This “Way of Life” document contains the practices and beliefs that bind us together as a people called by Jesus, who has sent us to the neighborhoods of Westmont and the surrounding area. Rather than being things we “should” do or think, the following describes a way of life together by the Spirit, rooted in the belief and experience of God’s faithfully present work in all the world for his coming Kingdom. He is making all things new.
Our Practices
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The Table. God’s nature is to be among us, sharing his life as both host and guest. As host of the Last Supper, our Lord humbly tended to his friends’ needs and even showed his own vulnerability. As the guest of “sinners,” Jesus received their hospitality and tended to how the kingdom might be revealed. So as Christ’s sent people, we seek to gather with others, as the host and guest, being fully present to them and to God in our midst. John 13:5, 21; Luke 19:5-7; Acts 2:42; Luke 10:5-9
➻ We believe JESUS leads us to share table fellowship with EACH OTHER, the POOR, and the LOST. The SHARING & GIVING of our resources allows space to enter into KINGDOM MISSION and be inspired toward God’s BIBLICAL JUSTICE as we seek to be the CHURCH.
Proclamation. Paying attention to others and to what the Spirit might be doing in their lives, we humbly but boldly announce the Good News: God has kept his promises to renew the world in Jesus, the now and future King. Our proclamation is less a persuasion than an invitation into the new realities made possible in Jesus’ death, resurrection, and reign. Luke 10:9, 16; Acts 17:22-24; 1 Cor 2:1-5
➻ We believe the BIBLE leads us to proclaim God’s story and declare the powerful redemptive message of JESUS to the WHOLE WORLD through word and action. In all parts of our gathered and scattered lives, we embody the Spirit’s work in the CHURCH.
Reconciliation. Making peace, both large and small, makes real the new creation in Christ. We recognize that Christ has given us “the ministry of reconciliation.” As his diplomats, we take up the awkward cross of honest confrontation, addressing others’ sin humbly and discreetly—trying to win a person, not an argument. In Jesus’ name, any dispute can become sacred ground for God’s restoration of all things. 2 Cor 5:17-20; Matt 7:5; 18:15, 20
➻ We believe JESUS’ healing reconciliation moves us to encounter EACH OTHER in humility and hope, SHARING & GIVING of ourselves, seeking BIBLICAL JUSTICE.
Being with the Least. As Jesus teaches, the needy among us are not projects but brothers and sisters. When we visit the imprisoned, welcome the stranger, comfort the sick, or share with the poor, we come into Christ’s presence. Without a problem-solving agenda, we simply receive who they are and offer who we are. Matt 25:40; Rom 12:15
➻ We believe that sharing our lives with EACH OTHER, the POOR, and the LOST disciples us into a cruciform life of SIMPLICITY, SHARING & GIVING, and BIBLICAL JUSTICE for the sake of JESUS and his KINGDOM MISSION.
Being with Children. We welcome children in the mystery of Christ’s presence in and around them. Whatever our personality or gift, we can bless them and be blessed. The more we become like children of the kingdom, the more we can direct little ones to the King of Glory in our midst. Matt 18:5; Mark 10:13-16
➻ We believe that God’s KINGDOM MISSION is radically inclusive in honoring and discipling the WHOLE WORLD to redemption through JESUS.
Mutual Submission & Gifts. We seek neither to control Jesus’ authority nor to act like we have none. Mutual submission creates the kind of community where all of Christ’s body members— regardless of race, class, age, or gender—have a voice and contribution to make for the common good. Affirming the priesthood of all believers, we seek to cooperate with the Spirit of God as he empowers each of us to fulfill our unique calling. For these reasons we encourage each other to receive, develop, and use the spiritual gifts that equip us for kingdom work. Eph 4:11-13; 5:21; 1 Cor 12:6-7, 13, 21-22
➻ We believe the CHURCH, in its Spirit-led form, will love the WHOLE WORLD in their relationships with EACH OTHER and, in so doing, will allow power to be redefined by JESUS, altering our lives toward SHARING & GIVING, SIMPLICITY, and KINGDOM MISSION.
Kingdom Prayer. Because only God can accomplish what he calls us to do, we commit ourselves to live a life of prayer, as Jesus did. We resist the urge to seize control and make the kingdom come on our own terms. Instead we humbly orient our lives around God’s wise and merciful reign. Mark 1:35; Matt 6:9-11; 26:39-41; James 4:4-8
➻ We believe that JESUS reigns over the WHOLE WORLD, and that the first response of his CHURCH to KINGDOM MISSION is to pray.
