Our Purpose

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37); and “Love your neighbour as yourself” (Matthew 22:39).

and the great commission:

Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go 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 I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

The leaders of St Paul’s have agreed the following statement which sets out clearly and concisely our purpose as a church: 

“St Paul’s seeks to be an all-age and multicultural community of  Christians committed to worshipping God, loving our neighbour,  and enabling people to become life-long followers of Jesus Christ.”

• an all-age and multicultural community in which people of all ages, social backgrounds and ethnicities are welcome;
• not an organization or institution but a community to which people belong and contribute; 
• a community of Christians whose life is shaped by the person of Jesus Christ;
• committed to fulfilling our calling as a community;
• devoted to worshipping God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit;
• characterised by loving our neighbour and so expressing Christ’s care for those near and far and in word and deed; and
• dedicated to nurturing life-long followers who not only respond to the call of Christ but also grow up into maturity in Christ.

Our Vision

The leaders of St Paul’s have agreed the following ten-point vision statement that sets out a clear and compelling picture of the preferred future to which we believe God is calling our Christian community:

Building on our purpose we see a church community rejoicing in the Father's love, living under the authority of Christ and led by the Holy Spirit, that is increasingly:

• spiritually renewed, where we will experience a greater desire for intimacy with God so that we are overflowing with the life and love of Jesus Christ;
• helping people come to faith in Jesus Christ by faithfully sharing the gospel and developing different ways of making church accessible and culturally relevant;
• deeply committed to the presence and participation of children and young people in our midst, so that they feel they belong, can contribute and are growing in their faith;
• celebrating and valuing the presence of everyone, whatever their age, or social and ethnic background;
• nurturing disciples, where we teach and train one another so that we are growing in faith, expressing a stronger commitment to Jesus Christ and viewing our faith as integral to our lives;
• committed to discerning the callings and identifying the gifts of its members and encouraging and equipping one another for leadership and service, so that the ministries of the church are well resourced;
• convinced of the importance of caring relationships so that all will feel welcome and loved, hurts will be healed, spirits lifted and lives transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit;
• wholeheartedly engaged with the local community, so as to be active and creative in reaching and meeting the needs of those around us so that they have a greater awareness of the care and compassion of Christ
• globally involved, where we will be contributing to the health and well-being of the worldwide church and be receiving ourselves through our membership of the universal Body of Christ on earth
• developing the facilities to meet the needs of a growing church so that our various ministries are well accommodated, can function effectively and continue to bear fruit.