Are these just clever words: “Equip Believers, Exalt Christ, and Extend the Gospel?” Do we say that and print that but never act upon it? For me and the faithful staff that serve our church these words are much more than a saying. We pray and plan ministry and activity in such a way as to encourage you to be drawn into those three purposes.

We truly want you to be equipped for the work of ministry, becoming increasingly like Christ. We deeply care about your personal love of Christ and how you will serve Him with your whole life, so that your actions and words exalt Christ daily.

When it comes to extending the gospel, we tend to focus on three specific ways for us to engage in evangelism to the world: praying, giving, and going. We pray for mission efforts, missionaries, or under-reached people each Sunday, hoping you will be more mindful to pray for the lost nearest you.

What about giving and going? This month in particular we want to encourage you to consider how you should be giving to the spread of the gospel, and how you can be personally involved in evangelizing lost friends, families, neighbors, and yes, even the world.

Why would that be such an emphasis during December and the season of Christmas? Luke 19;10 says it as plainly as possible, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” The reason God purposed for the second-person of the Trinity to come to earth, put on flesh, and dwell among us, was to seek and save us – the lost and the alienated – everyone of us.

Then Jesus ended His earthly ministry and commanded His followers to keep doing what He came to do: “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation’.” (Mark 16:15) The gospel is the good news of God’s redeeming the lost.

We should not be able to think about the birth of Christ without meditating on the purpose of His birth. From beginning to end the story is a story of redemption. That should not just warm our hearts but burden our lives for those who have yet to hear about the hope of salvation.

As we consider our own giving for other missionaries and our going as a missionary, what is it about which we are talking. The words, “missions, missionary, and missional” are used with some great regularity in church circles, but do we have a good understanding of what kind of work is really missions?

A missionary is someone who has been sent. That is what it means. What are we sent to do, and what kind of missionaries and mission work should we support? These ought to be important questions we answer. Without going into a complete exegesis on Acts 14, I think we find in that passage three things that ought to be the focus of our mission work, and the kind of mission work we support:

• New believers (14:21)
• Strengthening existing Churches (14:22)
• Planting New Churches (14:23)

(for more on this please access this article at The Gospel Coalition: “The Goal of Missions and the Work of Missionaries”) 

When we give to the Lottie Moon Christmas offering, or to the World Mission Offering, we are helping to support those three components of missions. In the last year all the numbers have been tabulated by the mission board (2022):

• 178,177 people (outside of the US) professed faith in Christ
• 146, 026 Indigenous church leaders were trained
• 21,231 new churches were planted (outside of the US)

Consider giving beyond your tithe this year to the Lottie Moon Christmas offering or to the World Mission Offering. And take up the responsibility of speaking to your lost family, your lost neighbors, and your lost co-workers about the need for forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Engage your life into our church so that it continues in health and strength. This is the work of the sent ones. And believer, you have been sent.

By His Grace, and For His Glory

Pastor Mark

]

“And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

What an outrageous claim! All authority? We would struggle if anyone in any circumstance claimed this kind of authority. We know that the president of our company submits to a board of directors. The president of the United States is checked by the other branches of government.

But as Christians we not only accept the Lordship of Christ, but we also rejoice in it. It delights us. We celebrate it.

• Christ is Lord because He is God. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God,” (John 1:1).
• Christ is Lord because in His human nature He has accomplished perfect obedience, has won salvation for us, and has been given complete dominion as His reward. “which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²² And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all,” (Eph. 1:20-23).
• Therefore, we are to serve Christ with our whole heart, in all our life, all the time. “If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him,” (John 12:26).
• Therefore, serve Christ because…

• Christ is enthroned and deserves our obedience.
• Christ is altogether lovely and completely worthy of all our service.
• It is God's command for us to serve him.
• We were created and designed and destined for this service.
• We will find the deepest satisfaction and joy in life only in this service.
• The Holy Spirit empowers us for this service. (List used from https://www.crossway.org/articles/10-things-you-should-know-about-the-lordship-of-christ/)

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:16-17)

When we talk about the vision of Capitol Hill Baptist Church, we must first talk about the foundation upon which God established the church. We define that foundation with three distinct piers, or foundation stones. The first of those piers is the centrality of the Scriptures.

Apart from God Himself, nothing is more enduring or more necessary. A church is not a church and cannot function as a church if it ignores the word of God or makes the word of God serve its own ideas of purposes.

Since the Scripture is inspired by God the church must not treat it as suggestive or relative to time and culture. The church must embrace it as timeless, powerful, and authoritative. We make the Word of God the base of all we are and all we do. 

How do we accomplish this part of our vision? First, by keeping it central to our corporate worship. Second, by using the Bible as the curriculum of each of our Sunday morning Sunday school and Bible study classes. Third, by consulting the Bible in determining the polity and practice of the church. Last, by following its central theme of the gospel as the mission of every ministry and activity.

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

 ^“And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matt. 28:18-20)

The purpose of CHBC is to glorify God by equipping believers, exalting Christ, and extending the gospel. This is the purpose of our church because God says it is the purpose of every church. Failing to share the gospel with others is not a weakness as it relates to a purpose statement. It is a failure of obedience to the command of God.

We are to make disciples of all nations. This is why we have evangelistic outreach in our community. This is why we train on personal evangelism in the church. This is why we are part of the Cooperative Program. 

As with anything, if we only act out of duty, at some point we can become cold, cynical, or indifferent. So, we do not approach the spread of the gospel as only duty. It is our delight. It is our delight to see boys and girls pray to trust in Christ at VBS. It is our delight to watch as children respond to the gospel at Cross Timbers. It is our delight to see students commit their lives to Christ at Falls Creek. We clap with delight as we watch new believers come for baptism. It is our delight to hear stories from the mission field of people in other nations committing to follow Jesus.

