time, talents and treasures.

c. We encourage people to be regular in

attendance and in the study of God’s Word

4. Ministry Motivation ( Ministry

Formation)

a. Enables the work of the church to get

done and equips people to do the ministry of the church.

b. We are all ministers and where we

serve, that is our ministry.

c. Every baptized Christian has been

given a gift which is special to them. It

is given so that they can serve and

help to build up the body of Christ, the

church. (Spiritual Gifts)

B. What makes up the Ministry

Management Team?

1. Each of the four areas has a ;

a. Staff Representative.

They are paid by the church to be a resource to fulfill our Purpose and

Vision.

b. Board of Director Representative.

They are appointed to conduct the business of the Purpose and Vision.

c. Elder Representative.

They are appointed to be the spiritual overseers of the Purpose

and Vision.

2. They are only representatives of

the church.

The people are the church.

C. Why do we call ourselves … “Lutheran Church?”

1. LCMS = Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. (NewLife)

a. WELC = Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.

b. ELCA = Evangelical Lutheran Church of America