Every church has a particular ministry emphasis. For some it’s their music style. For others it’s their ministry programs. For Westview Bible Church, the ministry emphasis is to glorify God through faithful teaching of His word, proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ, worshipping God in service and song, and sincerely loving each other in truth.
The Glory of God
The ultimate priority of our ministry is to bring glory to God in all that we do.
1 Corinthians 10:31 – Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
1 Peter 4:11 – Whoever speaks is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
This means that we strive to do all things according to the word of God, in love, through the power of the Holy Spirit, and with a sincerity of heart for God, not from pride or selfish ambition or self-service.
Philippians 2:3-8 – Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
We can glorify God when we humble ourselves, and thus serve God and one another.
Accurately Handling the Word of God
A primary emphasis of ministry here at Westview Bible Church is the clear and accurate preaching and teaching of the Word of God. We believe in the absolute sufficiency and power of God’s Word to minister to every need we have (Psalm 19:7-11; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). Thus we are committed to verse-by-verse, expository preaching that unleashes the transforming truths of the Scriptures to our hearts and lives. We refuse to manipulate the Bible to try and make it say what we want it to say or what appears popular to people. Our desire is to remain faithful to the biblical text and accurately and unapologetically preach what is says and means (2 Timothy 4:1-5). If you have a genuine hunger for knowing and understanding God’s Word, Westview could be the church for you!
Boldly proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ
False gospels are becoming more and more prevalent, having watered down the biblical gospel to appear more acceptable to most people by solely focusing on God’s love while seeking to avoid mentioning sin, judgment, or repentance. We are committed to faithfully proclaiming the true biblical gospel of God’s grace that proclaims that:
- All have sinned and fallen short of God’s standards for their lives (Romans 3:10-11, 23)
- God’s holiness demands His just punishment of our sin (Romans 1:18; 6:23a)
- Christ’s death provides the only satisfactory payment for our sins (Romans 5:6-9; John 14:6)
- Salvation comes by faith alone in Christ alone, not by human works (Ephesians 2:8-9)
The real problem of mankind is sin, we all do it. And we know we do. The gospel of Jesus Christ is that when we believe in who He is–God in the flesh, fully God, yet fully man come to pay the price for our sins–and we decide to follow Him instead of going our own way, we have eternal life. The moment we do, we are changed, a new spirit is given to us, we begin to understand and be changed by His word, the Bible, and we are finally able to choose and do right. And though we still sin, it is a struggle now, and we are convicted about it, and reminded to gratefully turn to the One who died for those very sins, and praise and thank Him for His grace and mercy, which He freely gives to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:14-16).
Worshipping God in Spirit and Truth
Worship is not just singing some songs and praying some prayers. It is about actively living our lives in relationship with God Almighty, exalting God the Father, through Jesus our Lord and Savior in the power of God the Holy Spirit. It happens when we gather together for church services, it happens when we make our daily choices, it happens when we turn to God for comfort, for guidance, for help to praise, to extol. It happens when we use our gifts to build up one another, His church. God can and should always be worshipped in our thoughts, our words, our actions and our attitudes. This happens whenever we do such things according to the guidance of His word.
When we gather together for church services, we love and sing songs from every generation, old and new, that glorify God and reinforce the teachings of His word. Our desire is that all God’s people, both young and old, would be able to worship the Lord in a meaningful way. We believe that many of the older hymns of the faith, and many of the new hymns and songs being written today possess strong messages of worship and faith that can promote an attitude conducive to worship and learning during church services, and to enrich the lives of young and old alike.
We also pray, lifting one voice up to God in adoration, exultation, supplications, petitions and thanksgiving. We worship the only One worthy, petition the only One able to help, thank the only One who gives good things, and entrust everything to the only One who cares for us perfectly.
We share in the Lord’s Table every third Sunday in that special sacrament our Lord Jesus established on the night He was betrayed so that we would remember Him, what He did for us, His amazing unthinkable sacrifice, that we could be saved from the wrath of God, the very wrath He Himself bore on the cross the next day. Everyone who believes in Him and has accepted His sacrifice is welcome and encouraged to partake of the bread, representing His body, broken for us, and the cup, representing His blood, spilled for us to pay for our sins.
God wants all of His children, both young and old, to have a place to offer Him worship and praise, and to commune with Him together in unity as one body. Regardless of your age, we hope you will find Westview a place to grow, a place to worship, a place to belong.