Constitution for Menominee Grace Brethren Church

Menominee Grace Brethren Church

 

Constitution and By-Laws

Preamble:

To better set forth our position before the world, define our relations one with another, facilitate an orderly transaction of business, conduct our various activities and promote harmony and cooperation between the members within the church and define our relationships with other churches and organizations, we, the members of the Menominee Grace Brethren Church, adopt and accept the following articles to be the Constitution and By Laws of this church.

 

 

Article I: Name and association

The name of this church shall be Menominee Grace Brethren Church.  This church shall not be under any denominational authority, but may associate with any fellowship which is in agreement with the Statement of Faith as it chooses.

 

Article II:  Members’ Covenant

The covenant by which this church exists as a distinct body, and which every member accepts, is as follows:

Acknowledging Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Lord, and accepting the Holy Scriptures as our rule of belief and behavior, and recognizing the privilege and duty of uniting ourselves for Christian fellowship, the enjoyment of Christian ordinances, the public worship of God, and the advancement of His Church on earth, we do now, in the sight of God and invoking His blessing, solemnly covenant and agree with each other to associate ourselves as a church of the Lord Jesus Christ, as warranted by the Word of God.

We agree to maintain the institution of the Gospel, to submit ourselves to the orderly administration of the affairs of the church, to faithfully support its work with our time, talents and finances and to walk together in brotherly love.  And this we do depending on the aid of our Heavenly Father, Who so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son for our salvation, and of Jesus Christ, who had redeemed us with His Blood, and of the Holy Spirit, our Comforter and Guide

 

Article III: Statement of Faith

Believing the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible to be the infallible rule of faith and of practice and feeling the responsibility to make known the divine message of the Bible, we present the following articles as a statement of those basic truths taught in the Bible which are common to our Christian faith and practice.

1. THE BIBLE. The Word of God, the sixty six Books of the Old and New Testaments, verbally inspired in all parts, and therefore wholly without error as originally given of God (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).
2. THE ONE TRUE GOD. Existing eternally as three persons the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Luke 3:22; Matthew 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14).
3. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. His preexistence and deity (John 1:1-3), incarnation by virgin birth (John 1:14; Matthew 1:18-23), sinless life (Heb. 4:15), substitutionary death (2 Cor. 5:21), bodily resurrection (Luke 24:36-43), ascension into heaven and present ministry (Heb. 4:14-16), and coming again (Acts 1:11).
4. THE HOLY SPIRIT. His personality (John 16:7-15), and deity (Acts 5:3-4), and His work in each believer:  filling (Eph. 5:18) to empower for Christian life and service (Eph. 3:16; Acts 1:8; Gal. 5:22-23).
5. MAN. His direct creation in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-28), his subsequent fall into sin resulting in spiritual death (Gen. 3:1-24; Rom. 5:12), and the necessity of the new birth for his salvation (John 3:3-5).
6. SALVATION. A complete and eternal salvation by God’s grace alone received as the gift of God through personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work (Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-7; 1 Peter 1:18-19).
7. THE CHURCH. The church is a local body of believers, called out for worship, for edification of believers, and for worldwide gospel witness, each local church being autonomous but cooperating in fellowship and work (Matt. 28:19-20, Acts 1:8, Eph. 4:11-16).
8. CHRISTIAN LIFE. A life of righteousness, good works and separation unto God from the evil ways of the world (Rom. 12:1-2), manifested by speaking the truth (James 5:12), maintaining the sanctity of the home (Eph. 5:22-6:4), settling differences between Christians in accordance with the Word of God (1 Cor. 6:1-8), not engaging in carnal strife but showing a Christ like attitude toward all men (Rom. 12:17-21), exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23), and maintaining a life of prayer (Eph. 6:18; Phil. 4:6).
9. ORDINANCES. The Church should practice the seven ordinances of our Lord Jesus Christ which are grouped in three observances: (1)baptism of believers by triune immersion (Matt. 28:19) and (2) Laying on of hands; the threefold communion service, consisting of (3) the washing of the saints’ feet (John 13:1 17), (4) the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:20-22, 33-34; Jude 12), (5) the communion of the bread and the cup (1 Cor. 11:23-26) and (6) holy salutation (Rom. 16:16, I Cor. 16:20, II Cor. 13:12, I Thes. 5:26); finally, the anointing of the sick with oil (James 5:13-18)
10. SATAN. His existence and personality as the great adversary of God and His people (Rev. 12:1-10), his judgment (John 12:31), and final doom (Rev. 20:10).
11. SECOND COMING. The personal, visible, and imminent return of Christ to remove His church from the earth (1 Thess. 4:16-17) before the tribulation (1 Thess. 1:10; Rev. 3:10), and afterward to descend with the Church to establish His millennial kingdom upon the earth (Rev. 19:11-20:6).
12. FUTURE LIFE. The conscious existence of the dead (Phil. 1:21-23; Luke 16:19-31), the resurrection of the body (John 5:28-29), the judgment and reward of believers (Rom. 14:10 12; 2 Cor. 5:10), the judgment and condemnation of unbelievers (Rev. 20:11-15), the eternal life of the saved (John 3:16), and the eternal punishment of the lost (Matt. 25:46; Rev. 20:15).

