In 1997, Oak Grove Baptist Church adopted the following as our purpose statement:

"Oak Grove Baptist Church exists to passionately love God to the degree that we take the name of God to the world by means of magnifying Him in such a way that believers are lead to maturity, which includes membership in the body, ministry according to spiritual gifts, and missions to the world."

Any church could say the same thing we’ve said here. In fact, they should agree that this is their reason for existence. This is the biblical rational for the existence of any New Covenant church. However, it may not be what every modern American church can say. Take a few moments and examine why we explain our existence as we do.

In Matthew 22:36-40 Jesus in response to a question tells us what the greatest of all commandments is. 

"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him," ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ "This is the first and great commandment. "And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ "On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:36-40)

In our Lord’s answer is the synopsis of everything it means to be a Christian and what is entailed in the vision of a church. To love and enjoy God forever is the highest work that anyone can do. The very heartbeat of Christianity is love and foremost, love for God. It is not the performing of the regulations of a church’s constitution and by-laws. Nor, is it good moral behavior. The primary goal of a Christian and a church is to be passionately in love with what God is passionately in love with, and that is the glory of His name. It is a treasuring of God above all other treasures to the degree that all other treasures are dull in comparison.

This should so motivate the believer in Christ and a local church that everything that is done is measured by this standard. You see, it isn’t so much a standard as it is a life force flowing naturally from our hearts toward Him. As we experience God as the greatest delight of our hearts, we will naturally want to live in a manner, which will bring Him the greatest joy. That is why Jesus said, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” (John 14:23) It is the same reason why the apostle John said, “He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (1 John 2:4)

As we love God, or in other words, value God supremely, we will be motivated by a desire to achieve by His grace the five objectives that we stated in our purpose statement.

1. Magnify God

To magnify God means to worship Him. However, we may not be meaning what most think of when they think of worship. We would not exclude the worship services of Oak Grove, but that is not our definition of worship. Worship does not and should not be limited to a church sanctuary. If it is limited to a church sanctuary then it isn’t worship. Worship is the valuing of God’s supremacy; that all things are from Him and for Him. In other words it is, loving God by enjoying Him for who He is.

When we accept this Biblical definition of worship then we refuse to relegate worship to a church service and it becomes a way of life. Whatever we do, wherever we do it becomes worship with this type of heart and mindset.

2. Maturity

When we as a church love God by enjoying Him supremely then a 
maturation of the saints will occur. It will happen because we will want our brother in Christ to experience all of God’s pleasure and because we will love each other as ourselves and thus will encourage, exhort and instruct one another. In Matthew 28:19 Jesus told us to “Go . . . and make disciples.” This process of discipleship is what we call the maturation process that takes one from conversion to spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity. 

3. Membership

By membership we are not meaning have your name on our church roll but rather fellowshipping together in the very things in which we have in common. Most churches use the word fellowship to mean shaking hands after church or getting together at a church potluck luncheon. But the Scriptures propose something quite different.

The Bible’s concept of fellowship is expressed in our word membership. In Ephesians 2:19 Paul describes the oneness of the church when he wrote, “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,” This idea of oneness and community is expressed in the word, “members.” In chapter 4 of the same book he states the necessity of this fellowship as a means of growth. 

But, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head——Christ——from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:15-16)

In Acts 2:42 the Bible says “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.” In verse 44 Luke states the historical record that the believers were a community that was very close knit and interdependent, “Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common.” The early church not only gathered corporately as a congregation but also according to verse 46 gathered in small groups in order to promote this sense of fellowship. They were together being accountable, encouraging and exhorting one another. “So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart.” (Acts 2:46) Unless this type of community is taking place in whatever format then a church is like a bird with only one wing. It simply cannot fly. 

4. Ministry

As we passionately treasure Christ above all others we will be motivated to give to others as Christ has given to us. There will be a desire to glorify Him by good works and acts of love. This is what ministry is all about. Serving God by serving others in love. We live in a needy world and God has commissioned His church to minister to the needs of humanity through the impetus of His love. Therefore, He has equipped every believer with spiritual gifts in order to touch every human hurt and need. 

We encourage each member of Oak Grove Baptist Church to discover their gifts and to excel in them by Biblical instruction and practical avenues in which to express their spiritual gift. We do not believe ministry is reserved to a position in some church based program on Sunday or Wednesday evening but should be occurring wherever we go and as we go.

5. Missions

The heart that finds its full satisfaction in God will want all people to know the joy of Christ. There should be a heartbeat to take the good news of redemption to a world that is saddled with a quest for joy but is doomed to never find it outside of Jesus. Missions is the attempt to promote the exaltation of God’s name to all people groups on this planet. The goal of missions is for everyone to know about this grand and glorious God so that they too could enjoy His person, presence and power. We do not see missions divided into home and foreign but believe the task of the Great Commission has no boundaries. The entire challenge of Christ’s command to go to the entire world is ours, as well as any other New Testament Church, and we refuse to be satisfied until every person has had an opportunity to hear about the glory of our God.

In conclusion, this is our mission or purpose for existing. Our purpose is found in His existence. We have no objective or meaning in our lives apart from Christ. No task, or program initiated by people, or any idea is acceptable to us unless it falls into this overriding statement and its five objectives. 

But how do we do this? As Paul said, “who is adequate for these things?”(2 Corinthians 2:16) The answer is in a “desperate dependency” upon His mercy to give us the grace to do as we have here outlined. And as we experience His grace, His glory is revealed to us. As we experience His glory we, by His grace, disperse it to others and in return He is exalted. May the Lord of mercy grant His grace to us so that we fulfill what we believe His Word states is the purpose of a New Covenant church. Amen!