FELLOWSHIP IN
FOCUS
Our Vision
At FELLOWSHIP CORONA, we want to be people who are earnest and committed to a scripturally informed, Gospel-focused, Christ-centered way of thinking that transforms our lives 7 days/week and everywhere we are. As a community of believers, we seek to grow together in authentic relationship with Jesus Christ and with one another as we labor to love and lead others to Him.
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Our Core Values
Core values bring clarity to the things that matter most at FELLOWSHIP CORONA. They undergird our vision and determine what we do as a church body.​
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At FELLOWSHIP, we value:
The Authority of Scripture
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The Bible is the revelation of God and His plan for humanity. It is our final authority in all matters of faith, life, conduct, and ministry. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
God-honoring Relationships
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The divine value of relationships is expressed in the Ten Commandments; the first four describing our personal relationship with God and the next six describing our relationships with other people (Exodus 20:1-18). Jesus emphasized the prime importance of these relationships by saying that all of the Law and the Prophets hinge upon His command that we demonstrate love within them. (Matthew 22:36-40)
Inter-personal, cross-cultural, marital, and familial relationships are all opportunities for us to grow deeper in our understanding of ourselves and others. It is also in the context of these relationships that our sin is revealed and our need for salvation and sanctification is most apparent. We believe that God calls us into authentic relationships, challenging us to the often-difficult task of loving one another, as a way of refining and stretching us. Therefore, at FELLOWSHIP CORONA, we emphasize the importance of a growing and personal relationship with God and the application of biblical precepts to our relationships with others so that we may grow deeper in faith and closer to the image of Christ.
The Diversity of God’s Kingdom.
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Even a cursory appraisal of humanity and the physical universe leads to the conclusion that, as the Creator of it all, God values diversity. The Scripture presents humanity as the crowning jewel of Creation. Humans bear the very image of God, and our diversity is His idea. Therefore, we view the diversity of God’s Kingdom as a testament to the value He places on it and as a treasure and gift to us. Furthermore, we believe that personal, spiritual growth is more pronounced when believers choose to do the Christian life together with other believers that are unlike them whether by ethnicity, race, native origin, gender (as defined in Genesis), age, or socio-economic status. The true church is one unified body with diverse members in Christ Jesus; each having need of the others to best grow and function biblically
(1 Corinthians 12:20-26). We believe this is as true of the diversity of talents and spiritual gifts as it is of the racial and ethnic diversity of the people we seek to be, to love, and to serve.
Intergenerational Discipleship
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Psalm 145:4 speaks of how one generation proclaims the mighty and wonderful works of God to another.
We hold our committed, seasoned believers in high regard. They represent the wisdom and experience of years of following Christ that is a tremendous resource for the church. Throughout the Old and New Testaments, we see examples of spiritual mentorship across generations; examples like Moses and Joshua, Eli and Samuel, Ruth and Naomi, Mordecai and Esther, and Paul and Timothy, to name a few. At FELLOWSHIP CORONA, we strongly encourage and seek to capitalize on this kind of spiritual mentorship through the family and educational ministries in which we engage.
We also value our young people; they represent the future of the church. Examples of God working powerfully through young people are also plentiful in the Scriptures and include the accounts of Joseph, Samuel, Daniel, Esther, Mary, and Timothy. One of the most important lessons to take away from their stories is that each had people in their lives who intentionally and consistently invested in their spiritual formation. Imagine the powerful impact on our communities and the future health and stability of the church, if an entire fellowship of believers committed to invest in the growth and spiritual formation of all of its young people, from birth to adulthood.
At FELLOWSHIP CORONA, we believe the adage, “it takes a village to raise a child”, is a biblical one. Therefore, not only do we believe it important to support and encourage parents and grandparents as primary faith trainers, we also strive to help them navigate the various other challenges of raising children who will hopefully choose to honor and serve the Lord as adults.
Excellence for the Purposes of God
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Since we represent Christ, everything we do, whether in or outside of church ministry, warrants our best efforts. Excellence honors God and inspires people! We believe that, as a church fellowship, aiming for excellence in all we do means doing less; focusing on a handful of specific ministries (our distinctives) rather than on dozens. This “eliminate and concentrate” philosophy allows us to maintain our focus on growing people rather than on growing programs.
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Colossians 3:23​
Ministry Mindset
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​Opportunities for the work of ministry abound all around us; within our homes, at our schools, on our jobs, in our communities, and around the world. For believers, every day should begin with prayerful resolve to be on mission for Christ wherever we are and to offer our resources (gifts, talents, intellect, finances, possessions, and time) back to God to be used for His purposes and glory.
