Core Values
Core Values
In addition to a church's mission and beliefs, churches tend to develop their own unique "personality" regarding what they value most in their particular setting. The following are our core values, reflecting both who we are and who we aspire to be. All are central to our identity at Legacy.
1. Biblical Grounding
We wholeheartedly embrace the Bible as God's Word. It determines what we believe and do as a church, and it instructs and empowers us to live the Christian life and be disciples of Jesus Christ. We value accurate, quality and relevant Bible teaching and preaching, and encourage personal engagement in all facets of biblical instruction from the sermon, to the small group, to one’s personal devotional life.
2. Honest and Caring Community
The Christian faith is about relationships, not religion. First comes our relationship with God through Jesus Christ, and from this develops deeper relationships with one another inside and outside the church. We encourage honesty, openness, unconditional love and acceptance, and active meeting of needs. As Jesus was full of grace and truth, we want to embody the same within ourselves and toward one another.
3. Cultural Relevance
As culture constantly changes, the church must also change to connect with society in a relevant way. The Apostle Paul’s words are instructive: “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9.23). America is changing, and so must we. This does not mean we change our mission, beliefs, or core values, but we must flexibly, strategically, insightfully, and most important, prayerfully, adapt our methods and ministries to more effectively care for our church family and reach our community.
4. Multi-ethnic and Multi-generational
Sunday morning is generally the most racially and generationally divided time in America. While we understand church models that strategically target certain demographics, we aim to build a spiritual community as diverse as the community in which we live. Legacy is a church for “every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5.9), for every age group in the “household of faith” (Gal. 6.10), and for people from every economic level (James 2). Whoever you are, we welcome you.
5. Engaged Membership
Church membership is quite unlike membership at a shopping club or a social club. Romans 12 describes membership as including sacrificial devotion (v.1), life transformation (v.2), spiritual humility (v.3), unselfish belonging (v.5), active ministry (vv.6-8), brotherly love (vv.9-10), and zealous service (v.11). We encourage our members to serve the church and the world using their time, treasure and talent.
6. True Worship
Jesus said true worship is “in spirit and in truth” (John 4.24). Such worship transcends the labels of traditional or contemporary, and moves our worship beyond the music. True worship includes various musical genres (Eph. 5.19), diverse instrumentation and expression (Psalm 150), and most importantly results in our awareness of and service to God (Isaiah 6.1-8, Romans 12.1-2). Ultimately, worship is about Him (Psalm 115.1).
7. Prayer Saturation
Jesus declared His house to be a “house of prayer” (Mat. 21.13). The importance and blessings of prayer cannot be overstated. Prayer nurtures our relationship with God (Mark 1.35), fills us with God’s power (Acts 4.31), accesses God’s wisdom (James 1.5), enables us to actively participate in God’s work (John 14.12-14), and so much more.
8. Strategic Cooperation
While recognizing the local church as independent and autonomous, we realize the universal nature of the Church and the Kingdom of God. As such, we strategically cooperate with other churches and organizations in the following ways:
a. Southern Baptist entities. We are a Southern Baptist Church and we cooperate with other Southern Baptist churches at the local, state, and national levels.
b. Evangelical churches. We are also an evangelical church, which means we agree on the fundamentals of the Christian faith. To reach our communities for Christ, it is essential that we work together with such like-minded churches.
c. Other churches and religious organizations. While we may have some differing beliefs, we do share common causes such as caring for the poor, feeding the hungry, battling modern day slavery (sex trafficking, sweat shops), working toward racial reconciliation, and the like.
d. Community Opportunities. As a church, we want to be a good member of our community. When opportunities arise, we lend our support and service.
In addition to a church's mission and beliefs, churches tend to develop their own unique "personality" regarding what they value most in their particular setting. The following are our core values, reflecting both who we are and who we aspire to be. All are central to our identity at Legacy.
1. Biblical Grounding
We wholeheartedly embrace the Bible as God's Word. It determines what we believe and do as a church, and it instructs and empowers us to live the Christian life and be disciples of Jesus Christ. We value accurate, quality and relevant Bible teaching and preaching, and encourage personal engagement in all facets of biblical instruction from the sermon, to the small group, to one’s personal devotional life.
2. Honest and Caring Community
The Christian faith is about relationships, not religion. First comes our relationship with God through Jesus Christ, and from this develops deeper relationships with one another inside and outside the church. We encourage honesty, openness, unconditional love and acceptance, and active meeting of needs. As Jesus was full of grace and truth, we want to embody the same within ourselves and toward one another.
3. Cultural Relevance
As culture constantly changes, the church must also change to connect with society in a relevant way. The Apostle Paul’s words are instructive: “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9.23). America is changing, and so must we. This does not mean we change our mission, beliefs, or core values, but we must flexibly, strategically, insightfully, and most important, prayerfully, adapt our methods and ministries to more effectively care for our church family and reach our community.
4. Multi-ethnic and Multi-generational
Sunday morning is generally the most racially and generationally divided time in America. While we understand church models that strategically target certain demographics, we aim to build a spiritual community as diverse as the community in which we live. Legacy is a church for “every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5.9), for every age group in the “household of faith” (Gal. 6.10), and for people from every economic level (James 2). Whoever you are, we welcome you.
5. Engaged Membership
Church membership is quite unlike membership at a shopping club or a social club. Romans 12 describes membership as including sacrificial devotion (v.1), life transformation (v.2), spiritual humility (v.3), unselfish belonging (v.5), active ministry (vv.6-8), brotherly love (vv.9-10), and zealous service (v.11). We encourage our members to serve the church and the world using their time, treasure and talent.
6. True Worship
Jesus said true worship is “in spirit and in truth” (John 4.24). Such worship transcends the labels of traditional or contemporary, and moves our worship beyond the music. True worship includes various musical genres (Eph. 5.19), diverse instrumentation and expression (Psalm 150), and most importantly results in our awareness of and service to God (Isaiah 6.1-8, Romans 12.1-2). Ultimately, worship is about Him (Psalm 115.1).
7. Prayer Saturation
Jesus declared His house to be a “house of prayer” (Mat. 21.13). The importance and blessings of prayer cannot be overstated. Prayer nurtures our relationship with God (Mark 1.35), fills us with God’s power (Acts 4.31), accesses God’s wisdom (James 1.5), enables us to actively participate in God’s work (John 14.12-14), and so much more.
8. Strategic Cooperation
While recognizing the local church as independent and autonomous, we realize the universal nature of the Church and the Kingdom of God. As such, we strategically cooperate with other churches and organizations in the following ways:
a. Southern Baptist entities. We are a Southern Baptist Church and we cooperate with other Southern Baptist churches at the local, state, and national levels.
b. Evangelical churches. We are also an evangelical church, which means we agree on the fundamentals of the Christian faith. To reach our communities for Christ, it is essential that we work together with such like-minded churches.
c. Other churches and religious organizations. While we may have some differing beliefs, we do share common causes such as caring for the poor, feeding the hungry, battling modern day slavery (sex trafficking, sweat shops), working toward racial reconciliation, and the like.
d. Community Opportunities. As a church, we want to be a good member of our community. When opportunities arise, we lend our support and service.