Article IV: Membership

Section 1, Qualification:

Any person, having demonstrated conversion by faith in Jesus Christ, and in agreement with the Covenant and Statement of faith, may join this assembly with the assent of the congregation.

Section 2, Withdrawal:

A member failing to maintain faithfulness to the Covenant or Statement of Faith shall be considered inactive.  Any active member, wishing to join with another church of like faith, may request a letter of transfer.

Section 3, Discipline:

Should any member persist in false doctrine or unscriptural behavior, and, having been admonished privately, choose to continue in error, shall be addressed by the Pastor and one or two other members and called to repentance in a spirit of grace and love.  Should the erring member refuse to repent, they shall be called before the congregation in a private meeting and lovingly and graciously invited to repent and continue in fellowship.  If the erring member refuses to hear the church, they shall be grievingly considered outside of the fellowship of the church until they come to repentance.  (Matthew 18, I Corinthians 5, II Corinthians 6)

Article V: Officers and Government

Section 1, Officers:

A)    Pastor

i)  Qualifications

a) The pastor shall meet the qualifications enumerated in I Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1.

b) The pastor must wholeheartedly adhere to the Statement of Faith.

ii)  Call

The church shall first seek a man from within the congregation who meets the qualifications and exhibits the call of God.  If one cannot be found, then the church may call a pastor from outside.  The call is perpetual, and may only be rescinded if the pastor falls into false doctrine or disqualifies himself according to the above passages of Scripture.

iii)  Responsibilities

The pastor is the Overseer and leader of the church. The pastor is responsible for the spiritual direction, teaching and preaching and pastoral care. The pastor is responsible first to Jesus Christ, whose church this is, and then to the congregation.  The pastor is a de facto member of any committee, class or organization within the church.

B)    Deacon

Deacons are the servants of the church, and must meet the qualifications listed in Acts 6:1-7 and I Timothy 3:8-13.  Deacons may be chosen by the church as needed in order to assist the pastor with the practical ministry of the church.

Section 2, Church Government:

The government of the church shall be pastor-led congregational form, not subject to any outside organization or body.  Temporary committees may be appointed by the congregation for a specific purpose.

Article VI: Property

Any real property shall be held by the church.  The church shall not enter into debt except by the unanimous consent of the membership, and any debt must be speedily discharged.

Article VII: Amendment

This constitution may be amended at any regular or called business meeting upon the condition that the proposed amendment or revision has been announced at two regular services prior.  A two-thirds majority is required to approve the amendment.  Unanimity is to be sought, and any dissent should be seriously weighed.

 

Article VIII: Dissolution

In the event of the dissolution of this church, any unencumbered properties and finances shall be given to another Grace Brethren organization as designated by the congregation.  Organizations that supported this work in its founding shall be preferred.

 

 

God is Good

God is good
When I am hurting
God is good
When I am well.

God is good
In Heaven’s glory
God is good
In fiery Hell.

God is good
To rich Zachaeus
God is good
To Lazarus low.

God is good
In days of plenty
God is good
In years of woe

I am learning
By my God’s mercy
I can trust
Where e’re I plod

God is good
Not by my feelings
God is good
Because He’s God.

The Shepherd’s Story by Shawn Burke

One night me and the others were watching our sheep. It was the last night before we were going into the mountains. An angel of the Lord appeared to us and said, “Do not be afraid. I give you good tidings of great joy! In the town of Bethlehem you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes.”

And so we went into the town of Bethlehem, a little afraid. We looked and looked. We thought that the couple would be in a good inn. We were just about to give up, but we walked by a barn and saw a baby in swaddling clothes!

The couple asked us, “What do you need?” We said, “We have come to see the baby that the angel was talking about.” We asked the name of the baby and the could told us His name is Jesus.

We left after a while, and ever since every day and night we talk about that one night.