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The Cultural Relevance of the Gospel
God speaks to the difficult issues of our time. We believe that His is the only redeeming, true, and ultimately authoritative voice. As disciples following our Master’s example, we must engage on these issues from a biblical worldview and from a place of Christ-like love and compassion for the lost, the mistreated, the voiceless, and the oppressed.
Living in Biblical Community
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Doing life with one another is the New Testament model and mandate for the church of Jesus Christ. Further, we prayerfully pursue the unity for which Christ prayed in John 17 without compromising the often hard truths that Christ embodies.
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The Power of Prayer and the Exercise of Faith
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Prayer and faith are the power and fuel of any ministry engaged to bring glory to God and expand His kingdom.
None of the aforementioned values can be upheld or accomplished without communion with God through prayer. Again, Jesus is our example. Throughout His earthly ministry, He routinely drew away from the crowds to commune with the Father in prayer so that He might proceed with the work of redemption in complete alignment with the will of the Father.
Faith is a deep conviction about who God is, His sovereignty, what He has done and what He will do.
It is surety about the truth of His word and the ultimate fulfillment of His promises. It is about believing without seeing. The exercise of faith is a critical and constant practice for those who follow Christ. "Without faith, it is impossible to please God". Together, we seek the Lord for faith in abundance so that we can set aside the fears that often inhibit us from boldly walking the paths that God has for us.
We understand that faith is not truly faith until it is tested and it is only as sure and effective as the one in whom it is placed. ​
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John 5:19-20, Hebrews 10:24-25; Acts 2:44-47; Galatians 6:2
Our Core Pursuits
KNOWING God intimately
At FELLOWSHIP CORONA, we look to and elevate the Spirit led teaching and study of the Bible as the primary means by which we come to know God. We also come to know Him through prayer and worship, through the beauties and intricacies of Creation, by heeding His Word, testing his promises, and experiencing his faithfulness. By knowing him more fully, we are better able to represent Him as ambassadors in the world; making Him known as the only sure hope and remedy for all that ails humanity.
Jeremiah 9:23-24; 1 John 2:3-4; Romans 1:19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:20
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LOVING God passionately
Loving God passionately is the fruit of knowing Him intimately. True disciples of Christ strive to love God and, by extension, one another in unity and sincerity .
When we steadfastly pursue God, abide in His Word, and obey His commands, we are actively demonstrating our love for Him. Furthermore, loving God is inextricably bound together with loving our neighbors. Jesus has shows us, by example, that we are to love those in and outside of the church authentically, compassionately, selflessly, indiscriminantly, and sometimes even sacrificially while living and speaking the Truth. Only when we love God can we love our neighbors in this way. We cannot love our neighbors rightly unless we first recognize God's image in all of them.
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John 13:34-35; John 14:21, 23-24; 1 John 3:17-24; 1 John 4:20; Luke 10:25-37 Mark 12:30-31)
GROWING together intentionally.
We strive to grow together in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to pursue fellowship with God and one another, and to bear fruit in keeping with the decision to turn from sin and follow Christ.
We decry any notion that Christ-centered faith is merely a Sunday morning exercise. On the contrary, it is the daily practice of "abiding” in Christ (through the study of the Scriptures), and allowing the Scriptures, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to permeate and transform every relationship and arena of our lives.
Furthermore, believers are called to “do life” alongside one another. We recognize that an important part of our spiritual growth comes from being in regular fellowship with other believers who can encourage us, challenge us, and hold us accountable to living in accordance with the faith we profess.
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2 Peter 3:15-18, 1 John 1:3-7, Matthew 3:8 John 10:27-28; 15:4; Acts 17:28 Hebrews 10:24-25; James 5:16
SERVING God selflessly
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For the true disciple of Christ, service is non-optional. As the Gospel transforms us, so we in turn are privileged to participate in God’s transforming work all around us. Such work demands a selfless willingness to serve.
Selfless service to God is born of our love for Him and of our desire to be conformed to the image of His Son. As each of us are given spiritual gifts, we are commanded to employ those gifts in service to one another and to God's kingdom purposes. Like Christ, we aim to serve the body of believers and our communities in various capacities with humility, sensitivity, and grace.
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1 Samuel 12:24; Mark 10:43-45; 1 Corinthians 15:58; Galatians 5:3; 1 Peter 8-11
