In Jeremiah 29:4-7, God called the Israelites who had been exiled into Babylon to pursue the peace and prosperity of that pagan city. Likewise in Matthew 5:13-16, Jesus calls us to be a city on a hill that cannot be hidden. He clarified that not only our words but our words backed by deeds of service would shine the glory of God from the city of God into the secular city.
We’ve seen recently in Luke how Jesus used his words to bring the gospel and his acts of service allowed his words to be heard. As Christians sent into our respective cities, we are called to be the very best citizens of that city. We are to work for the peace, safety, security, vibrancy, and future of our city plus the common good of all of our neighbors.
A gospel-centered church is one that takes this mission seriously. We want to demonstrate the resources the Christian faith has for having hope in the future. In Revelation, we don’t see individuals being taken out of the world into heaven, but heaven coming down to renew the world and wash it of evil, disease, poverty, injustice and death. At Mars Hill Downtown we are actively working to build bridges and relationships with city and neighborhood leaders. We want to find out what the needs and gaps are in our city and if at all possible, work towards a solution.
A gospel-centered church is one that takes this mission seriously.
One of the practical areas that we are involved in is by starting and organizing the biggest clean-up day in the city. With the city cutting budgets and resources being leaner and leaner, we started the Downtown Seattle Green and Clean as a way to clean up and care for God’s creation. This years Green and Clean is this Saturday, June 2, at 10:00 am at Mars Hill Church Downtown and we are expecting close to 400 people to participate. Partnering with us is the city of Seattle, Starbucks, and the Belltown Business Association. We will also be joined by five of Seattle’s nine city council members.
Please partner with us for this great opportunity to tangibly show love and care for our city!
We do believe that we are called to serve our city, love our neighbors, and be as active as possible, so that people “see our good works and glorify our Father who is in Heaven” (Matthew 5:13-16).
