by Salem Community Church
We understand the church as a community of the people of God, called out of the world and devoted to God's service. We have been made God's children and thus have been made brothers and sisters to each other. We have been given the Holy Spirit so that we might live in loving relationships with God and with each other. On the basis of these relationships, we are able to serve God and to bring the blessings of God's mercy and justice to others.
We understand our covenant with each other as a mechanism to aid us in these relationships. This description of our covenant is not the reality of our covenant. It is not a legal substitute for serving each other in love. It is an inadequate, but nonetheless true, expression of the nature of our relationships.
We understand our covenant as part of the goal of our Christian lives. We make no pretense about our ability to fulfill these goals perfectly, but it is our desire to grow in this direction as our lives come more and more into conformity with Christ. We know that God desires us to make our beliefs concrete, and to set priorities in our lives which glorify him and serve others. Because we believe that God's goal for us is to live in interdependence and mutual love, we have entered into a covenant together.
Our covenant can be described as:
We know that we come into relationship with God only because God has forgiven our sins. In the same way, our relationships with each other find their basis in an attitude of gracious forgiveness. Because we are sinful, we will fail each other many times. We believe, however, that the foundation of our relationships is not our abilities to fulfill abstract ideals, but rather our commitment to forgive and love each other in spite of our failings.
Being disciples means becoming and calling others to become more conformed to Christ. One corporate dimension of discipleship is encouragement, and we covenant to encourage others whenever possible, to be aware of their struggles and joys, and to support them in their efforts to follow Christ's example. We also agree to accept the same sort of encouragement from others.
Another corporate dimension of discipleship is admonishment. Admonishment is difficult, often threatening, and open to abuse if not steeped in grace and prayer. Although we respect each other as individuals capable of hearing from God, we realize that we often find such listening difficult and that each of us is sometimes unable to hear clearly on our own. Thus, we give up the right to say, "Mind your own business" to members of the church. We agree to attend to their admonishment, to consider it seriously (attempting to avoid anger and defensiveness), and, if appropriate, to act upon it.
In the same way, we agree to admonish others when, after prayerful consideration, we believe it necessary. We recognize that giving admonition is often more difficult than being admonished ourselves. The other person may become angry or defensive, and we ourselves feel unworthy to speak, knowing that we are far from perfect. Nonetheless, because we love our brothers and sisters and desire to see them become more like Christ, we give up the right to say, "It's none of my business."
Our covenant implies prayer for one another in some regular fashion, because we believe that our loving Father wishes his children to pray for each other asking him for the blessings they need.
We view ourselves as stewards of the abundant gifts of God. As a result, we seek to use all that we have - time, energy, talents, insights, and possessions - to serve. We desire to employ what we have, giving ourselves in ministry to each other, giving our time in regular prayer and attendance at meetings of the church, and giving our material resources - our money and possessions - to meet the needs of others.
We recognize that by making us his family, God has made us servants to each other and to the world. We reject a prideful, self-centered view of life, and seek to become people who find joy in service.
We reject our culture's ideal of independent persons who have little need for each other. We know that each of us is a part of the same body, and we seek to build strong relationships with each other. We agree to strive to become more open persons, disclosing our feelings, struggles, joys, and hurts to each other. Also, as each of us desires to be known and understood, so we desire to seek to know and understand each other. We know that our love for each other cannot be based on the things we do and say, but on the fact that God loves us unconditionally and calls us to love each other in the same way. Even when we do not agree with each other, we recognize our responsibility to love each other as those whom God loves in truth.
Because we know that what any member does affects the others deeply, we covenant to be accountable to each other.
Being accountable means being reliable in specific, tangible things, such as bringing a meal when you agree to do so. This part of accountability involves "standing by your word" - doing what you say you will do - and we view it as essential.
Being accountable also means being involved in our decision-making as a church. Whenever the church seeks direction as a whole, each of us has responsibility to discern God's will, to enter into prayer and discussion regarding the decision, and to actively support the consensual decisions of the church.
Inherent in a covenant such as this, a covenant which seeks to encourage depth and mutuality in personal relationships, is accountability when ending the covenant. Our lives are linked spiritually, socially, and geographically. We recognize that there are a number of reasons a member may decide to leave the church, but we ask that the person dissolving the covenant exercise sensitivity toward our mutual investment in each other. In the same way, we will seek to be loving toward the person leaving. Any decision to terminate one's membership should be discussed corporately and although the individual contemplating leaving must make the final decision that decision should take into account the input of the whole church.
Version 3.2
As of 26 December 1996