Membership and Covenants - Part 3

So here is my conclusion...

I have read a lot of scripture and different interpretation and a ton of different articles.  I have found little support in favor of church covenants or membership policies.  While there were covenants made in scripture they never involved a specific church.  The covenants were often between people at war or between God and man.  I find it a stretch to say that this makes "church covenants" okay.

On the other side, I believe that covenants, especially in a church, are filled with many dangers of it becoming legalistic in nature and of it becoming a way for those who are in charge to feel in control.  We know that we were freed from law and are told not to place ourselves under bondage.  We are also shown that as Christians we are equal under God, that there is no hierarchical structure.  Elders are called to lead but they are to lead as servants not as a master.

I will admit that there is no hard line saying that we should or shouldn't make a covenant.  There are times in our lives where we will make covenants, such as when we get married.  Even when we sign our name to our mortgage, however some may argue that this is not a spiritual promise, we are still responsible to uphold what we are promising.  Scripture is very clear that we need to take making any kind of promise/covenant extremely seriously and that once made they are unbreakable.  It seems a very foolish idea to make a vow you cannot keep or to play games with God by only partially fulfilling your vow.  It's better not to make a vow (as there is no sin in not making a vow) than to make a vow and break it (which is sin).

Deuteronomy 23:21-23

When you make a vow to the Lord your God, be prompt in fulfilling whatever you promised him. For the Lord your God demands that you promptly fulfill all your vows, or you will be guilty of sin. However, it is not a sin to refrain from making a vow. But once you have voluntarily made a vow, be careful to fulfill your promise to the Lord your God.

Proverbs 20:25

Don’t trap yourself by making a rash promise to God and only later counting the cost.

Matthew 5:37

Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

What? "From the evil one?"  How?  Well there are 2 ways that I can see.  They can be false and a cover for dishonesty or they can be genuine but can bring us judgment if we fail to keep them.

I believe and agree with the following statement: "Satan, who wishes to snare well-intentioned Christians and bring them into condemnation gets them to swear binding oaths.  Sacred oaths may feel right and seem solemn and deep and spiritual but they are a spiritual snare.  This is why Jesus always attacks the making of oaths, vows and pledges, and did not require his disciples to make them." (http://www.aibi.ph/articles/oaths.htm)

In addition, we are to try to steer clear of actions forbidden by Scripture, but sometimes Scripture is silent or unclear.  Then we need to follow our conscience. The bible says "Everything that does not come from faith is sin".  This means to go against a conviction will leave a person with a guilty or uneasy conscience.

Romans 14:23

But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.

So, for me, I have to decide at this point that I need to be extremely careful in what covenants/promises I make.  I also need to realize that I can't make statements about any promises like "It's not a big deal" or "I don't have to follow everything...I'll just sign it so I can keep doing what I am doing".  I have also had to realize in all this study that this goes much further than just a church covenant though...this goes into our daily lives.  And I for one need to be much more careful what kinds of things I promise or say I will do and to consider the cost before engaging.  When I do promise or say I will do something that I better not break those promises.  And if there is absolutely no way to keep it and I need to break it, I need to make sure that I repent both to God and anybody that may have been part of the promise.

Membership and Covenants - Part 2

In this part, I want to show the other side of the argument.  The side against having covenants within the church. I am going to use a fair amount of quotes in this post because I feel that they are well said and I couldn't say it better myself.  I will give a list of the articles that I quote and have found useful at the bottom of this post.

"When we become Christians, God places us under the New Covenant, which is a covenant of grace.  By grace, God actually takes believers out from under law and its condemnation and places them in Christ Jesus where there is no condemnation." 1

Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

"To create another covenant - a man-made covenant - that repeats what is already in the New Covenant between all believers and God seems to be a way of saying that one doesn't take the New Covenant seriously.  Another covenant - one that the Bible never mentions - must be added on top of Jesus Christ's New Covenant. Church covenants and membership policies are fundamentally legalistic. They are, after all, a set of laws that a member binds himself or herself to keep.  Such covenants and policies are clearly asking Christians - who are now supposed to be under grace and not law - to put themselves back under a law.  This is to be absolutely disobedient to Galatians 5:1 "Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage." 1

"A church membership/covenant is, in essence, saying that the grace of the New Covenant, the in-dwelling of the Holy Spirit, and faith are insufficient.  To these we must add a law...In response, I say with Paul, 

Galatians 3:1-5
O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

Galatians 2:21
I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die. 

