Becoming A Salty City Set On A Hill

Discipleship, City Life, Teaching | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

Over the last two Sundays (1/15 & 1/22) we spent time considering Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:13-16, where he uses the images of salt and light to describe how his people are to influence the world together. Jesus’ point is that genuine faith in him is never purely private, but shapes and informs every part of our lives, from the inside out, in ways big and small. We all have a role in this. Together we are meant to serve as a living, dynamic, salty city, within our city, as a beacon of hope and help. This post is intended to follow-up on some of the themes that emerged over the last two weeks. This is particularly aimed at those of you who are new to DCC or have not yet connected to the life of our church.

How do we serve as a salty city set on a hill?

There are five main means by which we aim to be salt and light in our city. If you have additional questions, be sure to check our Fifth Year Prospectus in which we lay out who we are, what we believe, what we want to be known for, and more. I also recommend taking a moment to watch our Five Year Birthday video. Lastly, if you want to learn on-the-go you can download our app in which you can access sermons, blog posts, event information, and more.

#1 Making disciples

The biggest need for every person in our city is to be forgiven and brought into a vital relationship with the living God, in Jesus. That happens as the good news of Jesus is shared by us with not-yet-believers whom God has sovereignly placed around us. Practically, this means that we must continue to grow as a grace-saturated evangelistic people. However, the goal is not merely to know Jesus but to grow in him. (See Colossians 1:28-29) Taking these together, we define discipleship as the process of knowing and growing in Jesus. You might ask, “So, how do I grow with DCC?”

Sunday gatherings
Membership. (Learn more about our next class on 2/10-11)
Community
Discipleship Groups
Special Trainings

#2 Multiplying communities

We gather as a church on Sunday and then scatter throughout the week into smaller communities, which we call Cornerstone Communities. The best way to meet people and build real friendships in Downtown Cornerstone is to join a Cornerstone Community. Regular, life-on-life, relationships with other followers of Jesus around the Bible and prayer is crucial to our ongoing growth. Forming smaller communities around the city helps us to learn how to be family together, how to love others who are different than us, and how to mentor others and be mentored by others. It is a tremendous gift to live life with others who are seeking to follow Jesus with you. We know that not everyone will be able to participate in every season, as each life-stage is filled with its own unique challenges, but we encourage you to give it a shot. We currently have 19 communities with a great need for more. To request more information about our communities, email us at .

#3 Engaging culture

There is no sacred-secular divide. This is God’s world – all of it. As Abraham Kuyper once famously noted, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!” We agree. This means that Jesus’ people need to prayerfully and thoughtfully consider how to engage the culture in ways that highlight this reality. We need to ask, “How does the unchanging gospel speak to the ever-changing culture?” An important aspect to this is equipping Jesus’ people in the integration of faith at work, within the creative arts, and the civic realm. This is an area that we still have quite a bit of work to do. Let us know if you’re interested.

#4 Sacrificially serving

We want to build a great city, not just a great church, through justice, mercy, and relevant partnerships. We aim to be a people who faithfully declare the gospel and display its implications in our context. Jesus said that he “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) In other words, we serve because we have been served by him. His perfect life and sacrificial death on the cross, for us, should increasingly shape us as a sacrificial, servant-hearted people. As such, Jesus is both our model and motivation for service. This service can happen informally as we serve a neighbor changing a flat tire, or serving with the church, or serving through city-partnerships. You can learn more about opportunities to serve within DCC here. We’ll be rolling out more information about city-level involvement in the year ahead.

#5 Planting churches

We believe one of primary ways that the gospel spreads, and God’s kingdom advances, is through the planting of gospel-centered, Jesus-loving, Bible-teaching churches. We want everyone in our city, and the cities of the world, to know the incomparable news of Jesus. So, from beginning our goal was not just to plant this church, but through this church, plant many churches. To that end, we invest 10% of all giving received into church planting efforts. Together we have given literally hundreds of thousands of dollars to the planting of churches around the world. Second, we just hired our first, of what we hope is many, church planting resident whom we aim to invest in over a period of time and then send out to plant. Lastly, we also view ourselves as a teaching hospital. I previously wrote more about this here. If we’re going to be intentional about raising up pastors and church planters, we must be intentional about giving qualified men opportunities to preach.

We are just getting started

All that said we are on the verge of turning six years old in April. We are literally just getting started. There is so much left to be done. There are so many opportunities to serve. There are so many people that have never heard, let alone understood, the gospel. There are so many people in need of personal discipleship, counseling, and community. There are classes to be taught, ministries to be built, and leaders to be developed. The great news is that this is our work. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 12:7 that each one of Jesus’ people are gifted by the Spirit “for the common good”. That means God intends for us to do this together. None of us can (or should) do everything, but all of us can do something.

Will you join us?

Is Jesus calling you to get involved? Whether you’re an empty-nester, or a stay-at-home mom, or a college student, or a CEO, or a temporary Seattlite I want to invite you to get meaningfully connected to the life of DCC. Friends, there is something at stake in our lives. Who knows what God may do in and through us, as we partner together in this city, in our generation. Let’s pray that he makes us a salty city on a hill, for his glory, and the good of as many people as possible.

Until the world knows,
Pastor Adam