The gospel or good news is that God sent his Son in the power of his Spirit to redeem a people back to himself so they might experience life in his kingdom – a life of hope, forgiveness, and love. Jesus perfectly lived the life we were commanded to live. He obeyed where we disobeyed, he achieved where we failed, he conquered where we were defeated. And yet, Jesus went to the cross to take upon himself the just penalty from God the Father for our sins. He substituted himself in our place when he died on the cross. Three days later Christ was resurrected, demonstrating his victory over sin and death. He also promised that at his second coming, he would bring the kingdom in its fullness to the entirety of creation. Because of the work of Jesus, one day the entire cosmos will find God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule (Revelation 21-22).

Until then, those who “repent and believe” by forsaking their sinful ways and trust in Jesus as Savior and King, enter into “the kingdom of God” as faithful citizens and beloved sons and daughters. The “gospel” or good news of this message is that the salvation God offers in Jesus is available only by grace. In other words, we cannot earn our salvation by our goodness. We will never be good enough. The good news is that Jesus has been good enough for us! He has become our perfect righteousness, sacrifice, and obedience unto God. The gospel of Jesus is the end of trying to merit forgiveness by measuring up. Jesus has procured forgiveness for us by measuring up even when we couldn’t.

The gospel helps us understand that neither irreligion nor religion are helpful. That’s why religious people can be just as far from God as someone who has never darkened the doors of a church. Religion incorrectly teaches that morality and goodness gain favor with God and merit salvation, while irreligion preaches a “salvation” through autonomy and personal fulfillment. In the end, both are attempts to control God. Christianity, however, says salvation isn’t based on our morality or achievement but upon God’s grace in Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:8-9 reads,

Another way the church demonstrates its commitment of belonging is by service. Jesus said in Mark 10:42-45,

Serving each other is a hallmark of missional community. Through service we model the heart of Jesus to each other and the world which he came to save. The church functions based on mutual service. 1 Corinthians 12:4-7, 12 reads:

The obvious key to making this structure work smoothly is the relationship between the leaders and those whom they lead. In a word, there must be unity. 1 Peter 5:1-3 says that elders (and by extension, leaders) are to serve humbly and not domineer over those in their charge. Accordingly, those under leadership are to respond in a way that glorifies God, encourages leadership, and furthers the church’s mission.

Like a dance, someone leads and someone follows. Both need to do their part responsibly, faithfully, and lovingly. Often that is exactly what happens, and God is greatly glorified. However, there are times when this relationship gets tested.

One of the Scripture’s charges to the elders is to protect the church from various dangers such as false teaching or divisive people. Elders also protect the congregation by modeling, guarding, and encouraging biblical standards of godliness. At times this includes the administering of church discipline to unrepentant believers. The purpose of church discipline is to be redemptive and restorative, seeking the welfare not only of the church in general but the believer in specific.

Discipline and restoration begin in the form of small group accountability. Encouraging each other to forsake sin and follow Christ most naturally flows from our personal relationships. Groups are composed of individuals committed to love and serve each other while seeking to follow Jesus. Sometimes that means humbly and graciously confronting each other over sin. Jesus taught in Matthew 18:15,

The mission of reaching the unchurched has always been one of the highest priorities at CCCC. For example, it influences how we conduct our worship services.  We provide services where not only believers can genuinely worship God, but unbelievers can safely investigate the gospel as well. So, we try to reduce barriers for the unchurched. We believe the gospel of grace, which says one is made right with God not by one’s merit but solely by the work of Christ, is barrier enough (cf., 1 Corinthians 1:18-31). We don’t want the culture of our church to add unnecessary obstacles for those who want to know more about Jesus and the gospel when they come to a service. Here are a few examples of how we try to remove barriers:

First Impressions Matter

Our teams seek to create a warm and welcoming environment where all feel welcome.

Understandable Services

Every community has its own vocabulary. The church is no different, and that can be a challenge for someone who is investigating Christianity. CCCC aims at preaching which speaks plainly, where the messages are easy to understand for the person who does not have much experience with the Bible.

Gospel-Centered Worship

Through faith in the good news of God’s grace in Jesus, people are made right with God. But our need for the gospel doesn’t end when we become followers of Jesus. Our value of gospel-centrality leads us to keep Jesus and his redeeming work central in our songs, stories, sermon, and everything else. We hope that when you bring a friend to church with you, you can trust he or she will be exposed to the good news of Christ in an understandable way.

These are just a handful of ways we have tried to make CCCC a welcoming place for people who are exploring faith. We have unapologetically held the line on being a “church for the unchurched” because of our commitment to obey Jesus’ call to be his ambassadors to all people as a missional community. At CCCC, developing authentic relationships with the unchurched is how members proclaim to the church family, “I go!”