"Even when their rules agree with those of the New Covenant, they still directly contradict the principles Paul teaches in such passages as Romans 14.  They inherently cause us to judge one another and to not trust that God is leading a believer on a walk that is between him or her and God." 1

Romans 14:4
Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? Their own master will judge whether they stand or fall. And with the Lord’s help, they will stand and receive his approval.

"A church covenant or church membership policy, then, is a legalistic usurpation of the grace of the New Covenant.  Quite frankly, I believe these covenants/policies to be attempts by the leadership of local churches to control the behavior of members with laws because the leadership does not have the faith to believe that Christians can be left to the care of the Holy Spirit and God's Word.  It seems to come down to a matter of control." 1

Matthew 5:33-37
“You have also heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you make to the Lord.’ But I say, do not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne. And do not say, ‘By the earth!’ because the earth is his footstool. And do not say, ‘By Jerusalem!’ for Jerusalem is the city of the great King. Do not even say, ‘By my head!’ for you can’t turn one hair white or black. Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one.

James 5:12
But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned.

I have looked at so many different church covenants and membership policies and surprisingly many are the same.  Often stating in various ways that we will "work towards the fulfillment of the purpose and vision of the church" or "to guard the peace and unity of the church" or "To honor the leadership of the church through Christlike submission".

What happens when the purpose or vision don't line up with the purpose/vision of the bible?  And God never chooses unity over truth, so what happens when truth is being squashed or twisted?  "A Christian in obedience to Christ will not set out to cause disunity in the body of Christ, however sometimes it is a result of defending God's truth, honor, purity of His Word and proclaiming His true gospel of repentance." 2

Further, "It makes one wonder why leaders of a church feel like they need to require their members in ministry to sign a document stating they will submit to the leaders.  If a christian is rightly related to God, they will have a spirit of submission to biblical spiritual authority, but it will not be to a leader who is not following the Holy Spirit's lead.  It will not be to a minister or a church leader who does not follow the Word of God.  And it should not be to leaders who replace the leading of the Holy Spirit for man-centered pragmatic techniques and the latest trends in church-growth methodology." 2

"Before you're confronted to sign a covenant ask yourself this question - Why does a christian need to make an additional commitment to another man to abstain from sin and remain obedient to God when he has already committed his whole life in submission to Jesus Christ and to sanctification by his Truth which is His Word?" 2

"Previously the Ten Commandments would have been taught, now they are replaced by new church laws which are subjective and potentially heretical. Previously these churches would have taught that Christ won on the cross liberty from the laws of men, and that the conscience is subject to God alone. The Reformed church used to teach that man lives by faith, and through His strength man is able to keep His commands. Now a new structure has been erected, with man-made laws, and man-directed accountability....." 3

"Oaths and covenants are a new form of legalism entering the church like a flood. They require more of us than Scripture requires. It is a horrible new form of bondage, accomplished in the name of a new church for the 21st century. This is a “transformation” not a “reformation.” ....This movement did not arise from God, but from the rapacious desires of evil men." 3

Ecclesiastes 5:1-7
As you enter the house of God, keep your ears open and your mouth shut. It is evil to make mindless offerings to God. Don’t make rash promises, and don’t be hasty in bringing matters before God. After all, God is in heaven, and you are here on earth. So let your words be few. Too much activity gives you restless dreams; too many words make you a fool. When you make a promise to God, don’t delay in following through, for God takes no pleasure in fools. Keep all the promises you make to him. It is better to say nothing than to make a promise and not keep it. Don’t let your mouth make you sin. And don’t defend yourself by telling the Temple messenger that the promise you made was a mistake. That would make God angry, and he might wipe out everything you have achieved. Talk is cheap, like daydreams and other useless activities. Fear God instead.

