Redeemer's Core Commitments

Gospel

The gospel is at the center of all we do. The 'gospel' is the good news that through Jesus, the Messiah, the power of God's kingdom has entered history to renew the whole world. Through the Savior God has established his reign. When we believe and rely on Jesus' work and record (rather than ours) for our relationship to God, that kingdom power comes upon us and begins to work through us. We witness this radical new way of living by our renewed lives, beautiful community, social justice, and cultural transformation. This good news brings new life. The gospel motivates, guides, and empowers every aspect of our living and worship.

Community

The gospel creates a new community which not only renews individuals but serves as a sign of God's kingdom, bringing reconciliation and restoration to relationships. The gospel brings us into His family. His church then becomes the community that shapes us, nurtures us, and encourages us. But it is also the community that radically demonstrates God's new reign, demonstrating a love that crosses class and racial lines and that models beauty and culture in new ways.

Mission

God brings us into His family in order to send us out into His world. He has given us a mission: to be witnesses to His new kingdom through words and deeds. We live out this mission through acts of mercy and hospitality, pursuing social justice, caring for those who are suffering, and serving the poor. We believe that nothing promotes the peace and health of the city like the spread of faith in the gospel and the community it creates. The gospel of salvation and of God's kingdom renews both individual lives and "reweaves" the fabric of families, neighborhoods, cities, and ultimately the nation.

Shalom

Shalom is the Hebrew word for peace. It represents the peace we have with God, ourselves, other people, and creation. Since God cares about his creation and is in the process of reconciling the creation to himself through Christ, we are called to be ambassadors of shalom. This peace brings reconciliation between individuals, and also betweeen people and God's creation. Thus, when we live our lives in the marketplace with our families, when we create art and entertainment, and when we interact with our neighbors, we are creating culture. and we are to do it in a way that furthers shalom, encouraging the transformation and reweaving of the world.