Multiply Disciples and Churches
Jesus gave his church a mission: to make disciples (Matt 28:18-20). A disciple is a student, learner, and imitator of Jesus’ ways. They spend time with Jesus, become like Jesus, and do what Jesus does. They are someone who is following Jesus while simultaneously learning how to follow Jesus better. Our vision is that the natural overflow of this pursuit and calling will lead to the multiplication of disciples, churches, and movements. This means we will seek gospel-centered health, resist comforts, intentionally disciple, and invite others to encounter Jesus.
How We Live It Out
We commit to gathering together on Sundays and scattering throughout our region in groups throughout the week
Gather
We gather on Sundays to celebrate Jesus, enjoy his presence together, delight in His Word, and remember the Lord’s Supper and baptism. Our Sunday gatherings serve the broader mission of multiplying disciples and churches. Nursery is available for babies 6 months to 3 years Citylight Kids is available for children age 4 to 9 years old offering age-appropriate discipleship. However, children are always welcome to join us in our worship gatherings any Sunday!
Gathering Times:
8:30 AM 10:30 AM
Scatter
We scatter throughout the week in City Groups - the heart of our church. A City Group is a group of 8-16 people who meet weekly in homes throughout the city to “Follow Jesus Together in Southwest Iowa.” These groups are small enough to care for each other’s growth in Christ, but big enough to make a difference in the culture around them.
What Drives Us
Our Core Values
A commitment to reveling in God's act of reaching down to us in the gospel and responding by reaching up, in, and out.
Gospel
The gospel is the "good news" that God has reached down to us in his son, Jesus, to defeat sin and death and their effects in our world. Through his life, death, and resurrection, Jesus has initiated and accomplished what we never could.
This gospel is the "power of God" (Rom. 1:16) to overcome the penalty of sin (past), the power of sin (present), and the presence of sin (future). It is the power for personal salvation and transformation as well as the renewal of neighborhoods, cities, and nations. We never move past Jesus. We never move past the gospel. Who we are and what we do will be rooted in and empowered by God's reaching down in the gospel.
Spiritual Formation
We have all been formed into a certain kind of person. The goal of the gospel is not just to save us from hell, but to renew our character and lives "until Christ is formed in you" (Gal. 4:19).
We are committed to proclaiming the gospel not just as the front door to Christianity but as the good news that we live by every day. We are committed to being a church that drives people to personal repentance and faith in Jesus for a changed and transformed life.
Community
The church is not a place but a people. It's not just a weekly assembly of individuals, but a community committed to loving each other well and doing life together.
Community is the context for gospel formation and mission. We will not settle for being a weekly service for people to attend, but will continually drive people to share their lives with others as "a people for [God's] own possession" (1 Pet. 2:9).
Mission
The church IS God's missionary agency to fulfill the great commission. Emil Brunner wrote, "The church exists by mission as a fire exists by burning." Therefore, "missions" is not one ministry within the church, but the very orientation of the church.
The same gospel that transforms us also compels us outward on mission. We exist as a church on mission to be "a city on a hill" and "the light of the world" (Matt. 5:14). We do this by orienting each one of our City Groups around a defined and shared mission – seeking to love, serve, and make disciples of neighborhoods and networks of people in Southwest Iowa and the surrounding communities.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
Whether it's joining us on a Sunday, connecting with a City Group, or learning more about what we believe, we'd love to help you find your place at Citylight.