Service Times

Sunday Bible Study: 9:15am
Sunday Morning Worship: 10:30am
Sunday Evening Worship: 6:30pm

Contact

602 W Belt Line Rd, Cedar Hill, TX 75104
Phone: 972-291-7195
Email: fbcch@fbcch.com

As followers of Jesus Christ, we will know God, glorify God, and make his glory known.

A Mission Statement must be a living declaration of a person
or a ministry’s intentions.  This declaration is one’s pursuit and
understanding of God’s will for this congregation.  Our Mission Statement reads
as follows:

“As followers of Jesus Christ, we will know God, glorify God, and make His glory
known.”

As believers and a congregation of believers, if we are to
live daily in God’s will, our lives must have a biblical foundation.  “We are
followers of Christ,” so what does God want us to do?  The declaration of our
identities does bring some rather demanding and definitive requirements.  Our
Lord requires us to follow Him into the work He is doing and adhere to the way
He lives with unwavering commitment, energy, loyalty and obedience. 

We must answer a simple question:  What does God want me to
do?  This is a “big picture” question that requires a “big picture” answer.

In 1640 the Church of Scotland adopted “The Westminster
Shorter Catechism,” a doctrinal study intended to teach children and young
adults the rudiments of the Protestant Faith.  The “confession of faith” has
stood the test of time.  The Catechism was written in the form of 107 Questions
and Answers on such doctrinal tenants as God as Creator, Christ the Redeemer,
Original Sin, The Church, Salvation, The Ten Commandments, The Lord’s Prayer,
just to name a few.  The writers sought to answer the most basic questions and
the first question and answer are reflective of every believer’s pursuit of
God’s will.

Question 1 – What is the chief end of man?

Answer 1 – Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy (know) Him forever.

Sound familiar?

We are building our Mission Statement around the word “glorify.” 

The word Doxazw is translated “to glorify” in
the New Testament.  The word comes from the Greek root word dokew,
translated “to think,” which, when used as a noun describes “the opinion that
others have of me” or “my good standing among others” and “my good
reputation.”  This word then describes “one’s renown.” 

The word in the New Testament is also heavily influenced by
the Hebrew usage which emphasizes God’s divine, majestic, lofty and brilliant
radiance.  The Hebrew root word is translated “weighty.”  The word communicates
the reality that when God is present the impression of His being demands
recognition, humble adoration and reverence.  God is the One who brings glory
to Himself by the nature of His being, His character and His work.  God is
glorious.  When God is present, everyone knows it.  God intentionally brings
glory to Himself.  God’s glory is the natural consequence of God being God. 
Everything that God does and says reflects His glorious nature; His glory is
irrepressible.  God cannot help being God.

So, now we come to our proposed Mission Statement:

“As followers of Jesus Christ, we will know God,
glorify God, and make His glory known.”

This is quite an ambitious statement, but decidedly biblical.  One of our foundational texts is Romans 9:22-26, the NIV text reading of v. 23:

“…to make the riches of His glory known…”

Doesn’t this phrase sound familiar? 

Paul is describing one way God chose to bring glory to
Himself. God will reveal Himself to sinful man.  God will show His mercy to
sinners who deserve His judgment.  God will express His love to sinful man
through the life, word, righteous moral example, death and resurrection of the
Lord Jesus so that man’s sin may be forgiven and man can enter a personal,
intimate and eternal relationship with God and “know” God in the most dynamic
and life-changing way possible. 

God has chosen to bring glory to Himself by undertaking the
most incredible and unimaginable feat; God will transform sinful rebels into
adoring children, humble servants, joyful worshipers and loving neighbors.  God
brings glory to Himself by doing what no one else could ever do and what is the
hardest work of all–God will really change a person’s life.

How do we glorify God and make His glory known to others? Simple really! 

We live out in daily life the transformation of God changing our lives.  We glorify God and make His glory known to others when we:

- Know and enjoy God by living out a daily and intimate friendship of faith and love with God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

- Engage in practical and effective ministry and witness to others that enable them to know God in this same personal way.

- Love others the way that God has loved us, with a practical kindness and sincere affection.

- Worship, witness, help and share the work and the life of faith together.

You will recall that I said simple, not easy!

God intends for His glory to be expressed through our lives as we live under the influence and by the power of His indwelling Spirit.  What God has done to change your life is one way God has chosen to make His glory known!  This is God’s incredible work, buying back a sinner from death, transforming this sinful rebel into a worshiper, a learner, a servant and an adoring child, and infusing this sinner with His own love and life.

Changed lives bring God glory.

Living as a changed person brings God glory.

Sharing with others how God changes lives brings God glory.

We must live and work to make His glory known.

It is a specific expression of God’s will and a reasonable expectation among one another and nonbelievers that they see God’s glory in each of us.  After all, we are followers of Christ.  We are our Father’s children.  God’s renown, His reputation as the God who saves sinners and really changes lives, is meant to be expressed through us.