The Angel’s Story by Michael Burke

The day of Jesus’ birth was almost here! Everyone was very excited and Gabriel was waiting for God to let him tell the shepherds the news. Trying to hold his excitement, he paced until Jesus was born and the angels were dancing with joy! Then Gabriel knew what to do. He went to the city of Bethlehem. As much as he wanted to go to the place where his God was born, he still had his job to perform. He appeared to the shepherds near the city.

They were VERY afraid! The never saw an angel before, but they knew they existed. He smiled and said to them, “Fear not! For behold! I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you, you shall find the Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” And then Gabriel was joined by a crowd of angels praising God.

TheHost’s Story by Victoria Burke

It was that time — every descendent of David came to Bethlehem to be taxed. This town was too small for all these people! Not to mention their rudeness! I open my home to all these people, and they think I am their servant? Ungrateful people! Well, I went to get some food, water and supplies before night fell, and talked with a few people who had opened their homes too.

The night came. I kept glancing out my windows. There was a star, but this star was the brightest I’d ever seen. I wonder why it’s there? Then ANOTHER knock at my door!

“I don’t have ANY room!” I said to this couple. But by the look of it, the woman standing there was giving birth! Something inside me told me I had to help them, so I told them to go to the stable. It was all I had left, and it, too, was crowded. I wished I could have given her someplace else, but, like I said, it was all I had.

Then the star burned brighter and brighter. And then came shepherds. They looked quite frightened and excited all at the same time.

Now, if I had known my Savior was being born, I would have given Him my home.

A Scriptural Philosophy of Children’s Education — Apologia

My first memory of school is from kindergarten. We had been given papers printed with a mosaic of shapes, and instructed to color the shapes to discover the picture. We were to color squares blue, triangles red, and so forth. When, because of a total  lack of interest in coloring, I failed to complete the exercise, it was sent home with me as homework. I remember sitting at the table all evening miserably filling in the shapes until finally the picture was complete. Relieved to be finished, I showed it to my father, who’s immediate response was criticism of my coloring skill because I hadn’t done each section the same direction.

This memory epitomizes my entire educational experience. Elementary school was torture, high school a long, slow bore and college a crushing disappointment. The tragedy of this is I was eager to learn. I was an avid reader, retained facts easily and quickly understood patterns of data. In elementary school, I was banned from the library because I read too much. My educational experience spanned the range of traditional options from public school to Christian school to curriculum based home school, and none fit me. Although I was knowledgeable, intelligent and curious, I spent my entire educational career feeling like a failure.

This led me to spend a great deal of time investigating and considering learning models. When our children came along, I determined their experience would not mirror mine, and I made a thorough study of the Scripture to understand how God had intended children to be taught and to learn. It is out of two decades of study and consideration as well as several years of practical experience with my children that this paper comes. I hope it opens eyes and hearts and perhaps helps to deliver children from an educational experience such as mine.

Wandering

I’ve spent my time on foreign shores
And wandered distant strands.
I’ve swum in seas both salt and sweet
And walked historic sands.

I’ve seen the people bustle by
Intent upon their way.
I’ve heard their thoughts
And shared their dreams
And joined them as they pray.

I’ve spoke the tongue of ancient race
And read their storied past.
I’ve heard the songs of ancient days
Seen relics unsurpassed.

I’ve settled now upon my chair
My children gathered ‘round.
And, though my wandering feet have stilled,
My memories won’t be bound.

I tell my children many tales
Of lands so far away.
And though my heart would hold them close,
I hope some day they stray.

And bring me stories new and old
Of places they have seen.
Of people they have spoken to
Of dreams that they have dreamed.

Who Loves Whom? A Re-Examination of Romans 8:35 in Context

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Romans 8:35

This verse is as familiar to me as my own name.  I’ve read, heard and quoted it many thousands of times.  I’ve heard it preached over and over as an encouragement to depend on the unchanging love of Christ for me. Unfortunately, the verses that are the most familiar are often the easiest to gloss over and miss the real meaning because we already “understand” it.

Every time I read the whole chapter, though, I felt uncomfortable about what this verse was saying in context about the love of God.  So Christ loves me no matter what my circumstances: I “get” that.  The next verse, however, seems to say that because Christ loves us,  He has us killed all day every day.   I know God sometimes expresses “tough love”, but is that the encouragement Paul is offering the suffering church?  “Hang on, Christ loves you so much He’s having you killed”?

We never doubt the eternal, sacrificial and unconditional love of Christ.  The Scripture attests to it over and over.  But not in Romans 8:35.  The problem comes from interpreting the genitive “tou Xristou” (of Christ) without comparing the context.  I’m going to get a little bit technical, but I believe this is easy to follow so stay with me.  If it isn’t, then comment and I will try again.

