Orlando Grace Church Information

At OGC we aspire by God's grace to accomplish His mission for us driven by certain treasured values. We value God-centered passion at the core. God alone ultimately satisfies the deepest longings of the human soul. Therefore we will subordinate willingly all other concerns to the pursuit of our joy in God by gratefully acknowledging His supremacy in all things. This commitment pervades every one of our values but speaks first and foremost of our devotion to biblically-shaped worship. Consequently we strive to exalt Jesus Christ corporately in ways which engage both the heart and the mind - spirit and truth (John 4:24). We make use of differing forms, styles, and/or traditions subject to the dictates of God's Spirit as revealed in His Word (Leviticus 10:1-3). These various elements in worship function not as ends in themselves, but as means for magnifying God's infinitely precious character and works (Psalm 33:3-4; 37:4). We value Christ-connected prayer over the ministry. Apart from the power of Jesus Christ working in and through us we can accomplish nothing of lasting spiritual value that magnifies God's glorious grace (John 15:5). Therefore we will relentlessly saturate every dimension of our ministry with prayer, petition, supplication, and intercession, along with thanksgiving, in order that we might continually abide in Christ, the true vine, and thus bear much fruit (John 15:7-8). We value Reformation-informed thinking in the mind. The 16th century Protestant Reformation restored to Christ's church a passion for right thinking shaped by two biblical paradigms:1) the "solas" - "Scripture alone" (sola scriptura), "Grace alone" (sola gracia), "Faith alone" (sola fide), "Christ alone" (sola christus, "To God alone be glory" (soli deo gloria); and2) the doctrines of grace - radical depravity, unconditional election, particular redemption, effectual grace, perseverance of the saints.Rightly understood these doctrines progressively transform believers' behavior from worldliness to godliness in every sphere of life. Therefore we will diligently cultivate an ever-increasing depth of insight into Reformed theology as it faithfully reflects biblical truth, to the end of its obedient application in our lives (Romans 12:2; II Corinthians 3:18). We will also actively seek partnerships with other churches and ministries of like-minded faith to further advance God's kingdom through the benefits of mutual cooperation (Philippians 2:2). We value expositional-shaped preaching from the pulpit. God has sovereignly ordained the preaching of His inspired word in the power of the Holy Spirit as a primary means of grace whereby His church may grow and flourish toward spiritual maturity. Therefore we will give ourselves humbly to the hearing of verse-by-verse exposition of the whole counsel of God. The goal of such preaching is to communicate the clear meaning of texts, their harmony with the rest of Scripture, and their relevant application to every facet of our lives. The occasional inclusion of systematic and topical studies is likewise valued to provide additional insights and application in specific areas of church life, personal life, and all areas of sanctification (II Timothy 3:16-4:4). We value servant-minded shepherding among the people. For God's people to thrive, He has prescribed the shepherding ministry of a plurality of elders, accountable to Christ the Chief Shepherd, who exercise authority for the building up of His church. Therefore we will faithfully pray for, train up, and set apart godly men whose maturity, example, gifts, and calling mark them as God's appointed servants for the care of His precious sheep. (I Peter 5:1-4; II Corinthians 10:8). We value faith-inspired outreach to our community and the nations. From before the foundation of the world, God has set His affection upon and graciously chosen a great multitude from all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues that He, without fail, will save from the guilt of their sin and clothe with the righteousness of His Son. Therefore we will give ourselves zealously in word through gospel witness (II Corinthians 5:20) and deed through good works (Matthew 5:16) to bringing the good news to all kinds of peoples both near in Central Florida and far to the uttermost parts of the earth (Revelation 7:9-10). We value multiplication-designed discipleship of the believer. God intends for believers to undergo a life-long process of transformation which aims for being conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. Part of that process involves investing our lives spiritually in others that they in turn might do the same and so on and so on. Therefore we will intentionally develop means and methods whereby all who profess to follow the Lord can progress from spiritual birth to spiritual maturity that reproduces itself exponentially in future generations of believers (Romans 8:29; II Timothy 2:2). We value gift-motivated ministry within the body. Every believer possesses at least one spiritual gift from God which He intends to be utilized in ongoing ministry for the building up of the church toward spiritual maturity in Christ. Therefore we will purposefully equip all the saints to discover and exercise their spiritual gift(s) in realms of God-given passion, in order that ministry might flow from an intrinsically motivated people, rather than an extrinsically engineered program (Ephesians 4:11-16). We value grace-oriented community throughout the fellowship. Love for one another characterized by biblical peacemaking and merciful burden-bearing uniquely designates a people as devoted followers of Jesus Christ and keeps them connected to one another for vital ministry. Therefore we will consistently strive to manifest grace in all our relationships in at least two ways:1. vigilantly guarding the peace and purity of the body through practicing the full spectrum of biblical conflict resolution - from overlooking offenses when appropriate (Proverbs 19:11) to church discipline as necessary (I Corinthians 5:1-13); and2. gently restoring those who fall and helping heal those who hurt through administering biblically-based counseling (Galatians 6:1-2). We value family-based transformation of the culture. God has established the home as the foundational social sphere through which He intends to transform a culture. No matter what form a family takes - from a single adult, to a single-parent home, to a traditional two-parent family unit - a church is only as strong as its families. Therefore we will earnestly strive to strengthen homes, value children (including the unborn), encourage generational integration, train the members of those homes to glorify God in all they do, and equip subsequent generations to shine as lights in the world (Psalm 128:1-6; Philippians 2:15).