Our Covenant With God and His Church

I hereby acknowledge myself to be a sinner in the sight of God, justly deserving His displeasure, and without hope saves in His sovereign mercy. I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and Savior of sinners and receive and rest upon Him alone for salvation as He is offered in the Gospel. I hereby resolve and promise, in humble reliance upon the grace of the Holy Spirit, that I will endeavor to live as becomes a follower of Christ. I promise to support the Church in its worship and work, submitting myself to the government and discipline of the Church, and I will, to the best of my ability:

Strive to build a community of love for Christ according to the Great Commission

(Matt. 28:16-20; Eph. 4)

Church membership is a covenant made with God and His family to build a community of love, by making disciples of Christ who observe all that Christ has commanded. This covenant requires a willing, heart-level commitment to grow in knowledge and faithfulness to God’s Word, and to care for and be cared for by the Body of Christ.

Minister daily, in Christ’s strength alone, to one another by actively pursuing, promoting, and participating in meaningful, heart-level relationships with one another.

(Acts 2:42-47, Gal. 6:2, Eph. 4:1-6)

We believe local church membership is all about being a family of families, and bearing each other’s burdens. We believe all church members are called to the daily ministry of the needs of the Body. We believe true, authentic, loving service to one another is only possible in Christ’s strength and power. We believe this daily ministering to the Church is best accomplished through meaningful, honest, heart-level relationships with God and one another. These relationships should be built on God’s love for us, as we encourage one another with God’s Truth. As we speak the truth in love to another, we should actively pursue a heart-felt commitment to truly know and be known by one another in deep, meaningful ways. These relationships, what we call mutually constructive covenantal relationships, are God’s primary method for growing the Body of Christ. We believe, in order to grow more abundantly in our relationship with God, we must make a heart-level commitment to grow daily in our relationships with one another.

Pursue our happiness in God alone, and strive for a quiet life of faithfulness to Him in all aspects of daily life, using only biblical methods for applying the Gospel to life.

(1 Thess. 4: 9-12, 1 Tim. 5).

We believe God has called us to pursue our happiness in Him alone, and to maintain a quiet life of faithfulness to Him. True and lasting happiness only comes from God through a lifelong relationship with Christ. God’s happiness for us is most revealed when we apply His Truth to life, as we serve Him and others. This is best accomplished by following the biblical method for applying the Gospel to all aspects of our daily life. This biblical method, a Covenant Household Model of Life and Ministry, is rooted in carrying out God’s expectations for a quiet life of faithfulness from a heart that is striving to be rightly filled, satisfied, happy and at rest in God (Mat. 11:29-30, Heb. 4:11). This is only possible through a personal, heart-level relationship with Christ based on His love for us and through His grace alone. Any other motive for service in our daily life, like trying to earn God’s approval or for self-glory, will not lead to a quiet life of faithfulness. These daily aspects of life, what we call “Covenant Spheres of Life”, include our personal relationships with God, family, extended family, church, work, community, and the world. These covenant spheres require spiritual discernment to develop a scriptural perspective on the proper priorities that reflect appropriate heart-level desires for our lives that will most glorify God (Luke 14:26). We believe that heads of households (HOH), as the spiritual headship of the home, should strive to maintain and teach their families how to live a quiet life of faithfulness. (Eph. 5:25–6:4)

Be fully accountable to God through the Body of Christ

(Heb. 3:12-13, Eph. 4:15-16, Matt. 18:15-17).

We believe God extends His love, grace and mercy to Believers most effectively through the Body of Christ, as we encourage, exhort, and admonish one another to live a life of faithfulness to God. We believe local church membership requires a willing heart to know and be known by one another. We believe this God-given responsibility to encourage and restore gently by speaking the truth in love to one another applies to all, and should only be done in a spirit of meekness and love. (Gal. 6:1)

As a member of the priesthood of the believers, actively pursue training in righteousness and competency in the knowledge of God.

(Col. 3:12-17 & 2 Tim. 3:16-17)

We desire for all to strive to grow daily in our knowledge of God’s Truth, as given in His Holy Scriptures. We believe God’s Word is fully sufficient for all, and we strive for all to be able to effectively apply the Gospel to life, and to teach others to do the same. We believe Scripture clearly commands us to grow in this discipleship training. This requires a healthy life of Bible study, daily worship, prayer, meditation, and fasting, as we seek to draw closer to God.

Be committed to being an active participant in the life of the Church, and its worship to God.

(1 Pet. 4:8-11, Eph. 4:15-16)

We believe the Body of Christ most glorifies God, when all its members are committed to actively participating in the peace, unity, growth and protection of the Body of Christ. We all are called to use our gifts in the worship of God and care for the Body of Christ. We believe these gifts exist in both gifts of word and gifts of deed. We should encourage one another to use our individual gifts based solely in our passion for God’s glory, not in our own strength and skill, so as to serve with a humble, willing spirit that seeks only the Joy of Christ in serving one another.

Be committed to preserving and protecting the peace, purity, and unity of the church.

(Eph. 4, John 17)

We believe the Body of Christ must work diligently in Christ’s strength alone to remain as One in Christ. We believe the unity of the church is paramount to our members growing up together into the Head of the Body, which is Christ. The unity of the church directly impacts our ability to love, encourage, exhort, and teach one another daily. The unity of the church also greatly affects our witness for Christ to the world, and, therefore, should be highly regarded and closely guarded by all, as Christ proclaimed in His High Priestly prayer (John 17:20-23): “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me”

While we believe God often blesses the Church with a diversity of members and their gifts, this diversity should never result in the disunity of the Body. We believe each member must be committed to being teachable in the Word of God and encourage others to do the same. Therefore, we believe each member has an obligation to actively seek their unity with the local church before a member should consider leaving the church over any issue. When members finds themselves out of accord with the local church and/or its leaders, they must be committed to privately bringing their concerns to the church leadership to seek a resolution that will bring about the restoration of their unity with the church.

God is most glorified when we, unified, are most satisfied in him