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NEW HORIZONS COMMUNITY CHURCH
MEMBERSHIP COVENANT
OUR MISSION
To love God and to share that love with others.
(Matthew 22:36-40; 28:18-20)
OUR VISION
To provide a place where you can discover God.
(Ephesians 3:8-12)
I, __________________________, have received Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior and having been baptized, am in agreement with New Horizons’ mission and vision statements, strategy and structure. I now feel led by the Holy Spirit to unite with the New Horizons Church family. In doing so, I commit myself to God and to the other members to do the following:
1. I WILL PROTECT THE UNITY OF MY CHURCH
By acting in love toward members and others
"Live in complete harmony with each other - each with the attitude of Christ toward the other." (Rom. 15:5 TLB)
"Have a sincere love for your fellow believers, love one another earnestly with all your heart." (I Peter 1:22 GN)
By agreeing on the essentials and practicing tolerance and charity on the
non-essentials
"Give a warm welcome to any brother who wants to join you, even though his faith is weak. Don't criticize him for having different ideals from yours about what is right and wrong." --- "In this way aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up " (Rom. 14:1,19 TLB)
"Remind your people of these great facts, and command them in the name of the Lord not to argue over unimportant things. Such arguments are confusing and useless, and even harmful." ---"Again say, don't get involved in foolish arguments which only upset people and make them angry. God's people must not be quarrelsome; they must be gentle, patient teachers of those who are wrong." (2Tim. 2:14, 23,24 TLB)
By refusing to gossip
"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs..." (Eph. 4:29 NIV)
By following the leadership of the church
"Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you." (Heb. 13:17 NIV)
2. I WILL SHARE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF MY CHURCH
By praying for my church and its growth
"To the church...we always thank God for you and pray for you constantly."
(I Thess. 1:2 TLB)
"So let us concentrate on the things which make for harmony, and on the growth of our fellowship together." (Rom. 14:19 Ph)
By inviting the unchurched to attend
"Go out into the country...and urge anyone you find to come in, so that My House will be full." (Luke 14:23 TLB)
By warmly welcoming those who visit
"So, warmly welcome each other into the church, just as Christ has warmly welcomed you; then God will be glorified." (Rom. 15:7 TLB)
3. I WILL SERVE IN THE MINISTRY OF MY CHURCH
By discovering my gifts and talents
"Serve one another with the particular gifts God has given each of you. " (I Peter 4:10 Ph)
By attending teachings & trainings that will prepare me for service
"God gave...some to be pastors and teachers to prepare God's people for works of ministry, so that the body of Christ may be built up..." (Eph. 4:11-12 NIV)
By developing a servant's heart
"Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Jesus Christ...who took on the very nature of a servant..." (Phil 2:4-7 NIV)
4. I WILL SUPPORT THE TESTIMONY OF MY CHURCH
By attending the "Celebration Services" faithfully
" Let us not neglect our church meetings , as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of his coming back again is drawing near."
(Heb 10:25 TLB)
He {Jesus} went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom.---" (Luke 4:16 NIV)
By being involved and attending a small group faithfully
"--- (they) met in small groups in their homes for Communion, and shared their meals with great joy and thankfulness, praising God ." (Acts 2:46 TLB)
"Please give my greetings to the Christian friends at Laodicea, and to Nymphas, and to those who meet in his home." (Col.4:15 TLB)
By reading and obeying God's Word daily
"Do not let the Book of the Law depart from your mouth; mediate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it ." (Jos. 1:8 NIV)
By praying daily
"---pray continually---" (1Thes.5:17 NIV)
By living a Godly life
"But whatever happens, make sure that your everyday life is worthy of the gospel of Christ."
(Phil. 1:27 Ph)
By presenting my tithes to the Lord through my church
"Each one of you, on the first day of each week, should set a side a specific sum of money in proportion to what you have earned and use it for the offering." (I Cor. 16:2 AT)
" ---don't ever trust yourself. In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and crown your efforts with success. Don't be conceited, sure of your own wisdom. Instead, trust and reverence the Lord, --- Honor the Lord by giving him the first part of all your income , and he will fill your barns with wheat and barley and overflow your wine vats with the finest wines." (Prov 3:4-9 TLB)
"A tenth of all you produce is the Lord's and it is holy." (Lev. 27:30 TLB)
" I am the LORD All-Powerful, and I challenge you to put me to the test. Bring the entire ten percent into the storehouse, so there will be food in my house. Then I will open the windows of heaven and flood you with blessing after blessing." (Mal. 3:10 CEV)
Jesus said: "For you tithe down to the last mint leaf in your garden, but ignore the important things- justice and mercy and faith. Yes you should tithe , but you shouldn't leave the more important things undone." (Matt. 23:23 TLB)
Signature:______________________________ Date:___________________
(NHCCMembershipCovenant2004-5) |
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