About CONNECT...

Connect agrees with the Baptist Faith and Message 2000

http://www.sbc.net/bfm2000/
 

1. The Trinity: God is one entity revealing in three distinctive definable expressions, each possessing all the attributes of Deity and personality. In simple terms God is Father, Son, Holy Spirit in equality but different function.
    

2. The Person of Jesus Christ: Jesus is the Word from the beginning who indwelt humanity in the person of Jesus the Christ - 100% God and 100% man. In simple terms Jesus Christ is I AM GOD – He ever exists as God/Man.
    

3. The Sacrificial Atonement of Jesus Christ: Jesus Christ reconciled us to God on the cross of Calvary. In simple terms Jesus Christ exchanged His perfection nailing our sin to the cross to make us right with God when He died on the cross.
    

4. The Bodily Resurrection of Jesus Christ: Jesus Christ was raised bodily on the third day after his death by the power of God for our justification. Jesus Christ rose in a body on the third day so those who believe can be raised with Him in righteousness.
    

5. The Second Coming: Jesus Christ is coming bodily to catch up those in Christ and to earth to set up His Kingdom on earth. In simple terms Jesus Christ is coming back to earth.
    

6. Salvation: Salvation is a gift of God by grace through faith in Christ alone. There is no other way to be saved. In simple terms, John 3:16, “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”
    

7. The Scripture: It is entirely inerrant and sufficient for all Christian life. In simple terms, God breathed it from His mouth.

     

 

CORE BIBLICAL VALUES

CONNECT prayerfully seeks to cultivate within its fellowship the following Biblical values, evident in healthy, maturing churches worldwide.
 

• GOD-CENTERED, PASSIONATE SPIRITUALITY
  The desire of Connect is to connect with God’s Presence, Others, and help Others Connect with God. The deepest need in every believer’s heart is to; ‘behold the beauty of the Lord’ (Psalm 27:4), and experience His life-giving Presence. Only God can satisfy; we therefore seek to be God- centered, not man-centered, and consistently seeking through all its programs to gain a deeper understanding of God, love for God and experience of God. We believe God is most glorified in us when we are most deeply satisfied in Him (Mark 12:29-31).
   

• RELATIONSHIPS ORIENTED
  We seek to cultivate a culture of genuine Christian love with God and among its members, through providing instruction in methods of demonstrating love, and facilitating ministries that achieve this. The motivation of Connect is love for God and Others (Matthew 25:35-40)
   

• UNIFIED IN CHRIST
  We seek to be a visible expression of the multicultural diversity extending to people groups in Southwest Virginia in God’s Kingdom. We therefore seek unity in our multicultural diversity, appointing spiritually mature, gifted individuals from many cultures to visible positions of service and ministry leadership.
   

• MISSION FOCUSED
  The mission of Connect being believers is as we are going to make disciples of all people groups, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit while continually teaching them to obey all things the Lord has commanded knowing that God’s Presence is with us until the end (Matthew 28:18-20). Mission obedience is the responsibility of every individual follower of Jesus Christ and of the body of Christ that makes up a local gathering of believers to share the truth and love of Jesus Christ with those in our families, neighborhoods, cities, countries and to those in every nation in the world. We seek to embrace, instruct and transform individuals from all people groups who are in Connects fellowship to be equipped to teach, train and make disciples in their own community and even to the nations. We also seek to teach, train, send out and support those who are called to make disciples in people groups other than their own (Acts 1:8).
   

• REPRODUCING
  The vision of Connect is to build vibrant, reproducing individuals in community in Plugged-In Groups unified in Christ that gather weekly in one place in Southwest Virginia to worship. Every follower of Jesus Christ has a unique, God-given calling and gifting and each person is responsible to discern their calling and use their gifts in obedience in the building up of the body of Christ for the expansion of the Kingdom of God. We further believe that all followers of Jesus Christ are called to make disciples and bear fruit. We therefore seek to provide an environment and a culture whereby believers are given opportunities to use the resources of Connect to fulfill their calling, express their gifts and exercise their passions for ministry and to build up and train others who will do the same (Matthew 28:18-20, 2 Timothy 2:2).
   

• CATALYTIC
  Due to its location in small groups in various communities and self-imposed external restrictions Connect is uniquely situated to cope with its composition of believers from dozens of people groups within Southwest Virginia. We therefore seek to create and/or provide opportunities for ministry for individuals and/or Plugged-In Groups that could not normally occur outside the networking of Connect (Matthew 5:14).