Church Covenant Part 1 -- The Criteria of the Covenant

Introduction

Good morning Church. I want to thank each of you for joining in with us today…those in person, as well as those online.

Today, we are going to set out on a journey that will carry us through the month of July and we are going to be looking at something that is very important but rarely gets the study it’s due.

That thing is this Church Covenant.

Now, just out of curiosity, can anyone here close your eyes and recite it by heart?

I didn’t think I’d have any takers.

The reality is, we come in this place every single week, we see it hanging on the wall…it’s kind of hard to miss…but yet the majority of people don’t ever take the time to sit and read what it says.

And if for whatever reason we do glance at it for a few moments to see what it says, we really don’t sit and meditate on what it entails.

For that purpose, I found it only fitting, seeing as we are spending the month of July on Church Membership, that we take a look at it and dive a little bit into what this Church Covenant has for us.

Because, at the end of the day, and you may not have even known this, when you joined this local body of believers, you entered into this covenant with every other member that makes up this body of believers!

Now, some of you may be saying… “well I don’t want to be aligned with ole so and so over there. If I’m in a league with him/her I want out!”

I hope that’s not your mentality but it is the truth.

When you became a member of this Church, you not only solidifed yourself with the body of Christ as a whole, the Church of the living God, but more importantly, you entered into a covenant with these members here that make up this local body of believers.

Now, with all of that being said, I think this would be a good spot to stop and make sure we all understand just exactly what the word “Covenant” means.

Who can tell me what it means?

Covenant – A solemn agreement between the members of a church to act together in harmony with the precepts of the gospel.

Did you hear that?

“A solemn (serious/sincere) agreement “between the members” (it’s not what I want or what you want but what we want) of a church (local body of believers) “to act together in harmony” (we may not be able to sing in harmony but we need to be acting in harmony) with the precepts of the gospel.”

This Church Covenant sets forth the agreement that we entered into when becoming a member of this body of believers here at New Home.

Now, with that being said, most of your Baptist Churches in this area hold to this same agreement which in turn should mean that whether here or there we ought to be in agreement with one another when comes to our beliefs about the local assembly of God.

So, now that we know what a Covenant is, let’s start our study of the Church Covenant today by looking only at paragraph one.

The title I’ve given today’s sermon is...The Criteria of the Covenant and you’ll understand a little more why I chose that for the title by the time we get to the end of the paragraph and definitely by the time we get to the end of the sermon.

At this time, I want to read you the entire Church Covenant as it hangs here and then we’re going to back up and take a deeper look just at paragraph one.

It’s a Covenant for the Saved

The first thing we need to realize about the Church Covenant this morning is that it is a Covenant for the Saved.

Notice what it says here…

Having been led, as we believe by the Spirit of God, to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and, on the profession of our faith, having been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…

That my friend is speaking of someone who has been born again.

If you try to partake of this covenant without knowing the Lord Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, it’s just simply not going to work.

Sure, you may be able to fit in and look the part and play the part for some time but at some point, there’s going to be friction between you and the born again believers because the same Spirit that lives within them isn’t living in you.

They are being led by the Holy Spirit of God and you aren’t. Jesus said in…

John 3:5–7 KJV 1900

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Notice what Jesus says here… “that which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit.”

Listen friend, that’s like taking oil and water and trying to mix them together…it just don’t work!

In order for a person to be able to “act together in harmony with the precepts of the gospel” one has to first believe the gospel, amen!

And then, when that which was flesh begins to be led by the Spirit, that which was contrary to the Spirit becomes subdued by the Spirit and harmony is the outcome.

But until one submits to the call of the Spirit, they cannot be in communion with other believers.

The Church Covenant is strictly for those who have been saved.

That could be one reason you see so many Churches split. There may be those who have their name on the role and they look the part and they play the part but they aren’t born again and therefore there’s friction.

Dear friend, let me say this and I’m going to move on....if your name is on the role but you don’t feel at home with this body of believers or any body of believers for that matter, there’s a good possibility that you need to be saved!

I would ask you to seriously consider whether you have believed upon the Lord Jesus Christ or not?

Is He your Savior?

If not, then you need to make Him your Savior before any of the rest of this is going to make sense to you.

So, we see first off and most importantly, It’s a Covenant for the Saved.

It’s a Covenant for the Sincere

Secondly, not only is it a covenant for the saved, It’s a Covenant for the Sincere.

