1.21 Church

At 1.21 Church, we have one core value, from which all of our other values relate back to.

Gospel-centeredness.

We want everything we do at 1.21 Church to be centered upon and flow from the gospel of Jesus Christ. This includes what we do. It also includes our motives for doing things.

So what is the gospel?

The word gospel comes from a word meaning "good news." So the gospel is news. And it's good news. This means (among other things) that it is not something we do. It is the report of something that has been done.

The gospel is the story of all that God has done in the Person of Jesus Christ to restore the world, and especially humanity back to himself.

The gospel means that rather than us obeying God and earning his favor, that God has come as Jesus, and obeyed himself, thus earning favor. He then suffered the death penalty for sin, thus satisfying justice. Afterwards he was raised from the dead, signaling that his work on the cross was successful. The gospel teaches us that it is on the basis of what Jesus has done by grace that we have a right standing with God.

This is different from both religion and irreligion.

Irreligion seeks to find its own way by rejecting God and ignoring, or intentionally disobeying his law. It's the sex, drugs, and rock and roll approach to life.

Religion seeks to find its own way by obeying God, and trying to earn his favor. Religion tries to buy God off and put him in our debt.

Both of these approaches are wrongheaded. They harm us, and they dishonor God. But the gospel shows us that we don't have to find our own way because God has made a way to us. He has come, and he has taken us back to himself. The gospel both benefits us, and glorifies God. We benefit by being blessed and released from the endless treadmill of performance. God is glorified because he receives all the credit for what has happened.

So, how does this work out in our church?

We recognize that the gospel is not just the way to begin the Christian life, it is the way to live the Christian life. In many settings people view the gospel as what "lost" people need to hear to get "saved." Afterwards we make progress and grow by following rules or biblical principles. We believe that the gospel is also what "saved" people need to grow.

We want people to serve God and to obey him (thus, we reject irreligion). But we never want them to do this out of duty, guilt, or fear (thus, we reject religion). Instead, we serve and obey God because it is a joyful response to how he has served us through Jesus. As we learn to base all of life on the gospel, our perspective on everything changes.

Changed Individuals

We do not just want people to "sign up" for Christianity. We want them to be changed by the gospel of Jesus. Change is more than an adjustment to our schedules on Sunday Mornings. We want to see the Spirit of God apply the gospel to our lives so that we grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). If we "reach" people with the gospel, but their lives are not changed, we have not achieved our goal.

City

We recognize that the city is a very strategically wise place to live out our lives changed by the gospel. Tim Keller, of Redeemer Presbyterian Church gives us several important facts that drive us to focus on the city:

1) The Bible starts in a Garden, but it ends in a City (Genesis 2; Revelation 21-23). a. Thus, God's purpose for creation is fulfilled in an urban setting. 2) The earliest Christians focused on the city (see the Book of Acts) a. Thus, Christianity is, at heart, an urban movement. 3) "People [are] more open to new ideas" in the city. 4) "The centers of law, politics, and art [are] more accessible." 5) People from all different races and nationalities can be accessed for the gospel. 6) People are increasingly moving into the cities. 7) The direction of the city affects the rest of society. Because of these factors, we recognize that the best strategy for the gospel is to love, serve, support, and live in the city. (Timothy J. Keller, Gospel Christianity: Course 1, pp. 150-166)

True Community

The Christian life was never meant to be lived out alone. In community with each other we receive encouragement, challenge, help, and accountability. In community with each other we are able to bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2), and push each other on to love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24). In community we lovingly declare the gospel to each other, and grow into all that Jesus wants for us (Ephesians 4:15-16).

Movement (Church Planting)

The goal of having/being a healthy church is too small. We want to be a part of a movement of churches that reproduce other healthy churches. In our current setting, the most effective way to reach people is through planting new churches. We are always seeking to reproduce ourselves, raising up new leaders and sending them out to begin new churches.

Serving

Jesus tells us that the greatest among us will be a servant. And that even he has come to serve (Mark 10:44-45). We are called to follow Jesus, whose earthly life was characterized by servanthood. We will humble ourselves, get our hands dirty, and meet people's needs because Jesus has served us. When we serve, we are given opportunities to share Jesus with others.

Redeeming

God created the world good. But through our disobedience and fall into sin, it has become broken and cursed (Genesis1-3). God is on a mission to restore and redeem his good creation. This occurred definitively in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus (Colossians 1:20). It will occur completely when Jesus returns and we have a new heavens and a new earth (Revelation 21:1-5). In the meantime, though, God calls the church to seek out those things that are broken and to make them whole. The key to all of this is the gospel. Apart from what Jesus has done, we have no hope to offer the world. But because of him, we can bring redemption to our city and world.