CORE convictions and kingdom advancing values

core convictions

Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock, Arkansas, is a Kingdom advancing gospel church, which is for the Gospel, for the city, and for the world.

  • For the Gospel: We are unashamedly and wholly united in both the message and the mission of the Gospel. The message of the Gospel is that there is one hope for the world, and that hope is found in Jesus. The mission of the Gospel is to fill the world with his glory by all people coming to know Christ.
  • For the City: We care for Little Rock. By fostering healthy, restorative relationships and mobilizing our partners to lock arms with those throughout the city, we desire to see our city flourish and thrive. We believe that the greatest gift we can give to this city is a healthy local church that is fighting for her welfare.
  • For the World: We seek Kingdom Advance around the world. Through our partnerships and denominational cooperation, we strive to give all people access to the Gospel in hopes that they are restored to God through Jesus and engaged in making disciples who establish healthy churches in the dark and hard places of our world.

kingdom advancing values

Jesus as Our Hope 
We are in need of a Savior to redeem us from our sin.
Through Jesus, we have freedom from sin. Jesus has made way for sinful, broken man to experience restoration. No matter what crisis, temptation, or pain we face, He alone is our hope and strength. Through His life, death, and resurrection, we have been given the ultimate example of sacrificial love. We now have a model by which to serve and live for God’s Kingdom. He is both our hope for eternity and our hope for today.
 
Championing the Church 
We love the Church.
The Church is paramount to God’s intended plan for the exaltation of His Son Jesus Christ and His Kingdom’s advancement. Christ loved her—the Church—so much that He gave his life for her. The Body of Christ is the vehicle by which God desires to turn the world upside down. God has called out and uniquely gifted believers in local churches to be united with all believers to advance God’s Kingdom.

Leading with Love 
We choose to love people first because Christ first loved us.
Christ’s love for us - Agape love - is the greatest of all. Agape love looks beyond what is typically valued and determines to love even at high personal cost. We have been enabled through Christ to love in such a way. Our love is most purely expressed when we give it to those from whom we have nothing to gain. When we show love to those who can do nothing for us, we reflect the love of God shown to us in Christ. 

People over Productivity 
We believe that people are God’s prized creation.
He placed man and woman over all of his original creation. Before product and production, there were people and relationships. We desire relationships with people to be our primary responsibility. Too often, we get caught up in making things happen and getting tasks accomplished. Time spent getting to know people in intimate, dignity building relationships honors God and brings him glory.
 
All-in Obedience 
We pursue heart transformation that results in complete obedience to God’s Word.
God has clearly and definitively laid out His desire for how all believers are to live. He has gifted each person with time, talent, and treasures to be sharpened and used to better the Church and advance God’s Kingdom.
 
Good News and Good Deeds 
We share the Good News while actively doing good deeds.
The Gospel entails both the message and the mission. As people of faith, we lead others to place their faith in Christ. As image-bearers of Christ, we are to love and serve the poor, outcast, orphan, and stranger as He did. Good works without the Good News is the result of nothing more than a good commission.
 
Living Dynamically 
We delight in the Lord through continually growing in our relationship with Him.
Our eternity was sealed at the point of our salvation. But to be transformed into His image takes time and work. We should look and act more like Jesus today than we did yesterday. As we reflect more of Christ, we seek new opportunities to make Him known. In all things, we desire to be joyful in service and positive in attitude.
 
Collaborative Ownership 
We aim to unite with like-minded people and organizations in transformational work. 
We avoid excuses, take responsibility, respond to the given situation, and strive for solutions. We realize we are only a part of a larger body with a far greater task. To accomplish this task, we must work together. We encourage the sharing of ideas and mutual accountability.