SCBC Church Covenant (part 2)
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“If I had never joined a church till I had found one that was perfect, I should never have joined one at all. And the moment I did join it, if I had found one, I should spoiled it, for it would not have been a perfect church after I had become a member of it. Still, imperfect as it is, it is the dearest place on earth to us.”
Let’s move on to the next paragraph in our church covenant...
We engage, therefore, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love, to strive for the advancement of this church in knowledge, holiness, and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline and doctrines: to contribute cheerfully, regularly, and liberally to the support of its ministry--the expenses of the church, the missionary work thereof, and when necessary, the relief of the poor.
This paragraph contains a lot of Bible truth. Allow me to summarize much of it and some of the following paragraph:
Gather
Gather
And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
Excuses, excuses, you'll hear them every day.
And the Devil he'll supply them, if from church you’ll stay away.
When people come to know the Lord, the Devil always loses
So to keep them folks away from church, he offers them excuses.
In the summer it's too hot. In the winter, it's too cold.
In the spring time when the weather's just right, you find some place else to go.
Well, it's up to the mountains or down to the beach or to visit some old friend.
Or, to just stay home and relax and hope that some kin folk drop in.
Do we take seriously the command, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together?”
Jesus Christ, during His earthly ministry, went to church.
And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
The Apostle Paul, when he was saved, had a desire to gather with other Christians in church.
And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple.
Maybe one way that we can think of it is this: Are we in church more than we are out or are we out of church more than we are in?
Give
Give
The paragraph says, “…to contribute cheerfully, regularly, and liberally to the support of its ministry...”
While I do not know how individuals give I can almost, with 100% certainty, tell you that there are some members of South Charlotte Baptist Church who do not contribute cheerfully, regularly, and liberally to the support of its ministry.
For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
Are we following Christ’s example?
I have heard it this way, “It’s not equal giving; it’s equal sacrifice.”
But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
Where’s our heart?
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
From a practical standpoint, I trust that some of you noticed in the bulletin this morning something new. “The Stewardship Report.” Each year the church approves a financial budget. Well, those numbers give us some idea of how we are doing.
We also most solemnly pledge to maintain family and secret devotions; to spiritually train our children; to seek diligently and untiringly the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances; to walk circumspectly in the world; to be just in our dealings, faithful in our engagements, and exemplary in our deportment; to avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of all intoxicating drinks as beverage, and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the cause of our Lord Jesus Christ in every sphere of our lives.
Go
Go
In this next paragraph we see that we are “…to seek diligently and untiringly the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances...” at the end of the paragraph is says, “…to be zealous in our efforts to advance the cause of our Lord Jesus Christ in every sphere of our lives.”
Our mission: Proclaiming the Gospel and Experiencing the Miracle of Changed Lives
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Are we being diligent to win the lost?
Are we untiringly seeking the salvation of the lost?
I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
Having grown up in Iowa, I can appreciate this.
I called a friend of mine this afternoon. He is a farmer. He’s been a farmer all of his life. He works 600 acres. I asked him how late, into the night, he has been out in the fields during harvest to bring his crops in. He told that, although he’ll usually start early and the morning and stay in the fields until 8-9 at night, there have been times when he has been out in the fields all night and into the morning to bring the crop in.
Work, for the night is coming,
Work through the sunny noon;
Fill brightest hours with labor,
Rest comes sure and soon.
Give every flying minute,
Something to keep in store;
Work, for the night is coming,
When man works no more.
We have such an opportunity coming up. It’s called Neighborhood Bible Time. I trust that you will each seriously consider how you will participate in this year’s harvest!
Grow Up
Grow Up
In that same paragraph it says, “...to avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger...” Then, the next paragraph says...
We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy in speech; to be slow to take offense, but always ready for reconciliation, and, mindful of the rules of our Saviour, to secure it without delay.
There is much that could be said here.
The good: brotherly love, remember each other in prayer, aid one another, cultivate Christian sympathy, slow to take offense, always ready for reconciliation
Turn to and read Ephesians 4:29-5:4.
The bad: tattling, backbiting, excessive anger
And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.
I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
I hope those verses don’t describe the members of South Charlotte Baptist Church.
I would much prefer South Charlotte Baptist Church be like the church of Ephesus as opposed to the church in Corinth.
Ask yourself this question, “If all of the members of South Charlotte Baptist Church were just like you, would the church be more like Corinth or Ephesus?”
We come to the last paragraph...
We moreover engage that when we remove from this place, we will as soon as possible unite with some other church of like faith where we can carry out the spirit of this covenant and the principles of God’s Holy Word.
I have seen individuals & families simply leave. One Sunday they are here; the next Sunday they are not. You have no idea why they leave.
I have seen individuals & families leave and simply stop going to church altogether.
I have seen individuals & families leave to go to other churches that, doctrinally, were not of “like faith.”
Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
This last paragraph really circles around to the first. If we take the matter of the local church seriously then, I believe that we will not be too quick to want to leave a church in the first place. But, if we do, I believe that we will seek to become an active part of another local church as quickly as possible.
In the days in which the Apostle Paul lived, there weren’t many churches to choose from. I believe that those three thousand souls took church membership seriously. Do we?