On to my conclusion...

Articles to read...
http://www.wordofhisgrace.org/mempolicyqa.htm 1 
http://thinkerup.blogspot.ca/2006/08/should-you-sign-church-covenant_30.html 2
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/04/shepherding.htm 3
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/2003/1-purpose.htm
http://rickwarrenquotes.blogspot.ca/2010/04/saddleback-membership-covenant.html
http://www.thepropheticyears.com/comments/Our%20Church%20covenant.htm
http://www.aibi.ph/articles/oaths.htm

Membership and Covenants - Part 1

Over the course of the last several months I have found it necessary to really search out what the Bible says about church membership and covenants.  I have spent hours reading scripture and different articles.  It is now time to put it all together. Here is my conclusion.  I will also attach several links to articles that have solidified my own beliefs.

Please know that this conclusion is my own and that I am open and willing to discuss.

I want to define a covenant, for the purpose of this post as an agreement, contract, commitment, or written promise between two individuals that frequently constitutes a pledge to do or refrain from doing something.

"Church covenants and membership policies list certain requirements for membership and/or describe expected behavior of members, what I am addressing here are not confessions of faith but policies or covenants that bind the behavior of members." (www.wordofhisgrace.org)

Please also know that, I understand that modern day churches need a membership to be recognized as a legal entity and am not opposed to people committing to a church body for this purpose.  I am also not opposed to signing a Statement of Faith as long as those statements follow the definition that "a statement of faith is a statement of the core beliefs of a religious group" and that they are completely scriptural.  Cam said to me one day that I should ask "Am I willing to die for each of those statements?".  Now while, I may not be able to go to the extreme that I would be willing to die for each statement in the one that my church requires, I do at this time believe those to be my core beliefs.  I also have understood that by agreeing to be a member we are also committing ourselves to attendance, giving, prayer and services with that body of Christ.  While these are, in our church, unspoken, they are part of what is understood as stated in the "Why Church Membership?" paper I was given at the time of me becoming a member.

However, what happens when a church requires you to sign anything other than a Statement of Faith.  What does the Bible say about that?

In Part 1, I want to give you several scripture references that I have come across that are used to make an argument for a signed covenant.

1 Corinthians 12:12-27

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free —and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

2 Corinthians 8:5

And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us.

John 13:33-34

“My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

1 John 3:16

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.

Now while I completely agree that we need fellowship with other believers and that this is highly expressed in the bible, I do not see how any of these confirm for me that I should be willing to sign a paper saying that I am committed to a specific church and promising to "men" that I will do a list of things.  My covenant is with God and if I am truly following Him then it will be by our actions and our faithfulness in belonging to a group that we show we are committed.  Anyone can say/sign that they are committed but it's a lot harder to live it.

I have also heard arguments stating that because God had covenants with people like Abraham, Moses and the Israelites that it is then okay for us to have them too. To some degree they are right, at least about the part of God making covenants between himself and people, but that cannot be compared to a covenant between man and man.  We make a covenant with God when we accept him as our Saviour and Lord.  By His "new covenant" we are freed from all law.  God is perfect and can perfectly uphold that Covenant. As men, we are not perfect and will absolutely not be able to perfectly uphold any man made documents.

There are also several instances in Scripture where there were covenants made between men.  Here are 2 that seem to be used often.
1) Genesis 21 - where Abraham and Abimelech make a treaty at the well of Beersheba
2) Genesis 31 - where Laban and Jacob make a covenant to end the fighting and be friends.  

In both of these cases, wars/fights were in progress and it was decided that a "cease fire" was in order and a deal was made.  So while they did make a covenant to each other it was in the best interests of both parties and it was during a time of war.

