Discipleship at CVC (5)

If a disciple goes 3 for 3 in Loving God, Loving One Another, and Loving the World, then what do we mean at CVC by the phrase "Loving The World"?

Obeying the Great Commandment to love God and love one another is not enough. Jesus also gave His followers the Great Commission. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). True disciples seek to fulfill the Great Commission by making not only better disciples, but also more disciples.

We believe that serving / loving the last, the least, and the lost in practical ways not only provides us with the opportunities to share Christ, but is also transformational in nature. Jesus said, “As the Father has sent Me, even so I am sending you” (John 20:21). Believers change and actually become more and more like Jesus as we go on mission like Him and serve like Him. Therefore, we view Loving The World as essential to discipleship, not optional. We do this by praying for those without Christ and by serving them in practical ways.

We do good deeds to create good will so we can share the good news. While evangelism is not our ulterior motive, it is our ultimate aim. We desire to share the gospel with people who do not know Christ. People desperately need to know that God loves them and that Jesus died on the cross to save them from their sins.

In Acts 1:8, Jesus commanded us to be His witnesses “in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). We believe that every Christian can and should engage in hands on ways in some type of local, regional, national, and / or international mission projects.

We believe that every believer is uniquely gifted to serve. We believe that there is some cause that resonates with the heart – the passion – of each person. We believe that each person has areas of expertise that can be leveraged to minister to those who have less.

Our job as leaders is to help each person at CVC find a place of service in the great missionary cause of God. Annually, everyone can serve locally. And at some point in a believer’s life, we believe that he or she can participate in regional, national, and international missionary efforts.