CANDIDATE INFORMATION PACKET - Ryan Fields

MY PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY: I believe that the gospel, the good news that God graciously saves hopeless sinners in Christ by the Spirt for our good, his glory, and the renewal of all creation, is the precious trust given to the church (1 Thess. 2:4) and to be guarded by the church’s leadership (2 Tim. 1:14), along with all sound doctrine and right living that is in keeping with the gospel (Tit. 1:9). This message of grace is both the doorway and the pathway of the Christian life; far from “graduating from the gospel” once one has believed, the whole of the Christian life involves pressing deeper and deeper into the gospel and seeking to increasingly live out its implications for all of life. We will never fail to be in desperate need of God’s grace in Christ and will never exhaust its unfathomable riches and transformative power. This means that the gospel should serve as the very center of the church’s life. A church’s health and maturity is largely based on how much the gospel of grace informs every element of its priorities and culture. For instance, a healthy church is increasingly marked by relationships where the gospel informs how congregants regard one another, being gracious and patient with one another as both parties seek to outdo each other in taking on the mindset of Christ by regarding the other as of more importance than themselves (Phil. 2:3 ‐ 5). In other words, the gospel should prompt a culture of grace in every element of congregational life. Truth can be spoken in love because we all acknowledge our mutual need and celebrate that God has wonderfully met that need in Christ and so freed us to be vulnerable with one another and to step toward one another in love. The ways that the gospel should impact a church’s community are virtually endless; it is the vital lynchpin of any flourishing congregation. The mission of the church flows from this reality. That mission might be summarized as worshiping God aright through the Son by the power of the Spirit, and that by being a grace ‐ filled and holy people who love God and others (Great Commandments), grow in Christ and community (Great Calling), and reach our neighbors and the nations (Great Commission) to the glory of God alone. This mission is further accomplished as we grow in the gospel, exhibiting fuller maturity in Christ (Eph. 4:15 ‐ 16) and manifesting in lives increasingly laid down for others as we call them to be reconciled to God through Christ by the Spirit that they, too, might become disciples who worship God aright and find their ultimate, eternal satisfaction in Him. MY PASSION: My passion is to serve the church of Jesus Christ as a pastor ‐ theologian, holding that one of the things God’s people need most today is faithful shepherds who strive to feed the flock from the riches of God’s Word. Amidst an array of visions for what the pastor ought to be and do (CEO, therapist, shopkeeper, etc.), I am convinced that what we vitally need today is more pastors teaching the people of God how to understand, believe, and live in light of the Word of God, helping them to see the sufficiency of Scripture for all of life and for every pressing issue of our cultural moment. In other words, the pastor is called to serve God’s people by helping them to press deeper into the gospel of God that they might come to know and love in deeper and deeper ways the God of the gospel.

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