The purpose and vision of Wakesiah Gospel Chapel can be summarized as follows:
PRAISE AND WORSHIP GOD: We are called to praise and worship God who has revealed Himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is God who has created us, who has sought us out and adopted us into His family through the costly sacrifice of His Son…and so we gratefully praise and worship Him.
PREPARE GOD’S PEOPLE: God does not want His church to stand still, but rather to be strengthened and grow into “the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”
(Ephesians 4:13)
PROCLAIM CHRIST: The Lord’s purpose is to make Jesus Christ known as the only Saviour. “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under Heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
PROVIDE AND CARE FOR ONE ANOTHER: The Lord has planned that we should be dependent on one another and each of us is needed. His purpose is to build us up into a new body of believers. In that new body, the church, we are called to care for one another.
Wakesiah Gospel Chapel is a body of Christian believers who desire, as a local church, to work together under the power and direction of the Holy Spirit and who base their teachings on the Bible, God’s Word.
As believers we have entered into a personal relationship with God. We are known as “Christian brethren” and our roots are in the Brethren movement of the last century, which was a revival of the model set forth in Acts 2:42.
To Praise And Worship God
We are called to praise and worship God who has revealed Himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is God who has created us, who has sought us out and adopted us into His family through the costly sacrifice of His Son…and so we gratefully praise and worship Him.
Scripture tells us that we have been chosen by God in Christ so that we “might be for the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:11-12). God is building us “into a spiritual house (temple) to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:5). As a priesthood of believers, then we exist not primarily for ourselves or even for others, but for God. This is our primary calling.
We worship:
• With the spoken praise of our lips (Hebrews 13:15)
• Through joyful music and song (Psalm 33:1-3, 40:3, 69:30)
• In quiet adoration and stillness (Psalm 95:6-7, 46:10)
• Through lives lived for Him in reverent obedience (Romans 12:1)
Our times of corporate worship are vital and should be seen as a priority by all who are members of this church. The celebration of communion is of particular importance because Jesus deemed it so and has invited us to celebrate it often. Our practice is to remember the Lord weekly on Sunday mornings.
The nature of the body and gifting of the spirit is important and should find expression in our worship together. Therefore, we should take time for preparation before we come together to worship. Our worship may take the form of a scripture, meditation, a song or a hymn, a word of encouragement or exhortation (1 Corinthians 14:26). All those who love the Lord and acknowledge Him as Saviour, are welcome to remember Him.
To Prepare God’s People
God does not want His church to stand still but rather to be strengthened and grow up into “the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13)
To this end he has placed within the church particular equipping gifts so that all of His people might be prepared for the ministry that He has prepared for them. (Ephesians 4:12)
“All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the believer may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
This growth requires the church not only to understand the word of God accurately, but also to shape its life on the basis of that understanding. “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22)
We are to be filled with the knowledge of His will so that we may “live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way. Bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.”
In order that the Lord is able to work in our lives, we must be obedient. A life of devotion and prayer is required. “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:1-2)
We have a responsibility to help and encourage one another. This involves interacting with one another about the truths of Scripture and how they apply to our lives. The weekly meetings at Wakesiah are a vital part of this process.
The ministry of God’s word is an essential part of our life together. We at Wakesiah are committed to the consecutive exposition of Scripture.
To Proclaim Christ
The Lord’s purpose is to make Jesus Christ known as the only Saviour of the world. “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
The Lord desires that everyone hear the good news about Jesus and that none perish (1 Timothy 2:4).
We are responsible to fulfill the great commission that Jesus Christ left us: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).
Proclaiming Christ to the world requires that we speak out the good news about Jesus: “How can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?” (Romans 10:14). This takes place through preaching and also through the spoken witness of church members to those outside the church.
Proclaiming Christ also requires that we consistently demonstrate our faith in the world: “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
Proclaiming Christ to the world also requires the church to send out missionaries to those parts of the world where people have not yet heard the good news. These places include local and foreign missions. We are responsible before God to support those we send both financially and in prayer.
It is our desire that we fulfill our responsibility to see that everyone comes to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.
To Provide and Care for One Another
The Lord has planned that we should be dependent on one another and each of us is needed. His purpose is to build us up into a new body of believers. In that new body, the church, we are called to care for one another.
This caring for one another is made possible by the fact that we are a body made up of different parts, equipped by the Holy Spirit.
Scripture tells us that the church is actually the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27).
We are intricately connected with one another. As a result we are to:
• Share the joys and pains of one another (1 Cor. 12:26)
• Consider the interests of others (Philippians 2:4)
• Bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2)
• Pray for one another at all times (Ephesians 6:18)
The oneness of the body is also a gift from the Lord and a valued possession. When Jesus prayed for the church on the night He was betrayed, He prayed again and again that the church would be one (John 17:11, 21-23). We are called to live out a live together that preserves that “unity of the spirit through the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:3).
In this way we will lovingly care for one another as we have been called to do.