When the gospel takes root in a person, it creates a fundamental change of identity. Those who were formerly God’s enemies (Romans 5:10) become his friends (John 15:13-15). Those who were previously slaves to sin become slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:17-18). Those whose hearts were dead toward God are made alive in him (Ephesians 2:1-6). Those born into sin are reborn in Christ and become “a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Worshipers

Before the gospel changes us, we are enslaved to “the desires of the flesh and of the mind” (Ephesians 2:1-3). We act as our own gods, pursuing our own desires and committed to our own independence. But through the gospel, we become “obedient from the heart” to Jesus’ teaching (Romans 6:17-18). We are changed into disciples, or worshipers – people who want to come under Jesus’ teaching, submit to his ways, and learn what it means to live life for His glory.

As worshipers, we study the Bible to understand what God has said. We practice the disciplines of prayer, solitude, and reflection so that we can discern the leading of the Holy Spirit. We learn from the teaching, training, and wisdom of godly leaders and teachers. We create communities of discipleship so that we can learn from each other. And we engage the world around us so that we can relate with relevance and wisdom to those who share our cultural setting.

Family

Before the gospel changes us, we are “children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:1-3). We are subject to God’s judgment because of our sin. But through the gospel, we are adopted into God’s family (Galatians 4:4-7). We become his sons and daughters. We are no longer orphans, alienated from God and each other, but brothers and sisters in God’s family.

As family, we live by the “house rules” given in Scripture. We look out for each other and care for one another. We are jealous for the honor of our Father’s good name (Matt 6:9). And we feel love and kinship toward those alienated from God, longing for them to be reconciled to our Father who created them in his image and likeness (Genesis 1:27).

Servants

Before the gospel changes us, we love to “follow the ways of this world” (Ephesians 2:1-3). Our sin, which feels like an expression of freedom, actually enslaves us (Romans 6:16). But in the gospel, God delivers us from our slavery to sin and self so that we can freely serve him by the power of His Spirit (Romans 6:18-22). Released from self-absorption, self-concern, and self-worship, we can joyfully die to ourselves in order to love and serve others, just as Jesus did (Luke 22:27).

As servants, we see all of life as service to God. We seek tangible ways to love and serve others. We meet the needs of our city through acts of compassion, mercy, and justice. We joyfully submit to God (James 4:7), to qualified spiritual leaders (Hebrews 13:17), and to each other (Ephesians 5:21). And we cultivate a lifestyle of simplicity and generosity to show that we worship Jesus and not the American idols of comfort, affluence, and success.