Vision and Mission | Encounter Church of Palmyra

We are Encounter Church

Followers of Jesus Bringing His Love to Life

Core Values

Jesus Prioritized

In what way did my actions represent Jesus today?

Colossians 3:17

"And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father."

Matthew 16:24-25

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, 'If any of you wants to be My follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow Me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it.'"

Growth Pursued

How am I walking in accountability with others on my journey of faith?

Acts 2:42 "All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer."

Titus 2:11-14

"For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. He gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds."

People Empowered

How am I using my gifts to serve in the Body?

1 Peter 4:10-11

"God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God Himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to Him forever and ever! Amen."

Ephesians 3:20

"Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think."

Generations Bridged

How am I investing in the lives of someone older/younger than me?

Psalm 145:4

"Let each generation tell its children of Your mighty acts; let them proclaim Your power."

Proverbs 20:29 "The glory of the young is their strength; the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old."

Communities Transformed

Am I close to someone far from God? What am I doing to show them God's love?

Acts 1:8 "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Matthew 28:19-20 "Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Beliefs

We believe that it is the nature of God to make Himself known. God reveals Himself to humanity in various ways, most clearly in the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. We accept these divinely inspired writings as the authoritative Word of God.
John 1:1-2, 18; 2 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 1:1-2; 11:6

God created man and woman in His image. Humans are distinct from all other forms of creation, having spiritual as well as physical characteristics. When Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, their nature became sinful. This sinful nature has become an inherent part of the human experience and has separated man from God.
Genesis 1:26-28; 2:7-9, 15-20; 9:1-6; Psalm 8:3-8; 90:1-6; 139:13-16; Ecclesiastes 12:1-7; Acts 17:26-28

Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ established the church to be God’s new community. Jesus Christ is the head of the church, the redeemed community. His Word and will are authoritative among us. The church consists of all those who trust Jesus Christ as Savior and follow Him as Lord. The ordinances of the church are baptism and communion, which are to be observed in obedience to our Lord’s command.
Acts 2:41-47; 15; Romans 1:16; 2 Corinthians 2:5-11; Philippians 2:2-16

Encounter Church is a member of the Brethren In Christ Church. Who Are The Brethren In Christ?

Thanks for asking! The ten core values (following) can help you to better understand the Brethren In Christ. In these core values we declare our ties with true Christians of all times and every place. We confess with them the faith as embodied in the Apostle’s Creed and the Nicene Creed. They express in greater detail the purpose of the denomination: “…to foster a fellowship of believers whose objective is to worship and obey the triune God, and to proclaim His gospel to all people.”

Experiencing God’s Love and Grace – we value the free gift of salvation in Christ Jesus and the transforming power of the Holy Spirit.

Believing the Bible – we value the Bible as God’s authoritative Word, study it together, and build our lives on its truth.

Worshiping God – we value heartfelt worship that is God-honoring, Spirit-directed, and life-changing.

Following Jesus – we value wholehearted obedience to Christ Jesus through the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit.

Belonging to the Community of Faith – we value integrity in relationships and mutual accountability in an atmosphere of grace, love, and acceptance.

Witnessing to the World – we value an active and loving witness for Christ to all people.

Serving Compassionately – we value serving others at their point of need, following the example of our Lord Jesus.

Pursuing Peace – we value all human life and promote forgiveness, understanding, reconciliation, and non-violent resolution of conflict.

Living Simply – we value uncluttered lives, which free us to love boldly, give generously, and serve joyfully.

Relying on God – we confess our dependence on God for everything, and seek to deepen our intimacy with Him by living prayerfully.

(For more information check out the denominational website at www.bicus.org )

Jesus Christ, God the Son, is a distinct person of the Trinity, in perfect equality and unity with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. He was God incarnate–God in the flesh–and lived on earth as a man, fully human, yet without sin. By His suffering and sacrificial death for us, Jesus Christ provided complete atonement for sin. The bodily resurrection of Jesus from the dead after three days testifies decisively of His deity and His victory over sin and death. The risen Christ ascended to heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father, interceding for us. At the end of time, all things in heaven and earth will be brought under His rule. Every person will bow before Him and He will reign forever.
Ephesians 1:3-14; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 1:1-3

The Holy Spirit is a divine person who eternally co-exists with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit works in the world, convincing persons of sin and bringing them to repentance and faith, guiding them to fullness of life in Christ. He helps the children of God in their need, cleanses and sets them apart for holy living, and empowers them for service. The Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to all believers according to His sovereign will and purposes, given for the building up of the church and for ministry in the world.
Genesis 1:2; John 3:34; 14:16-17; 15:26; Acts 2; 10:38; Hebrews 9:14

The final destiny of all things lies in God’s hands. In God’s time, creation will be renewed in Christ. The kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdom of our Lord, and He shall reign forever. God will judge righteously at the close of the age. Those who have trusted Him and obediently followed Jesus as Lord will live eternally in His presence in heaven. Those who have not trusted Him will be eternally shut out from the presence of God in hell.
Psalm 110:1; Ephesians 1:20-23; Colossians 1:19-20; Revelation 11:15

We believe that both men and women are called and equipped for pastoral leadership. The early church reveals a varied and faithful ministry arising from the fact that all of God’s people are “gifted” by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of building up one another. An account of the entire witness of scripture affirms the development towards full equality in Christ in all aspects of ministry. We believe all people are created in the image of God, therefore understanding a biblical theology of a “new creation in Christ” means that there is “neither male nor female” (Gal 3:28). This is a powerful affirmation of the commitment to equality in the gospel, the Church, and all of its ministries. Jesus’s inclusion of women among his disciples and witnesses, the coming of the Holy Spirit on both sons and daughters, and Paul’s inclusion of women in his circles of coworkers in the ministry all affirm the full and equal participation of both women and men in all the ministries of the gospel.
1 Corinthians 12:4–31; 14:1–19; Romans 12:3–8; Ephesians 4:7–16; 1 Peter 4:8–11

We believe that marriage is a covenant established by God and that it is fulfilled only in the heterosexual union between one male and one female being joined together as one, as is described in Genesis 1 and 2. And the God-given gift of sexual intimacy is to be experienced only within the bounds of this covenant commitment. But if that standard is broken, we strive to lovingly point people to Jesus, to His desires for our lives, and the forgiveness of our sins that only comes through His sacrificial death on the cross and resurrection from the grave.