When a genitive case (which “of Christ” in this verse is) follows an “action noun” such as love, there are three possible functions it can fulfill.  Only the first two would fit the grammar of this sentence, so I will leave off the third. The only clue we have to chose which function is appropriate is context.  In this place, the subjective function has always been used, making “love of Christ” the subject of the sentence. In other words, Christ is the lover, the one doing the action.  There is no grammatical barrier to this usage, but does it fit the rest of the passage?  Possibly, but I believe there is a better way.

The second possibility is the objective function, placing “of Christ” in the position of direct object of love.  In other words, Christ is the one receiving the love, or being loved.  If we were to use this function, we could translate the verse “Who shall separate us from our love for Christ?”  In other words, after discussing the brevity and insignificance of our suffering compared with the glory Christ has purchased for us, and then going on to consider the help and hope He offers through His Spirit even though we brought suffering on not only ourselves but all His creation, he asks, “How much do we love Him?”.  He then goes on in verse 36 to quote Psalm 44, indicating we willingly lay down our lives for the One who loved us so.

It’s interesting to compare the lists from verse 35 and verses 38-39.  The things Paul lists as possibly coming between us and our love for God are all earthly – tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword.  The things he lists as not possibly coming between us and God’s love for us are all spiritual — death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing.  Because God defends us from what we cannot overcome, He gives us the strength to overcome the things we can.

What can separate you from your love for Christ?

Why God Allows Us to Hurt

Why God Allows Evil

As a pastor, I am occasionally asked to explain why a loving God would allow the horrible things we each encounter in our lives.  Sometimes the question cries out from genuine pain, but more often expresses a sense of skepticism.  Seldom is an answer expected.  This is presented as the final, unanswerable argument against Christ.

The truth, however, is plainly found in the first three chapters of the Scripture.

Genesis 1 describes how the Universe came into being.  All of creation (including angels) came about by the power of the spoken word of God — except Man.  In Genesis 2:7, God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.  Man is God’s special creation — made from the earth and the breath of God.  He was created in the image of God as God’s representative to all the rest of His universe.  God gave to man authority over all creation and the responsibility to subdue it.

Moses then describes in chapter 2 the Garden God made for man.  From a world God described as “very good” (Gen. 1:31), He collected all the best and designed a home for Man.  In the midst of this perfect garden God planted two unique trees, both of which tell us something of Himself as well as of His creation — man.

The first tree God planted was the Tree of Life.  Man was given full access to this tree.  Man was made with the potential for immortality.  From the beginning, God has made everlasting life freely available to man.  We have, however, no record that Adam or Eve ever ate of this tree.  God’s best gifts are often left untasted.

The second tree God placed in the heart of His Garden was the  Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  This was the tree God warned him about.  God gave Adam a commandment not to eat of this tree because in the day he ate of it, he would surely die.  The name of this tree is intriguing: Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  Not the Tree of Evil, or the Tree of Knowledge.  Man already had intimate knowledge of good — he lived in a good garden with a good wife and had fellowship with the Good God.

Part of being created in the image of God included a necessity of free will.  God offered man a life of Good, with no knowledge of evil; however, the alternative had to be available for free will to be true.

The serpent presented the fruit of this tree to Eve as something “desirable to make one wise”(Gen. 3:6).   Living in perfection, Eve deliberately chose to know what life would be like in a world apart from God.  She desired to know evil.  Adam chose to place his love for his wife above his love for God, and ate.

The Scripture says they knew they were naked, and sewed fig leaves for themselves.  It is hard to imagine it was simply physical nakedness that horrified them so.  After all, husbands and wives today are “naked and unashamed”.  Hebrews 13:4 says “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled”.  Rather it was a sudden understanding of vulnerability.  They understood they had been manipulated and became distrustful.  Adam was “afraid because he was naked”; afraid, not embarrassed or ashamed. Sin brings division and distrust into the family, community and society.

God, rather than responding angrily to Adam’s sin, sorrowfully allowed Man to face the consequences of his choice.  God’s justice demands separation from sinful man, but it is important to note that man freely chose this separation.  It was to fulfill man’s wish to understand evil that God cursed the ground.  Genesis 3:17 “cursed is the ground for your sake” could be better translated “for your benefit”.  The attitude is not “You caused this!”, but rather, “Since this is what you want…”.  God has given Adam and Eve what they demanded — the opportunity to see evil in the world.

