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Philosophy of Ministry

FRONT RANGE ALLIANCE CHURCH
    Philosophy of Ministry Statement
    Adopted August 17, 1995


The purpose of a "Philosophy of Ministry Statement" is to set forth the basic biblical principles upon which a local church is organized and operated. 

We shall ensure that all programs and ministries of the church are established and maintained with this philosophy of ministry in view.  All leaders shall be in harmony both doctrinally and philosophically.  All programs will be regularly evaluated based upon this philosophy.  Those programs which do not meet it, or are no longer serving a genuine need of the body, will be discontinued.  New programs will be added as they are needed and approved by the spiritual leaders of the church.  This will only be done after much study and prayer.

This ministry statement serves as a foundation for establishing and evaluating all of a church's beliefs, ministries and practices.

Our Philosophy is as follows:

1. God Centered. We affirm that the primary purpose of the church, both individually and corporately, is to glorify God.  This goal shall always over-ride everything we do.  He shall be our central focus.  We therefore strive to be God-centered rather than man centered.  We promote holiness, for He is Holy.  We evaluate success in terms of faithfulness and godliness, not in terms of numbers (either programs or individuals).  We will not tolerate sin in our own lives individually nor in the church as a whole.  We will not compromise His truth for the sake of convenience nor due to pressure from within or without.

2. Biblically Based. Our sole rule for faith and practice shall be God's Word, the Bible.  It is the final authority for us as individuals and as a church.  Its instruction shall be a central focus when we gather together.  We shall promote individual and family study of it as well.  We reject both doctrine and practice which is not clearly substantiated by it.  We consider it sufficient for all our spiritual needs as the Holy Spirit gives power to apply it in our lives.  If we do not find it in the Bible by precept or practice we will consider that it is not relevant to a walk with the Lord.

3. Edification Oriented.  We uphold that the primary purpose of the church gathered together is the edification of believers.  We understand this to include worship, fellowship, prayer, observance of the ordinances and the teaching of God's Word in order to equip the saints for the work of the ministry.  Our Lord's day services shall highlight the practice of the early church.  They shall concentrate upon the Lord, His word and believers-not unbelievers.  We emphasize the whole counsel of God to meet real needs, not merely felt needs.  We endeavor to include balance with regard to various musical tastes.  We shall also make sure that our songs contain sound biblical content and that musical accompaniment does not detract from our real purpose of worshipping the Lord in spirit and in truth.

4. Evangelistic Minded.  We declare that the primary purpose of the church in the world is evangelism.  We therefore encourage involvement in world missions, through prayer, giving and personal involvement.  We also promote personal evangelism and outreach within the church.  With this in mind, we shall provide evangelistic training and motivation, and will insure that the programs of the church do not infringe upon the time necessary to accomplish this goal.  We promote biblical evangelism which emphasizes the power of the gospel to change lives.  We recognize that it is God who brings sinners to repentance and that our primary role, in any culture, is to present the message clearly and to pray earnestly for spiritual enablement.

5. Leadership Focused.  We promote the biblical leadership of godly men (who meet the qualifications of Scripture) within the church, both of elders and deacons.  We shall emphasize a plurality of godly leaders affirming that Christ alone is ultimately the head of every local assembly of believers.  We shall seek to identify and disciple younger men in order that they may become spiritual leaders.  We shall encourage godly women to use their gifts within the body as the Scriptures allow.  The elders have affirmed in accordance with Scripture that women are not to serve as elders or pastors.

6. Family Motivated.  We shall emphasize the priority of the family and family life, especially the role of the father as spiritual head of his household.  We shall therefore be careful in the conduct of our ministries to make certain that we seek to compliment the role of parents and not usurp their God-given responsibility.  We shall be careful to allow time for families to be together and encourage them to use it.  We shall help equip mothers and fathers to better fulfill their roles as godly parents.  We shall teach strongly the divine view of marriage with regard to its sanctity and permanency.  At the same time, we recognize the value and special needs of other individuals, such as singles, single parents, seniors and widows within the body, and seek to minister to them as well.

7. Small Group Priority.  We recognize the need for small groups for fellowship and spiritual growth within the body and encourage them.  We shall make it a priority to train spiritually-gifted leaders for these groups and provide a framework for the groups to begin and continue to grow.  We shall emphasize the value of these groups in forming close intimate friendships, opportunities for the recognition and meeting of genuine needs, accountability, prayer and spiritual growth.

8. Body Emphasis.  We affirm that each believer is sovereignly gifted by God and thus equipped for spiritual service.  We shall encourage all in the body to discover their individual gift (or gifts) and put them to good use within the body or the community.  We recognize that all genuine believers were gifted at the time they came to know Christ personally and were indwelt by the Spirit at that same instant, whether or not there was any outward manifestation or sign. We affirm that the evidence of the Spirit's work in a believer is a godly life and that gifts without spiritual fruit are of no value whatsoever to those supposedly manifesting them.  We will test all spiritual gifts by the Word of God.