Look with me if you will back at this first paragraph and let’s pick up where we left off.

Having been led, as we believe by the Spirit of God, to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and, on the profession of our faith, having been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…

We do now, in the presence of God, and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another...

The first thing I want to draw your attention to is just who it is you entered into this covenant in the presence of!

Who does it say there?

God, right?

“We do now, in the presence of God, and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another.”

That word solemnly there, as we learned in the beginning, means serious or sincere.

When you enter into this covenant with a body of believers it shouldn’t be taken lightly or halfhearted.

It should be a serious commitment on your part.

And the reason it’s such a serious commitment is because of who we worship, amen.

The last time I checked Jesus was serious about us, so much so that He gave His life for us therefore we, the Church, ought to be serious about what we’re doing for Him, amen.

Let me ask you something…who instituted the Church?

Jesus did, right?

Jesus created the Church in order that the Church might change the world!

That’s a pretty serious thing we are to do, don’t you think?

And the reality is, the church in the first century did just that.

The Bible says in...

Acts 17:6 KJV 1900

And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;

Do you know who “these” was referring to?

The believers which was in turn the Church!

The job of the Church is to turn the world upside down for Christ but I fear over the last few decades right the opposite has happened.

The world is turning the Church inside out instead of us turning it upside down.

We’ve got to get serious about our work for Christ. We’ve got to get serious about the message we’ve been called to proclaim which is the good news of Jesus Christ!

Listen, I was reading a study this last week and Christianity at this moment is still the largest religion in the world but what this study was saying is that if things continue to trend in the same direction they are right now, over the next few decades that’s not going to be the case.

The Church as we know it is losing ground and it’s because people aren’t getting serious about their work for God.

We’ve got members who want their names to be on a roll and they want to be a part of the Church, but they also want to walk hand in hand with the world.

It don’t work that way friend.

Jesus gave a stern warning to the Church of Laodicea in Revelation Chapter 3.

Revelation 3:14–22 KJV 1900

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Now, I don’t know about you but I can tell you from this warning that Christ gives here....I don’t want to be found in a lukewarm Church!

I want to be a part of a Church that is on fire for God, amen!

I want to be a part of a Church that has their eyes open to what’s going on around them.

I want to be a part of a Church that isn’t focused on the things of this world but the things of the world to come!

And dear friend that’s why we ought to take membership seriously!

So that we can be sure to be found worthy in the work which God called us to!

Not only are we to be serious and sincere but notice what else it says there....

We do now, in the presence of God, and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another...

Now, some of you are probably saying to yourself, “preacher, after what you just preached about, I don’t know how joyful that sounds!”

Dear friend, listen to me when I tell you this and trust what I’m saying....

There is not greater joy that you will find on this side of eternity than when you are gathered together with other believers in one accord, worshiping God almighty in the power of the Holy Spirit!

Friend, it’s one of the sweetest communions you can ever be a part of!

And that feeling of joy that comes from communing with other believers…it’s like nothing else you can ever experience on this side of Heaven.

And the best part is…it’s just a glimpse of what eternity is going to be like for those who have trusted in Christ.

1 Corinthians 2:9 KJV 1900

9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

The joys that await those who have trusted in Christ is unfathomable!

And because we know what awaits us over there, we ought to joyfully join in with other believers over here worshiping and working for God until He calls us home.

It’s a Covenant for the Saved and It’s a Covenant for the Sincere and lastly, It’s a Covenant of Solidarity.

It’s a Covenant of Solidarity

Look at the last part of that first paragraph with me as we finish it out this morning.

Having been led, as we believe by the Spirit of God, to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and, on the profession of our faith, having been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, we do now, in the presence of God, and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another...

As one body in Christ

Let me ask you something this morning…someone tell me…how many “I’s” are in the word C.H.U.R.C.H.?

0

Do you know what that means?

If you want to find a Church on fire for God, your not going to find it in a congregation filled with egos; you’re not going to find it in a congregation filled with people who think their opinions are the only ones that count; you’re not going to find it in a congregation that revolves around one person; no, if you want to find a Church on fire for God, then you’ll find it in a congregation filled with people working together in one accord, with a spirit of unity and one common goal in mind…furthering the Kingdom of God and bringing honor and glory to His name!

As one body in Christ!

This last Sunday night, we started our study of the little book I am a Church Member and the main passage of scripture we used was 1 Corinthians 12.

Break down 1 Corinthians 12 and close.