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What we mean by the words ➻ IN ALL CAPS
JESUS. The way of Jesus is our way. We believe that the clearest expression of the gospel is love, which is forever defined by Christ in his death for us. His willingness to suffer for the lost and hopeless is a model for all who would come after him; so we likewise accept our own cross, not seeking pain or persecution, but not shrinking back from it either. Rejecting the cultural mainstream of selfish ambition and personal success, we affirm instead a radical faith ready and willing to follow God’s call into sacrificial love, for the sake of Jesus’ name and kingdom.
Col 1:15-20 – He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.
Eph 5:1-2 – Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Rom 5:8-10 – God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life.
1 John 3:16 – We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for one another.
Matt 16:24-25 – Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.
Phil 3:8-11 – I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ…. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
KINGDOM MISSION. We will be a sent people. The church is not the church until it is engaged in the mission for which God has called it into his marvelous light. We crave healing, discipleship, and intimacy with God. Yet we believe that our healing comes through offering healing to others, that discipleship does not primarily take place in a lecture but through service, and that deep intimacy with God comes from doing what he is doing. We are both co-heirs and co-laborers with Christ.
Matt 28:18-20 – All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.
John 17:18 – As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.
1 Peter 2:9 – You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.
John 13:14-15 – So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.
Matt 9:35-38 – Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
2 Cor 5:18-19 – All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.
THE POOR. We believe God is on the side of those who have no one on their side. Again, Jesus’ own ministry is our model. Although we welcome all people, we prioritize the poor in our ministry, advocacy, and allocation of resources. We do this not because the rich and middle class are less important to God but because they already have access to resources and are able to advocate their own cause. We remember first those who have less, and have access to less, so that there might be equality.
Deut 15:7, 11 – Do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted towards your needy neighbour. Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, ‘Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbour in your land.
Ps 140:12 – The Lord maintains the cause of the needy, and executes justice for the poor.
Luke 4:18 – The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free.
2 Cor 8:9-15 – You know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. And in this matter I am giving my advice…. If the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has—not according to what one does not have. I do not mean that there should be relief for others and pressure on you, but it is a question of a fair balance between your present abundance and their need, so that their abundance may be for your need, in order that there may be a fair balance. As it is written, “The one who had much did not have too much, and the one who had little did not have too little.”
THE LOST. Lost people are spiritually poor. The good news of the kingdom is a treasure that makes us spiritually wealthy beyond measure. We will engage the lost because God loves the lost. We believe that the church should not expect lost people to come and find them, but that we are called and sent to “seek and save that which was lost”. We will imitate the life and ministry of Jesus by prioritizing those who have not yet heard and believed the good news.
Matt 13:44-46 – The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
Matt 10:7 – As you go, proclaim the good news, “The kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Luke 15:4-6 – Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.”
Luke 19:10 – For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.
Acts 1:8 – But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Rom 10:14-15 – But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him? And how are they to proclaim him unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
Matt 4:23 – Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
EACH OTHER. We believe that God, in trinitarian relationship, calls us into life and mission together, not alone. While the primary responsibility of faith in Christ is a personal discipleship, it is not private. Isolation, fear of rejection, and spiritual competition are cancers in the church. Moral and theological failures, controlling leadership, and emotional struggles typically stem from a lack of community. We value free, committed, and loving friendship. Whenever possible we will lead through teams and the sharing of life at every level with trusted friends who are an extension of the grace and presence of God in our lives.
Gen 1:27 – So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
Matt 18:20 – For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.
Rom 12:4-8, 10 – For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.
Eph 4:11-13 – The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.
Rev 7:9 – After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands.
THE WHOLE WORLD. While we understand that our most transforming ministry will take place where we are planted and in our own city, we commit ourselves to the mission of God to reach the whole world. We believe that Jesus came as the Savior, not of one people, but of the whole world. We assume responsibility for the world not because we can reach it alone, but because we accept the mandate of the Great Commission and the heart of God to love, sacrifice, and partner together for the discipleship of the whole world. Similarly, we affirm that every culture and ethnicity, while imperfect, reflects the mosaic of God’s own image. We believe that the church of Jesus Christ was meant to demonstrate the power of the gospel through reconciliation, unity, and the beauty of a diverse community. We do not believe in being “colorblind.” Rather, we hope to accept, include, and flourish the beauty and wisdom of every culture, people, and language in our communities.
Jer 29:5-7- Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.
Joel 2:28: Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.
Rom 15:5-6 – May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Cor 12:12-14 – For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many.
Eph 2:14-22 – For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
Rev 5:9-10 – They sing a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slaughtered and by your blood you ransomed for God saints from every tribe and language and people and nation; you have made them to be a kingdom and priests serving our God, and they will reign on earth.”
