...a community of grace
If you hang around for a short time you will notice how we say almost every week that we are a “community of broken people.” We hope that you will be intrigued and encouraged by this language because we want you to feel safe enough to be broken too. Our courage to boast in our brokenness comes only from the fact that Redeemer is a community of grace. That means that the good news of God’s grace to us in Jesus Christ is our primary identity: not our well-balanced lives, not our family pedigree, not our academic or work résumés or our moral “togetherness.” God’s grace alone binds us together! God’s grace trumps our secondary identities: political affiliation, gender, race, socio-economic status, and psychological affinity. God’s grace teaches us to dare to be the broken people we are. Because we are loved and accepted by God through Jesus, we can dare to be real about our struggles, sadnesses, and sins.
...expectant in worship
We come to worship expectantly: we expect to experience the presence of God in the “thin place” between Heaven and earth which is worship. In this “thin place” we are called to worship, confess our sins, sing songs of praise, listen to the reading and preaching of God’s word, and celebrate our communion in Christ and with each other through the Lord’s Supper. Redeemer’s worship is open to everyone. It is open to sinners, the wounded and hurting, the excluded and poor, the moral trainwrecks; in other words, those in need of a Savior. We are designed to know and love God. Worship invites us back into the deep rest of being beloved sons and daughters of God. It renews our commitment to love our friends, family, and neighbors, and to serve the common good of our city.
...called to the city
From our historic multi-use facility (including 30 artist, the Harrison Center, ArtMix), to our members’ involvement in our city’s schools, cultural institutions, and neighborhood development, Redeemer is a community in the city for the city. We truly love Indianapolis and want to serve the city in which we live. Our heart is to equip and release our members to seek the common good of our city and to see new communities of grace planted in neighborhoods all over Indianapolis.
OUR BEGINNINGS
When Redeemer began in 1998, it drew its congregation primarily from the surrounding urban neighborhoods. And so, the early founders of Redeemer placed a large emphasis on their Urban Calling. This has developed as a part of Redeemer's identity, and as we have expanded to have attendees that come from all over Indianapolis, we begin to understand what it means to live out the Gospel where we are. We believe our calling is to bring everything we are (our intellect, organization, creativity, spreadsheets, songs, education, mechanical ability, tender spirit) into every situation and look to the Lord for what he wants us to bring there. That means our work, school, home, studio, dog walk route, apartment complex, and bus commute all need our full attentiveness as to how we can be ambassadors of a heavenly kingdom here on earth.