Our affiliation with the Evangelical Covenant Church gives insight to the essential nature both of our local congregation as well as this network of churches in our denominational family.
Evangelical… reflects our commitment to the Good News of God’s forgiveness offered to all people in Jesus Christ. Having felt our own lives changed by God’s loving concern shown in Jesus Christ, we would wish to help others hear and be touched by this Good News as well.
Covenant… refers to the sense of family commitment to one another that comes with sharing the same experience of faith in Christ. We are in it together, brought and kept together by knowing God as Father and Jesus as our help and our friend.
Church… testifies to the fact that we are one local expression of Christ’s living presence at work in the world he loves. Church is not defined by the brick and mortar of a building, but by the presence of Jesus Christ in the midst of girls and boys, women and men, called together to be part of his world-wide body of believers.
Covenant affirmations…
- The Centrality of the Word of God, believing that the Holy Scriptures, the Old and New Testaments, are the only perfect rule for faith, doctrine, and conduct (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
- The Necessity of New Birth, affirming our need to become new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17-21, Romans 10:9 and 13, and John 3:3)
- A Commitment to the Whole Mission of the Church, showing love and embracing justice for our neighbors wherever they are (Micah 6:8, Acts 1:8 and Luke 4:18-19)
- The Church As a Fellowship of Believers, building up one another for “works of service” (Acts 2:42-47, Ephesians 2:19-22, 4:11-13, and Romans 12:1-8)
- A Conscious Dependence on the Holy Spirit, knowing that he is “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 1:13-23 and 3:20-21)
- The Reality of Freedom in Christ finding agreement in the essentials and granting one another freedom to be faithful in the rest (Isaiah 55:6-11 and Philippians 3:12-16)