In general, the gospel is the message of the Bible that God is redeeming his fallen creation through the coming of his kingdom in the person and work of Jesus Christ. In particular, the gospel is the thrilling news that God saves sinners by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus alone. We want to celebrate and revel in the beauty of Jesus and have everything that we do as a church shot through with the gospel of grace. The gospel is not just the doorway into Christianity; it’s the entire house.

Resurrection Pres. hopes to be a church that doesn’t just exist for ourselves. Everything that we hope to do as a church is oriented toward dialoguing with and being a blessing to our Midtown neighbors who are unchurched and de-churched. Our communication, programs, and events are designed to engage and benefit those who would not say that they are Christians as well as those who would. We hope to see ourselves as existing for people who are not here yet.

If we are to have a Missional Identity, we need to be a people that believe that God has set us free for the sake of freedom and that we are to use the liberty and freedom we have in Jesus to think creatively and strategically about new ways to proclaim and embody a timeless and unchanging truth. We want to be a people with a fixed theology but a flexible methodology that intentionally dreams of new ways to bring this same gospel to bear on the lives of this particular part of Memphis at this particular time in history.

We hope to be a group of people that take God so seriously that we do not take ourselves too seriously.  The Gospel of Jesus is the only thing that can resolve the seeming paradox between being playful yet reverent.  What Christ has done to free us is so weighty and severe that we cannot help but approach God with real awe, wonder, and seriousness. Yet, the freedom that has been given to us because of what Christ has done allows us to live with exuberant delight, joy, and laughter. We want to be a church that both fasts and feasts. 

We aren’t interested in gathering a crowd but rather forming a community. The gospel creates a new kind of community, one where people’s stories are shared, burdens are carried, hurts are known, and joys are celebrated all under the banner of the gospel. Resurrection Pres. seeks to be a people whose lives are integrated together, not a collection of atomized individuals and families. And while we highly value creating spaces for us to know and love each other, we seek to do this with an outward facing posture bringing others into the beautiful community that we have found together through Jesus Christ. We want to be a people that are more of a “front porch” rather than a “fortress.” You can belong here before you believe.

We don’t have the market cornered on truth! We believe that the Church is much bigger and much older than Resurrection Pres. thus we intentionally build collaborative friendships and partnerships with other churches, ministries, and non-profits in Memphis. Our hope is that a spirit of cooperation and partnership will result in both greater impact for the Kingdom as well as a clearer witness to the unifying power of the gospel. While we may have theological differences with other churches outside of our tradition, we will not make these differences the bedrock of our ministry and identity.

We take Jesus seriously when He said that He came not to be served but to serve. If we are not greater than our master then that must be true of us as well. Resurrection seeks to be a community that intentionally finds ways to use our time, energy, and efforts to tangibly seek mercy and justice through action in our part of the city of Memphis.