Yet, as man is rebelling, God is offering provision for restoration.  A promise of a redeemer is in the midst of the curse:
“And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
(Gen. 3:15)
Why is the first promise of the victorious seed of woman directed toward the serpent, rather than to Adam or Eve?  It seems neither Adam nor Eve yet understood the enormity of the choice they had made.  Here God is outlining the consequences of their decision, and Adam decides this is the right time to name his wife (Gen. 3:20).  It seems they were listening with some anticipation to the adventures of their new life.  Michelangelo got it wrong — rather than stumbling broken-hearted from the Garden, Man marched arrogantly into the new world he had caused.

And still, God killed two animals and made clothes for their journey.  He gave them a sacrificial system to remind them of the enormity of their sin, and the promise of a Savior.  God’s love is shown to us in that while we were in the midst of sinning, Christ died for us! (Romans 5:8)

Every time we experience evil, it is another reminder of the goodness of God. Truly, Christ will come
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.
(Isaiah 61:3)

Death in the Garden: Why Death and Decay Are Necessary Before the Fall

These are some things I have been thinking about, and I thought I would write them up and ask for comments and reviews.  If you find a flaw in my logic or exegesis, please let me know about it!

One of the cornerstones of literal seven days of twenty-four hours each Creationist argumentation is that there was no death or decay before the Fall of man. We have been taught that all animals were vegetarians, and carnivores only developed after the flood. Nothing ever died or decayed, and the second law of thermodynamics was not in force. Is this a biblical position, or are we doing ourselves harm using a false argument that is easily disproved? I believe there had to be death and decay before the Fall. A careful examination of the Scripture, leaving aside the Creationist bias, will prove this.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1. We understand this statement to be literally true. God, through a divine act by the power of His word, brought into existence that which did not before exist. Over the course of the first six literal twenty-four hour days, He spoke into being out of nothing all that now or ever has existed except for Adam, whom he formed from pre-existing material (dust of the ground) with His own hands (Gen. 2:7). On the seventh day, God rested, sealing His creation (Gen. 2:1). Thus, we must conclude that in the earth that God pronounced “Very good” (Gen. 1:31), He had already created flies, bacteria, viruses, molds, fungi, and the human immune system.

Did God open a special eighth day of creation when Adam rebelled? Certainly to believe that would be to contradict Scripture. If Adam could never be cut or bruised, why did God create for him a self-healing body? If there was no death or decay, what function did molds, fungi, and bacteria play? How did they survive with no decaying material to process? God commanded Adam to eat the fruit of all the trees, save one (Gen. 1:29, 2:16-17) . How did his digestive system work if the fruit didn’t decay, producing both nutrition and waste? God commanded the plant life with the seed in its fruit (Gen. 1:11-13). If the fruit never died and decayed, how would the seed be released?

God made a garden for Man of the best of His creation. God commanded Adam to “dress the garden and keep it” (Gen. 2:!5) What does it mean to dress and keep a garden? If there was no tendency to disorder, what could Adam and Eve find to do? Weeding is not necessary. Pruning would be unthinkable, and what would they do with all the undying branches they cut off? There would be no sticks to gather, no wilting blooms to trim.

Did Adam and Eve age? We understand that God created them as mature people, but He did command them to have children (Gen. 1:28). Imagine if they had not chosen to eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. By being obedient to God, they would have had children. Would their children have grown and matured? Of course, because they also would be under the command to multiply so they would have to grow to marriageable age. Would they have lost their baby teeth? Does not growth and maturity require some decay and change?

If God created Adam and Eve as everlasting beings who only began to experience physical death when they disobeyed, then why did He place in the middle of the garden the Tree of Life (Gen. 2:9), only to take it away the first moment they had need of it (Gen. 3:22-24)? It does damage to the Scripture to argue that Man “began to die” the day he ate of the fruit. God did not say “in the day you eat of it, you shall surely begin to die”, but “in the day you eat of it, you shall surely die!” (Gen. 2:17). Therefore, God cannot be talking about physical death, or He would have been a liar, since they did not die physically that day. On the day Adam accepted the fruit from his wife and chose to rebel against the clear command of God, his relationship with God was irreparably broken, and the entire human race died spiritually (I Cor. 15:22).

It would seem that the great effect of the curse was not the beginning of death and decay, but rather the loss of balance in creation. Viri already existed, but man’s immune system kept them in balance. Decay took place, but as a part of the whole circle of life. Everything was pleasant and good and balanced, and it was Adam’s responsibility to keep it that way. When Man sinned, the perfect balance was upset.