Again, I am unable to draw the line to connect what these verses are showing to the covenant or commitment that churches are asking members to sign.

Others have said that since we are willing to covenant ourselves in marriage, why should we "the bride of Christ" not be willing to covenant with a church.  In my opinion, that is a weak argument as the institution of marriage was designed by God and this is clear in scripture.

Ephesians 5:31
"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh."

While the bible speaks of us being in fellowship with other believers it never says I should leave my father and mother and covenant myself to a specific church.

The 2 links below are articles that I read that give arguments for a covenant.  They are the best I could come up with. There are lots of articles that have great arguments but they don't have any solid scripture to back them up.   If you have any other ones please let me know, I would love to read them.

On to Part 2...

Articles to read...

http://blog.mattalgren.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/saddleback-covenant.pdf

http://www.independencebaptist.org/Online%20Books/The%20Church%20Covenant.pdf

Be Prepared to Give An Answer

The Bible tells us in 1 Peter 3 :15 that we are to "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have".

The NIV Study Bible Commentary says, "We should always be ready to give an answer, gently and respectfully, when asked about our faith, our lifestyle, or our Christian perspective."  Not just our hope but our perspective.

Proverbs 22:20-21

Have I not written thirty sayings for you, sayings of counsel and knowledge, teaching you true and reliable words, so that you can give sound answers to him who sent you.

Proverbs 15:28

The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.

Our church recently has told it's congregation that we will have to sign a Ministry Commitment in order to serve within the church.  That is not what this post is about but I will make a post in the near future to give you what I believe.  However, it is a new topic of conversations and before you hear what I think I would encourage you to search it out for yourself.  Do it honestly, looking at it from all sides openly and prayerfully.  Not just on this issue, but anytime you are faced with such decisions. If someone asks you why you are doing something or why you believe what you do the following are NOT suitable answers and here is why...

1) My Pastor/Leadership told me to and says that it's okay.

1 Thessalonians 5:20-22

Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.

3) It is required. 

Galatians 5:1

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

2) "It's no big deal" or "Every other church does it" or "It's harmless, just do it" or "It's only a small concession" or "It doesn't mean anything".

1 Peter 4:5 (also see Romans 14:12 for a similar verse)

But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.

These statements are cop outs, no different then the one your parents used when you were a child "If your friends jumped off a cliff, would you?".  You and only you will be accountable to God for your decisions and actions.  He will not accept the above answers and neither should you.

If you look at mainstream ideas (even within the church) and concede it must be okay, you are setting yourself up for deception - just because others do it does not make it right. (See my post on False Teachings and Discernment for more on how we can be deceived and how we can avoid it.)

Matthew 7:13-14

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. 

Matthew 7:21-23

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ 

Daniel shows us this in the stance he took against King Nebuchadnezzar and resolved not to "defile himself with the royal food and wine". (Daniel 5:8) He stood up to what was mainstream even though he was in a world where no one would have questioned him if he did do it.  Only him and his 3 friends stood their ground.

Look at the "Hall of Faith" in Hebrews 11.  All of these men and women of faith had to stand at some point against mainstream ideas or do something that was unpopular because it was truth and because God had instructed them to. 

Why could they stand alone?  Because they were convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was God they were following and NOT man. 

So again I challenge you that any time you do something you make sure you are able to give a real reason that can be backed up by Scripture and not the words of man.  Questions are NEVER bad. If after studying it for yourself, it is still muddled or unclear - WAIT - and ask God for wisdom.  Don't just do it.

Romans 14:23

But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.

Satan will come and deceive many...it's not a matter of if, but when...and the bible is clear that he will come in "Sheep's clothing" and will be hard to recognize and that we need to be on guard for those times. 

Matthew 7:15

Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.

I will continue to challenge you on what you believe and you need to own it for yourself, even in the little things.  Those "little things", "harmless things" are practice for the big things.  Otherwise, when things get tough, you won't know how to stand.

Proverbs 27:17

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.