Give yourself with joy to the extension of the gospel. It is not just a phrase attached to the mission statement. It is the joyful duty of every believer to be part of the gospel reaching the nations. So, share the gospel with our children, speak of the gospel to friends and acquaintances as God gives opportunity, and give your tithe with joy, knowing that it empowers your church, and your mission boards to share the gospel with people you will only meet on the other side of heaven’s gates.

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

^“Therefore, let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”” (Acts 2:36)

We need to be able to answer the question, “Why does CHBC exist?” What purpose do we serve by continuing to meet together? Thankfully, that is not an answer we have to come up with ourselves. God, Himself, has told us why we need to be a church, and what the church is supposed to be doing.

One of the things we exist to do is to exalt Christ as Lord. God has made Him both Lord and Christ. It is our responsibility to respond to His Lordship. How can we, today, respond to His Lordship?

Here are some practical things we can be doing right now in response to the Lordship of Christ:

1. Tell Christ you love Him above all other loves.
2. Read the Bible and as you do think in your mind that you are not doing this to check off any boxes of Christian devotion, but you are doing it as a way to fellowship with Him.
3. Be obedient to the things you know His Word has explicitly told you to do. And when you fail in obedience quickly repent relying on the forgiveness of the gospel.
4. Pray for the gift of the assurance of being a follower of Christ who is fully surrendered. There may be moments when you doubt whether or not you have fully surrendered to Him. That is possible for everyone of us, so regularly ask for that assurance (Rom. 8:16).

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

Tomorrow is the 4^th of July; the day America celebrates her independence. We hope you will be able to spend time tonight and tomorrow with your family and friends in safe and meaningful celebration. Due to the holiday we are not having our regularly scheduled Wednesday night activities tonight, July 3^rd. I would like to ask that you do take some time to reflect on our nation’s history, the hard-fought independence we possess, and the freedoms which are ours to exercise our religion. I would also ask that you obey 1 Timothy 2:1-4, which says, “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, ² for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. ³ This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

I am including a link to a short video about the Fore Father’s Monument located at Plymouth, Massachusetts, which was erected to remind us of the principles upon which our nation was founded. You may enjoy watching this as you spend time celebrating the 4^th of July: An Explanation of the Fore Father’s Monument.

Enjoy the 4^th of July, and we look forward to gathering again on Sunday to celebrate our ultimate freedom in Christ, our ultimate home in the Kingdom of God, and our ultimate King, The Lord Jesus.

Mark D. DeMoss, Pastor for Preaching and Vision

 ^“And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, ¹² for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;” (Eph. 4:11-12)

God desires that His church be equipped for the good works He saved us for (Eph. 2:10). He desires for the body of Christ to be built up, to be maturing, to be deepening its faith, and growing in its reach. How do we know this is His desire? The full story of Scripture could be called upon in its testimony of God’s purposes for His people. But all we need to do is see what is said in Ephesians 4:11-12, printed for you above.

We know God’s desire to equip believers and build the church because He has given gifts to the church for that very purpose. He places individuals in the church who have been gifted themselves for the purpose of helping the whole church deepen its understanding of who God is, what His purpose is in our lives, and how best to live for Him. He has also given people who are gifted to show us all how to be daily witnesses to the mercies of Christ’s forgiving love.

When we think about the purpose of CHBC it can seem overwhelming. But God has not told us to do something for which He is not actively providing the means to the fulfillment of His desires. This is how we equip believers to the glory of God. We do it so that He receives glory, and we do it by His power, therefore He receives glory.

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

 “…so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places.” (Eph. 3:10)

The mission of the church is to make certain that it is the means through which the manifold wisdom of God is made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. That the angels and demons are made to stand in awe of God’s wisdom in redeeming fallen human creatures into His own adopted sons and daughters.

May we never see the salvation of any person as routine, mundane, or humdrum. It is a fantastic miracle. May we not trivialize that which is truly miraculous.

When we speak of being mission-minded it means taking all the things we do as a church and submitting them to the scrutiny of this stated mission of God. If they cannot be done in such a way, and with the motivation of Ephesians 3:10, may we be willing to lay them aside as secondary at best and perhaps unnecessary as a pursuit.

This must be one of our three pillars, or three-core convictions. Our intentional focus and our mental energies must be spent on the mission of our living God. Pray that our church leadership would scrutinize all that we do by the prime mission of the Living God. Scrutinize your own daily activities and routines in the same way, so that your life moves with the eternal purposes and plans of God.

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

God’s Vision for CHBC: 3 Piers, 3 Pillars, and 3 Purposes

3 Pillars: Biblically-Modeled; Mission-Minded; and Multi-Cultural

 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; ¹⁵ nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:4-16)

The Bible gives a great deal of information about the form and function of the church. The core conviction of a local church must be to adhere as closely to the Scriptures as we can under the power and influence of the Holy Spirit. Organization, ministry development, and church leadership is not the only things to consider when thinking about the church following a Biblical model.

A Biblically-modeled church will be salt and light to its community. Salt flavors and preserves. Do we make our community a better place to exist? When the residents of South OKC think about what is good about their community, does it have anything to do with working around and living around people who are members of CHBC?

Light provides sight and guidance. Without light our eyes cannot function. Without light it is easy to lose your way. As a church, CHBC can provide truth and hope about life, family, marriage, anxiety, grief, education, and so much more.

The church should be organized properly, but it also must function in the way God designed. We must not live closed off from our world. We must live in conformity to the world. We must exist to be salt and light in our world. That is our Biblical model.

By His Grace and For His Glory,

Pastor Mark

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