Hawkwood Baptist Church's Membership Covenant

Having received Christ as my Lord & Saviour & been baptized by immersion & being in agreement with HBC's mission & vision, strategy & structure, I now feel led by the Holy Spirit to unite with the Hawkwood Baptist Church family. With God's help, I commit myself to Him & to the other members, to strive to do the following:

- To live in God's grace
- To grow as a believer
- To share in group life
- To serve with my gifts
- And to be a good steward

1. I will protect the unity of my church
_ By acting in love toward other members - "Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification" (Romans 14:19 NIV). "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 refusing to gossip - "Have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart" (1 Pet. 1:22 NIV).
_ By following the leaders - "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 no advantage to you" (Hebrews 13:17 NIV).

2. I will share the responsibility of the church
_ By praying for its growth - "To the church... We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers" (1 Thess. 1:1-2 NIV).
_ By intentionally involving myself in Christ's mission to the world - "As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." (John 20:21 NIV).
_ By warmly welcoming those who visit - "Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory." (Romans 15:7 NLT).

3. I will serve the ministry of my church
_ By discovering and using my gifts and talents - "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms" (1 Peter 4:10 NIV).
_ By being equipped to serve - "[God] gave... some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up" (Ephesians 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 Christ Jesus: Who... [took on] the very nature of a servant" (Philippians 2:3-4,7 NIV)

4. I will support the testimony of my church
_ By attending faithfully - "Let us not give up meeting together... but let us encourage one another" (Heb. 10:25 NIV).
_ By living a godly life - "Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ" (Philippians 1:27 NIV).
_ By giving regularly - "On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made" (1 Corinthians 16:2). "One-tenth of all crops belongs to the Lord, including the crops from the fields and the fruit from tree. That one-tenth is holy to the Lord" (Leviticus 27:30NCV).

Printable PDF Version