Mission & Vision
In His Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20), Jesus gave His church an assignment. That assignment was to go and make disciples. Disciples are followers of Jesus, and Jesus desires to work through His People (the Church) to serve others and introduce them to Him. To that end, the mission of Cornerstone Church is to be a church on the move out into our community, serving others and sharing the incredible and joyful News of Life in and through Jesus. We don't expect people who don't know Jesus to come through the doors of our church (although they are certainly welcome!) but we desire to be part of our communities and neighborhoods utilizing every opportunity God gives to BE and SHARE Jesus with the people around us. We want the first thing that comes to our minds when meeting someone to be "How can I serve this person for Jesus?" because that's really what it's all about.
As people come to know Jesus, it is our privilege to come alongside each one and walk out the journey of faith helping them learn and grow in their faith and understanding of all that Jesus has done on their behalf. It's a continual learning and growing process for everyone and we are all on this journey together!
There are certain Truths that unite us with other followers of Jesus around the world and they are contained in our Statement of Belief.
Statement of Belief
The Bible - God's Word, inspired by the Holy Spirit, without error as originally given, and our ultimate authority in faith and practice. (2 Timothy 3:16) From beginning to end, it is the story of God's indescribable and extravagant love for His People and the lengths He went through to save us from ourselves.
God - God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth. The three Persons of the godhead are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Although the doctrine of the Trinity may be difficult to understand (God is not defined or confined by our limited understanding!), we affirm that the three Persons of the Trinity are equally God.
Man - Man is a special creation of God created to be in relationship with Him who has fallen into sin (sin is defined by it's middle letter - "I". It is doing what "I" want to do rather than what the God who created me intends for me to do) and rebellion against Him (as a race and as individuals). All of nature was twisted and distorted as a result of man's sin. (Romans 3:23 and Romans 6:23) Since each of us has sinned and stands before God liable for judgment and condemnation, we cannot save ourselves.
Jesus Christ - God sent His One and Only Son, Jesus Christ for the purpose of saving sinners. Christians believe in (1) the dual nature of Christ -- fully God and fully man, (2) His Virgin Birth and sinless life, (3) His death was "payment in full" for our sins, and (4) His resurrection and ascension into heaven are confirmation of who He is and the fact that His payment by death for the sins of the world was accepted by the Father.
Salvation - Salvation is by grace (God's undeserved, unearned kindness, love and favor) through faith. When the gift is offered, we take possession of it through faith (trusting in Who He is and What He has done on our behalf, and giving our lives over to Him).
Eternal Life - Those who trust Christ for salvation will live eternally with Him in heaven. Those who do not trust Christ are under God's judgment eternally separated from Him in hell (it's the same torment that Jesus went through on the cross, but for all eternity! Jesus provides the answer to that...He already went through it, so trust in HIM and what He went through on YOUR behalf on the Cross! It's amazingly complex, and yet so simple....Trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved!)
The Church -The church is the family that God created of everyone who believes. As believers we have been born into a new life by faith, and while we're on this earth we get the opportunity learn about living together and serving Jesus BEFORE we go to heaven! The invisible church consists of all true believers from all times and places.
The Responsibility Of The Church is to worship and praise our Great and Magnificent God for Who He is and all that He has done for us; teach others about Him and how to live for Him; and we have been given the privilege of telling and leading other into a relationship with Him! We also have the privilege of serving others in Jesus' Name!
History of Cornerstone Presbyterian Church
In 1971, a small group of Christians called Bill Solomon as organizing pastor for a small mission church in the Columbia area. Affiliated with the Southern Presbyterian denomination, the church became McGregor Presbyterian Church and built a building on St. Andrews Road. By the early 80s, the church leaders recognized that they had serious theological differences with their denomination. In August of 1982, the church left to join the Presbyterian Church in America.