New Jersey Partnership
Parkway has entered into partnership with South Mountain Community Church (www.southmountainonline.com), a church plant in Millburn, NJ. On this page you’ll find an explanation of this partnership, as well as ways you can help us serve them.
Question: why would a Mississippi church care about a church-plant in a place such as Millburn, NJ? Simple – because the Holy Spirit has been moving in hearts, teaching us to care about more than ourselves. We are not alone: many churches are seeing that the advancement of God’s Kingdom – God’s peace, salvation, rule, and love – is most important. As you must know, there are not near as many churches in some places as there are in Mississippi. And yet people are increasingly moving to these urban areas. Could this fact show us the way to a new type of Kingdom service? Many local churches think so.
Our goal in partnership is to offer South Mountain key resources as they begin to minister in the greater New York City area – and by resources we mean people, time, of course prayer, and money. A partnership means a commitment to taking mission trips to the church-plant, and a commitment to assisting the church through prayer and giving.
The beautiful thing is that this commitment demonstrates the type of life God calls us to in Christ – united with Him in self-giving death and God-empowered resurrection.
We have several theological reasons for the partnership.
- We believe that mission is at the heart of God’s identity, and so it should be who we are as well. God called Abraham not for Abraham’s sake, but so that because of his family “all the families of the earth will be blessed.” (Gen. 12:3) God the Father sent God the Son to earth for the purpose of mission – and Jesus said “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” (John 20:21)
- We believe that the church exists not for itself, but for the world – just as Jesus came not for fun, but to give his life away. Paul says, “For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our mortal flesh.” (2 Cor. 4:11) And again, “And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.” (2 Cor. 5:15) Paul says that when we are in Christ, we become the righteousness of God before a watching world – we are like God’s ambassadors, entrusted with the ‘ministry of reconciliation.’ (2 Cor. 5: 17-21) We are called a holy priesthood – and what does a priesthood do, but labor so that others can have access to God?
- We believe that where God guides, God provides. In all of our church life, we believe that “the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” (2 Cor. 4:7)
- We believe that if we expand our service in the Kingdom, God will expand our vision. Remember the parable of the talents. Working with another church gives us a chance to teach, and to be taught. Just as the early church remained involved across continents – like when the church at Corinth gave an offering to the suffering churches in Macedonia. What Paul said to them then is just as applicable to us now: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich . . . At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality.” (2 Cor. 8:9,14)
There are a number of ways you can join with us in this ministry – by giving to South Mountain, by committing to pray in specific ways for the community there, or by going with us on a mission trip to New Jersey. To get more information about any of these steps, contact Josh.