SIMPLICITY. We commit to live a life centered and fulfilled only in Jesus, free from clutter and the allure of materialism. We affirm that every believer and every community of believers has a responsibility to renounce the sins of its own people. As North Americans we renounce the slavery and idolatry of materialism and excess by embracing a simple lifestyle. We do not believe that money or things are in themselves evil or to be avoided, but that the love of money and things is one of the greatest perils facing western Christianity in our time. We willingly use material things and wealth for the service of the kingdom, but not for personal fulfillment or inappropriate luxury. In so doing we again value the poor who have less, justice in living for equality, and personal holiness in pursuing a whole-hearted devotion to God.
Heb 13:5- Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.
Eccl 5:10 – The lover of money will not be satisfied with money; nor the lover of wealth, with gain. This also is vanity.
Matt 6:19-21, 24-26 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also… “No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
Mark 12:38-44 – A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Luke 12:15, 33 – Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions…. Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
SHARING & GIVING. Because we value community and simplicity, we commit ourselves to both sharing and giving. We will share because it promotes relationship and breaks the bondage of possessiveness. We believe the western doctrine of personal property is imperfect and needs to be tempered with the more biblical value of generosity and sacrifice. In sharing what we have with others we confess that God is the true owner and that we are only stewards in his vineyard. We will also give, because in giving we destroy the grip of materialism over our hearts because we release the resource, wealth, power, or possession completely into the control of another. For that reason we will pursue relentless generosity and the holding of all things in common. For this reason we encourage our people to give as often and as generously as they can, and to consider themselves stewards of the rest. Likewise, the collective finances of the church and ministries should set an example in this regard.
Mal 3:10 – Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing.
Matt 25:40 – And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’
Luke 3:11 – In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.”
Acts 2:44-47, 4:32 – All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common.
2 Cor 9:10-13 – He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us; for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God. Through the testing of this ministry you glorify God by your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ and by the generosity of your sharing with them and with all others,
1 Thess 2:8 – So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us.
BIBLICAL JUSTICE. In the kingdom, God declares we will find ultimate reconciliation and resolution to justice; for that reason we believe biblical justice is more than just punishment for wrongdoing and oppression. It is more than political justice or the empowerment of an individual. It is the restoration of wholeness, equality, and peace among all people, God, and the earth. Our value of justice is a call to seek the welfare of every person in our community and in the world. Biblical justice is an extension of the reconciling work of Christ in our midst–locally and globally. Therefore we take seriously our responsibility to actively steward God’s creation, to uphold and pursue just relationships in and across communities with which we come into contact, and to seek relief and empowerment of the poor and needy.
Gen 2:15 – The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
Ps 9:8 – He judges the world with righteousness; he judges the peoples with equity.
Isa 1:15-17 – When you stretch out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood. Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doing from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.
Mic 6:8 – He has told you, O mortal, what is good;and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Matt 12:18 – Here is my servant, whom I have chosen, my beloved, with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
Luke 11:42 – Woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and herbs of all kinds, and neglect justice and the love of God; it is these you ought to have practiced, without neglecting the others.
Luke 18:7-8 – And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
1 John 3:17, 18 – How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?
Phil 2:3-11- Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature[b] of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
THE BIBLE. We accept the authority and reliability of Scripture as our source of truth and discernment. We do not choose the parts of the Bible we prefer to believe, obey, or understand; instead we submit to all of Scripture as it reveals the truth that is beyond us. We rely on the Bible to be the rule of our faith, teaching what we do not know, challenging and leading us away from our misconceptions, self-deceptions, and convenient ideas about life and God. Like a mirror it shows us who we really are, and like a window it opens our lives to the beauty, wonder, and love of the God we long to know.
1 Thess 2:13 – We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers.
2 Tim 3:16 – All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
John 5:24 – Anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgement, but has passed from death to life.
Col 3:16 – Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.
Jer 15:16 – Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts.
THE CHURCH. When believers work together in sincere worship and genuine community to accomplish a part of the mission of God, they are the church. The church exists gathered around the Lord’s Table, it exists gathered as believers in our own homes where the lost and poor are our guests, and it exists wherever a believer goes and is received as a guest by others. Thus the life of the church is woven throughout all of our life. We value the empowerment of every disciple and church community to contextualize the proclamation and demonstration of the gospel to the people they hope to reach. Servant leadership, as taught by Jesus, empowers God’s people in faith and practice. We do not trust in hierarchy but instead call multiple co-pastors and co-shepherds as a reflection of our commitment to mutual submission and communal discernment. In this “inefficient” practice we seek the maturity and humility of every disciple, the unity of the church, and the leading of the Holy Spirit.
John 4:23 – But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him.
Acts 2:42, 46-47 – They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Luke 10:1, 7-10 – After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; cure the sick who are there, and say, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”
1 Peter 2:9 – You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.
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(The ALL CAPS section in this document was adapted from The Tampa Underground Network. Thanks, guys!)