RIdge Church Value #6: Fun

Well, we're finally to our final Ridge Church value! It may be the last one on our list, but it's pretty important, because it affects the way we approach our other values.

This weekend, when we held our first Ridge Church Pumpkin Carving, we had fun. When we meet in our small groups early in 2009, we will make sure to have fun. When we start our weekly worship services, we will have fun elements then as well.

It's evident that many churches have eliminated the concept of fun and enjoyment from their activities and programs. Step into many (but not all!) churches' Sunday worship services, weeknight activities, or whatever else is on the schedule, and you are likely to become bored and disinterested very quickly. This is so sad, because the Bible is a pretty exciting book, and the Gospel of Christ is the one thing that all Christians believe can completely transform a person's life!

Did you know that the Bible doesn't prohibit fun? Nope. Never. Does it say that you can't poke fun at things? No way. Smile and laugh? Nada. Does it have things to say about disrespect toward God and others? Yep. Cruel and biting sarcasm? Roger that. Dirty jokes? You betcha. So, we'll avoid those... They hurt God and others and therefore are not a good route to take.

That said, I like to think that Jesus and His 12 disciples didn't walk all over Israel in silence and with a frown on their faces. I like to think that maybe Jesus told them "the one about when the Father, the Spirit, and I were talking about making the platypus." Maybe Peter and the boys even played some games by the campfire, like the one where you assign a person to be "it" and they blink at people, and then other people have to figure out who is "it" before they get blinked at.

Anyway, I digress, but the point is that it's OK to have fun and talk about God or praise Him at the same time! Fun is just the polar opposite of boring, lame, and forgettable. David, the King of Israel, even had some fun worshiping God way back in the day. And, so will we! We are committed to doing things that are interesting, engaging, and fun, because they are cool to do as a group and result in enjoyable times of fellowship, learning, and worship. We believe the Bible is interesting and God is pretty engaging!

So, here's what Ridge Church has to say about our value of Fun, specifically in regard to our worship times:

"Worshiping our holy God should be an enjoyable activity. Although there must be serious times of repentance and spiritual challenge in the lives of all believers, the experience of meeting God in worship should be exciting, anticipated, interactive, and practical."

Some Bible passages that support our value of fun in worship and group life are Exodus 15:19-21, 2 Samuel 6:12-19, Nehemiah 8:10, and Matthew 26:17-20.

Since you read the whole post, here's a link to a funny video that brings back memories from my youth pastor days! Enjoy!

Ridge Church Value #5: New Churches

People ask me all the time: "Why are you starting a new church? Why are you "planting" a church in Knoxville, Tennessee? Aren't there a million churches there? Isn't church planting something you do in Africa or Asia?"

These are great questions! And, if I didn't have an answer for them, you might assume I'm a little nutty. But, I do have good answers for those questions...

The first answer is that planting churches is a biblical idea. Here's what Ridge Church has to say about New Churches:

"We believe that beginning and supporting new churches is a healthy, noble, and God-honoring activity. New churches are the most effective means for Christians to reach to others with the grace and love of Christ; all Christians should support the planting of new churches."

Some Bible passages that support our value of New Churches are Acts 16:6-15, Titus 1:5, Romans 15:19-24.

Planting churches is also a logical and intelligent thing for those who want to share God's love with others and spread the truth of Jesus Christ in our country (as well as the rest of the world). Here are some interesting stats:

• There are 120 million secular people in the US.
• The number of "unchurched" people in the US nearly doubled from 1991 to 2004.
• In 1900, there were 28 churches for every 10,000 Americans. In 2004, that number had fallen to 11 churches for every 10,000 Americans.
• 3,500 to 4,000 churches close each year in the US.
• New churches are 6-8 times more likely to bring people into God's family as new believers in Christ than older churches.

In short, church planting is a biblical, wise, logical and loving way to engage our culture and bring the truth of the Gospel to the toughest audience: people who do not go to church and are not interested in God. That's why we're planting Ridge Church in Knoxville and why Ridge Church is part of the Acts29 Network.

Because we are a church plant that believes in church planting, we're "putting our money where our mouth is." Ridge Church is committed to giving 10% of all the finances that we receive once we start meeting regularly toward supporting new churches. We believe that is a worthy way to share the money God gives us with other churches who are seeking to share Christ with thier communities.

I can talk for a long time about church planting! Feel free to email me if you'd like to talk about Ridge Church or why church planting is so important.

