Mountainview's Identity
Chris Meade | Matthew 28:16-20 | January 12, 2025
VALUES: Our values shape and guide our ministry activity. These values describe the culture that we will strive to create in and through Mountainview Christian Church.
We value BIBLICAL TRUTH , because we believe God’s Word is His special revelation to us and our authority in life and faith. So, we will unapologetically teach and align all that we do with the unchanging, timeless truth of God’s Word, in ways that connects and speak into our ever-changing culture and equips people to THINK, LOVE, and LIVE like Jesus.
We value AUTHENTIC COMMUNITY, because we believe we are not meant to do life alone. So, we invite and pursue 100% involvement in life groups and studies where we create intentional, life-on-life connection—where masks can be taken off and people are safe to be real, be cared for and to care for others, and be pointed to greater life in Jesus. We see this as the best and primary way for people to find connection and be discipled in the church gathering.
We value STEWARDSHIP , because we believe we are responsible with what God has entrusted to us. So, we will intentionally invest with integrity, transparency, and radical generosity—the resources of our time, gifts and abilities, and our finances—into the eternal Kingdom of God.
We value MISSIONAL LIVING, because we believe God has given all of us one mission as followers of Jesus—to go and make disciples (those who think, love and live like Jesus) here and across the world. So, we will equip every person to be a missionary, representing Him and His values, right where God has them. We commit to verbally sharing the good news of Jesus, striving to connect those who don’t know Him and His truths in ways that they can understand. We commit to and building up the church both locally and globally—through intentional global partners and local opportunities to be the hands and feet of Jesus.
We value LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, because we believe God has called all of us to have influence and build up others in the various speres of our life. So, we will seek to live out ministry as a team—never going alone—but intentionally inviting others into development relationships. We invite and pursue a culture of feedback, collaboration, and accountability so that we can grow together, sharing in the call of God on our lives.
We value PRAYER, because we believe that our God is relational, He cares and guides, we can do nothing apart from Him, and in Jesus, we have direct access to Him. So, we will intentionally bathe all we do in prayer—seeking wisdom and empowerment—as well as time for connection and quietness, to listen and be directed.
We value FAMILY, because the Church is the family of God, and marriage and family are foundation of society and the unique picture of Jesus and the Church in our world. So, we will actively connect the unconnected into the Family of God, and intentionally build up and equip the nuclear family—strengthening marriages and families to be healthy and thrive, being the primary source of family discipleship.
We value EXCELLENCE,, because He gave us His best. So, we will strive to give God our best in all we do. We will strive for intentionality, effort, and heart over perfection—so that we can be our best and give our best so that God can use our efforts and plans as He wills—knowing the God ultimately brings the fruit of life change.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. Where did the Holy Spirit speak or challenge you through God’s Word? Were there any “ah-ah” moments?
2. Which of the eight values excite or stand out the most to you? Why?
3. Which of the eight values do you have questions about or personally struggle with? Why?
4. Core Values are “actual values” based on actions you see being lived out. Values that we believe and know are important, but we don’t see lived out—those are called aspirational values—or values we aspire to live out.
o Which of the eight values do you see as actual values—lived out in a corporate sense at Mountainview? How do you see these lived out?
o Which of the eight values do you see as aspirational values—important, but not yet lived out corporately at Mountainview? How could these be lived out?
o Which of these values are actual vs aspirational for you personally? In your family?
- What step could you take towards making an aspirational value and actual value in your life and home—as we learn to think, love, and live like Jesus?
5. How do you respond when you hear, “God chose and wants to work through you to add and build up His eternal Kingdom and Church?
o What could you imagine God doing in your life, personally, and in Mountainview Christian Church, corporately—if we fully lived out these values?
What, How, Where
Chris Meade | Matthew 28:16-20 | January 5, 2025
RECAP: Chris begins the New Year by expressing his excitement for 2025, as he introduces the church's identity, including its mission, core values, and vision for the future. This Sunday focused on the church’s mission—or the WHAT it is to be doing. Emphasizing the importance of discipleship, he explains the Great Commission, outlining how every follower of Jesus is called to make disciples and live intentionally on mission. Ultimately, Chris shares the church's mission statement: "To reach the world, one person at a time, as we learn to think, love, and live like Jesus and reproducing this in the lives of others," inviting the congregation to join in this transformative journey.
1. Where did the Holy Spirit speak or challenge you through God’s Word? Were there any “ah-ah” moments?
2. Meditate on Matthew 4:19. Jesus says: “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” In this short sentence, we see the three primary aspects of discipleship:
1. Come, follow me: a disciple is “relational”—being with Jesus as our priority, and learning from His Word and His life.
2. I will make you: a disciple is “transformational”—being changed by Jesus and molded into His likeness.
3. Fishers of people: Discipleship is “missional”—as disciples we are to join Jesus on mission and ministry—both, evangelizing and helping people grow in Jesus.
o. Think on these three aspects of discipleship. If you were to rank each 1-10, where would you rank your: 1) Relational Discipleship: _____ 2) Transformational Discipleship: _____ 3) Missional Discipleship: _____
o. What are the challenge or barriers of each aspect of discipleship? What would you need to break through these challenges and barriers?
o. How can we apply the idea of being "fishers of people" in our daily lives and interactions?
3. Read Matthew 28:18-20. Jesus here calls his disciples to be disciple makers.
Verse 18 --Jesus gives the foundational “why” for going and making disciples… His authority. What does this mean? Why is this the foundation for discipleship?
Verse 19-20a --Jesus gives us the mission—to be intentional disciple makers, seeing people enter into covenant relationship with Jesus and submit to His teaching. Jesus created mankind to worship God and invite us into relationship and service. He wants to use you and work through you. What comes to your mind when you read this call to be a disciple-maker?
Verse 20b --Jesus promises His presence. How is/can this be a motivator and encouragement to you?
4. Mountainview Christian Church’s new MISSION statement is: To reach the world, one person at a time, as we learn to THINK, LOVE, and LIVE like Jesus…and reproduce that in the lives of others.
o Jesus wants our entire lives to be different from the world. If discipleship is relational, transformational, and missional—how has your time with Jesus and
o What does it mean to "live on mission" and be intentional in reaching unreached people, as emphasized in the sermon? What is one change you can implement in your life to live on mission?
o How can we incorporate the mission statement of Mountainview—"to reach the world, one person at a time, as we learn to think, love, and live like Jesus"—into our personal lives?
5. Read the Following Statements and Statistics of the Church in America:
a. The Church is not a building or an event we go to, but is the body of Christ, the collection of those who have put their faith in the person and work of Jesus. You are the Church.
b. The only growth of the Church comes through evangelism and people coming to faith in the person and work of Jesus.
c. Discipleship making is both, evangelism and spiritual growth. It is not one or the other.
d. Effective evangelistic churches have a 20:1 conversion ratio or better. According to research done by Thomas Rainer, it takes 20 congregants for every 1 conversion per year. Only 4% of American churches are reporting a 20:1 conversion ratio. The current average conversion ratio in the American Church is a shocking 85:1. How does this relate to Matthew 9:36-38?
e. Do you believe that God wants to grow His Church?
f. Do you believe God wants to use YOU to grow His Church?
g. Will you join those at Mountainview committing to pursue our mission “…to reach the world, one person at a time, as we learn to THINK, LOVE, and LIVE like Jesus…and reproduce that in the lives of others”?