|
• Preface
All Christians, through faith and baptism,
have entered into the New Covenant established by Jesus
Christ through His sacrifice on the cross. In these
days, the Lord has called us to dedicate ourselves to
living the New Covenant in a clear, specific,and particular
way. As He has with His people in the past, the Lord
has called us into a renewal covenant (e.g. Joshua 24:14-17;
2 Chronicles 15:12; Nehemiah 9-10). He has formed us
into a people for Himself with a particular call and
mission. This is
expressed in a covenant relationship with one another
and in the name He has given us, The Work of Christ
Community. As we enter into this covenant relationship
as a people, we remain committed to our churches, and
we agree to support one another in that commitment.
In addition, while this covenantis intended to be a
stable commitment, we understand that it does not necessarily
mean for everyone a lifelong commitment tothis community.
We can foreseethat changing circumstancesand other forms
of guidance in a person’s life may indicate that
it is no longer the Lord’s will for that person
to continue active involvement in The Work of Christ
Community; although, such a decision would be made only
with serious prayer and counsel.It is with deep joyand
gratitude, realizing the overwhelming goodness of God
in giving us this opportunity, that we enter into the
life of this people that God has called together. We
accept the particular covenant relationship God has
established with us and among us as a community, and
we express this acceptance publicly as individuals and
as a people.
The Covenant
In order to respond to what God is doing among
us, in order to be that people He is calling us to be,
we give our whole lives, past, present, and future,
to Him. We will follow His Son, Jesus, and live more
and more in the Holy Spirit. We will strive to love
and serve Him through lives of daily prayer and service;
to praise and worship Him always; to seek His face;
to know and serve the truth of His Word in the joy,
peace, and love of the Holy Spirit; to believe what
He speaks to us and to be obedient to the truth of His
Word and the guidance of His Spirit; to offer hospitality
to those whom He sends us; to widen our hearts to receive
those He adds to our number; and to carry out the mission
He is entrusting to us. Above all, we seek to be a people
who always grow, by His grace, in the fervor of that
first love He has given us, He who is our all. We consecrate
our lives to Him not simply as individuals but as members
of a people, members of The Work of Christ Community.
We desire to be united in love and to share a common
heart, mind, and purpose with our brothers and sisters
in The Work of Christ Community. God has called us to
be an ecumenical, charismatic, Christian community in
which He gives us the strength, order, and grace to
love Him totally and to joyfully lay down our lives
for one another. As an ecumenical community, we are
committed to the support and encouragement of spiritual
renewal among all Christian people.
In order for us to be truly a community, a people of
one mind and heart in our response to the Lord, we agree
to serve and care for our brothers and sisters in The
Work of Christ Community, and we understand and accept
those things which make our life as one body possible.
We agree to follow God through lives of service, praise,
worship, Scripture, and daily personal prayer. We pledge
to obey the truth of God’s word; and we pledge,
with the help of pastoral care, community teaching,
and sound Christian wisdom, to apply that truth to our
lives. We expect that our personal guidance will be
tested and confirmed by the common discernment of the
community and its leadership. We agree to speak the
truth to one another in love and live our lives in the
light.
We agree to support the order, structure, and patterns
of our common life. We embrace community pastoral care
which God has given to guide and unite us as a people.
We agree to faithfully attend the gatherings and meetings
of the community, so that we may fully participate in
God’s work with us as a people. We will honor
the Lord with a tithe of all our income and we will
support the life of the body by sharing our financial
and material resources. All this enables us to be a
community, members of the same body, brothers and sisters
working together in the mission He is entrusting to
us as a people.
By virtue of our membership in The Work of Christ Community,
we are also members of the Sword of the Spirit, an international
community of communities. We commit ourselves to love
and support our brothers and sisters in the Sword of
the Spirit throughout the world, and to serve with them
in a common mission.
We yield our lives to God completely, and we will follow
Him as a people wherever He may lead. With faith in
the Lord and abundant joy in our hearts, relying upon
His power and grace to sustain us, we enter into this
covenant with God as individuals and as a body.
|