Ridge Church Value #4: Serving Others

The fourth core value of Ridge Church is "Serving Others."

Here's what our Launch Proposal says about Serving Others:

"We believe that serving others is a natural lifestyle of committed believers in Christ. Christ-followers should seek to serve both those we encounter in our community and those at the far ends of the earth as a means of sharing the Gospel with all people."

This value flows forward from our third value, Community. There is one very foundational difference between the two values, however. We use the words "serving others" instead of just the word "serving" because our fourth value, Serving, is not aimed at those who are already part of our church or fellowship.

Serving Others means serving those outside of our current group, church, or fellowship (you pick the word you like best). Serving Others means serving people in our neighborhoods, communities, schools, and workplaces. It means serving those in other cities, states, and countries. It is a way to show the world that those who follow Christ care about them, love them, and are representatives of Jesus Christ. It is a way to bring the truth of the Gospel to ears who have learned that they can trust us.

It is important to remember, however, that Community and Serving Others are related. Those who are part of the Ridge Church family should serve each other; we should just remember that serving each other and Serving Others are two different and equally valid expressions of love. One is love for a brother or sister who is in Christ with us, the other is love for a neighbor or friend who may not know Christ. Matthew 20:25-28 links the serving found in our value of Community and the serving found in our value of Serving Others very well.

Proverbs 14:21, Matthew 28:19-20, Isaiah 49:6, Acts 1:8 are just a few of the many verses that support our value of Serving Others.

We have a great opportunity for you to practice this Ridge Church value next weekend! We are helping to set up the new Knox Area Rescue Ministries Thrift Store at 314 Merchants Drive (the shopping center with Outback Steakhouse and the Mandarin House restaurant) on Saturday, September 27 from 12 to 2 pm. Everyone is welcome to join us as we serve our community together. Bring your friends if you like--it will be a great time to meet people who are interested in The Ridge. Kids are welcome, and we'll be done well before game time!

If you'd like to chat about Serving Others or have questions about our service project, just email kevin@ridgechurchknoxville.com. Have a great week!

Ridge Church Value #3: Community

As I said recently, Ridge Church has six core values. These are the core beliefs that guide our new church, both now and in the future. They are the concepts we stand behind and the hills that we will fight on, the things that make The Ridge unique!

Our third value is "Community." Here's what our Launch Proposal says about Community:

"We believe that all people need healthy, growing relationships based on biblical ideals. These relationships are best found in the Christ-centered family and in a small groups of Christians meeting regularly to encourage and support each other as part of a larger local church community."

It's pretty simple, really! We believe that everyone was created by God to live in community with other humans. We also believe that every Christ-follower needs relationships with other Christians in order to grow to be more like Christ. We believe that God created us that way, and that community is a deep emotional need of all humans. Regardless of how modern and post-modern Western philosophy and culture tend to individualize life, we need each other to be all God wants us to be.

Not only do we believe in community, we believe that community starts in the home. For too long, churches have been willing to take on the responsibilities of the parents in spiritually educating our children. Churches have said, "Here, drop your kid off on Sunday for an hour, and we'll handle all the teaching about God that they need." This is both insufficient in providing a quality spiritual education for children and also unbiblical.

Check out Deuteronomy chapter 6. The Bible clearly teaches here and in multiple other passages that the spiritual guidance of our children should start in the home. We believe that at Ridge Church and are committed to it. Because we are committed to the concept of parents teaching their kids about God, we are also committed to helping parents learn how to spiritually educate their kids.

The bonus prize is that when parents answer their kids' questions about God, it motivates them to learn and apply spiritual concepts in their own lives... Isn't God smart in planning things that way?! (The answer is "YES!")

Ridge Church is committed to providing small group environments for parents (and all those who call The Ridge home) to grow to be more like Christ. We look forward to a not-too-distant future in which Ridge Church has small groups for all age groups. We see groups where mature believers in Christ help both new believers and non-believers to interact with the Bible and life experience in ways that draw them toward faith and surround them with grace.

Finally, we believe that folks at The Ridge should look out for each other. This means that small groups will serve their group members. During tough times like illnesses in the family, small group leaders will provide "triage" care. When new babies come home, small group members will bring food to new parents. When small group members' kids make poor life choices, other members will rally around the family in crisis and provide support and encouragement. When a bread-winner loses a job, small groups will be the at the "front lines" in battling for the family and helping them through hard days.

The list can go on... And it will! Community is a crucial value at The Ridge. And, it leads to another one: Serving Others. Stay tuned for a discussion of that value soon!

There are several verses in the Bible that support our value of Community. Check these out: Proverbs 27:17, Acts 2:42-47, Matthew 18:19-20. If you want to chat about our value of Community, email kevin@ridgechurchknoxville.com.

Ridge Church Value #2: Grace and Faith

Yes, it's true! Ridge Church does have more than one core value. (As a matter of fact, we have six!)

Our second core value is "Grace and Faith." Below is some information on our value of "Grace and Faith" from our Launch Proposal. (That's a document church planter dudes share with folks who are interested in supporting a church from afar with their prayers and finances, or supporting it locally by being part of it.)

We'll be sharing our Launch Proposal with everyone who comes to our Information Meeting on Monday the 28th at 7 pm at the Kroger Community Center in Halls. We'd love to have you come and learn about The Ridge and ask all the questions you want!

Here's what our Launch Proposal says about Grace and Faith:

"We believe that all people, especially those who do not already follow Christ, matter to God. They should be offered grace by the local church and actively and continually invited by Christians to place their faith in Christ and His Gospel."

There's always a little "unpacking" to do when someone says that some concept is a core value. For me personally, Grace and Faith are crucial.

When I was a younger believer, I was a very legalistic individual. I believed that even though I was a believer in Christ, there was a ton of stuff I had to do to please God, and those who didn't do the right things (or, conversely, did do the wrong things) weren't pleasing Him. Then, I kind of oversteered to the other side and spent some time believing that as long as folks believed in Christ, they could do pretty much whatever and God was cool with it. (Don't get me wrong, I thought that within good reason... You could say I just was very "anti-rules.") This is often called "antinomianism" in theological-speak. Here's a good definition of that word.

We believe that Christians and the local church must always offer God's grace to everyone with whom we come in contact by sharing the Gospel (or "Good News") of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. When those who aren't Christ-followers respond to God's call on their lives and accept God's gift of grace through faith in Jesus, they become Christ-followers and are adopted forever as part of God's family.

Of course, those who are Christ-followers sin or mess up daily in their lives. Often our difficulty is that we aren't willing to allow Christ to live through us as we selfishly attempt to control every aspect of our lives. But this doesn't mean that we are "losers", useless, or are not loved by God!

So often through the years, our churches have "shot our wounded"--people who are hurt or struggling with sin or pain or some other "issue"... At Ridge Church, that's not going to be the case!

At The Ridge, everyone who is not yet a believer in Christ will be showed God's grace and challenged to accept Christ in faith. Those who are already believers will be shown grace when they "mess up" and challenged to allow Christ to be the Lord of thier daily lives as they walk with Him in faith. Put another way: forgiveness, grace and love will be offered to all with one hand, and faith and discipline will be a challenge presented to all with the other hand.

As always, a blog is an imperfect place to share one's most theological thoughts... If you have questions about grace or faith, email me at kevin@ridgechurchknoxville.com!

There are several verses in the Bible that support our value of Grace and Truth. Check out these: Acts 2:37-41, Matthew 18:21-35, Acts 8:26-40.

Ridge Church Value #1: Truth

As I mentioned in my last post, this week we will begin to share Ridge Church's values with you. Values are some of the most important things look for when you check out a church. There are so many churches out there, with so many programs and so many styles of worship, preaching, and teaching. But values are the things that really drive the leadership of a church (or any organization for that matter).

Aubrey Malphurs (who is a seminary professor and also works as a consultant to help churches with issues) wrote a book called "Planting Growing Churches." It's like a textbook on starting new churches. He defines a new church's values as "constant, passionate, biblical core beliefs that drive its ministry." I like this definition.

Ridge Church's first value is "Truth." Here's what we have to say about Truth:

"We believe that truth is found in the Bible. This truth (the Gospel) leads to new spiritual life in Christ and fulfillment in daily living; the Bible's truth must be taught honestly, effectively, and practically by the leaders of the church so that those who hear it can apply it to their lives."

One thing to note is that we have a firm belief in the validity and relevance of the Bible. We really do believe it is God's Word to people, and it's the most important information that's ever been communicated. This belief will guide us in all of Ridge Church's future paths.

There are several verses in the Bible that support our value of Truth. Check out these: John 1, John 14:6, 2 Timothy 3:16-17.