Declaration of Beliefs (Introduction)
Introduction and Invitation to Membership:
We welcome and invite each of you to be a part of the Cherry Glade family. We
believe in Jesus alone as the Way, the Truth and the Life. We believe that all
are sinners and can be saved only through the Person of Jesus Christ as we seek
forgiveness and reconciliation. We seek to take seriously our personal and
corporate commitment to following the teachings of Jesus in what we believe and
in how we live.
As we experience God's love within ourselves, we want to share that love with
others. We want each member to have a personal firsthand relationship with Jesus
and to be empowered by the Holy Spirit for life and service. We want to help
each other to walk daily in His presence. We want each individual to be an
active participant in the ministry of the congregation.
As evangelical Anabaptist Mennonites, we do not claim to be perfect. But as a
body of believers, we are made perfect alone through Jesus Christ. Thus we are
not only the Cherry Glade family, but members of the family of God – at home
and around the world.
It is the deep desire of the Cherry Glade Congregation to be all that God wants
us to be in our time and place, both individually and collectively. We recognize
that the Lord is building His Church throughout the whole world, among all
peoples and in all places as He sees fit. We are but a small part of the larger
family of God. We further recognize that God has called us at Cherry Glade to be
faithful in our own time and place, remembering our past as we look to the
present and future.
To better help us to understand our purpose, who we are, and how we see
ourselves fitting into God's plan for us, we have developed the following
statements: Declaration of Beliefs, Mission and Goals, Congregational Covenant,
and Guidelines for Congregational Life.
To those who are searching for God, or for those who have found God and are
seeking a congregation for fellowship in the Lord, we sincerely invite you to
consider Cherry Glade. Please read our statements on Faith and Life and decide
if they represent that which you are seeking. If you agree with these
statements, we extend to you a warm welcome being a member with us at Cherry
Glade. If you cannot agree or support these statements, we invite you to worship
with us as you seek the Lord's will and place for your life. Please feel free to
discuss your interests and concerns with the pastors or other members of the
congregation.
Confession of Faith
for Membership at Cherry Glade
1. Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and do you affirm your
faith and loyalty to Him alone as Sovereign Lord?
2. Have you turned away from your past sin and are you willing to renounce
Satan, the world and all the works of darkness and your own carnal will and
sinful desires?
3. Do you promise, by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, to
submit yourself to Christ and His Word, and to the Church of God and to
faithfully abide in the same until death?
4. Will you willingly share in worship, fellowship, nurture, admonition, and
giving in this congregation, using your gifts in a spirit of love and service?
Mission Statement
The mission of the congregation shall be to preach and teach the Gospel to all
who will hear; bring into the fellowship of believers those who come to a saving
faith in Christ; establish and strengthen the Christian life of each believer;
promote the welfare and unity of the church by providing opportunities of
worship, instruction and fellowship; carry out the work of the church through
the planning of Christian service and activity; safeguard the purity of the
church through the exercise of scriptural discipline.
Goals
1. That every individual receive the forgiveness of sin and comes to a saving
faith in Christ; and is baptized by water as a symbol of that commitment.
2. That every individual experience a genuine daily walk with the Lord
continuously growing in knowledge, obedience, holiness and service.
3. That every individual experience full participation with the congregation in
worship, fellowship, nurture, admonition, serving and giving in the spirit of
accountability and unconditional love.
4. That every individual is encouraged in discovering and developing spiritual
gifts and is empowered through the Holy Spirit to using them to build up the
body of Christ toward unity of faith and knowledge of Christ.
5. That every individual/family unit become strong Christ-centered role models
to each other and where children are valued, nurtured, and loved and where the
family spends time together helping each other to grow in the Lord.
6. That every individual is encouraged, supported, and given opportunity to be
involved in the church's outreach efforts as we engage in the Great Commission.
7. That our congregation is a part of the visible body of Christ on earth,
faithfully following the teachings of the scriptures, being separate from the
world and ready to suffer and serve to promote God's kingdom on earth.
Declaration of Beliefs
1. We believe the Bible to be the inspired, infallible, authoritative, written
Word of God.
2. We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons:
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
3. We believe that Jesus Christ was God in human flesh, at once fully divine and
fully human. We believe in His virgin birth, His sinless life, His miracles, His
vicarious and atoning death on the cross, His bodily resurrection, His
ascension to the right hand of the Father, His present ministry of intercession,
and His personal return in power and glory.
4. We believe that human beings were created in the image of God but rebelled
against God and are therefore fallen, lost estranged from their Creator and in
need of salvation.
5. We believe that only those who in repentance and faith receive Jesus Christ
as Savior and Lord are converted, born again of the Holy Spirit, and thus become
children of God.
6. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit who convicts of sin and
enables the Christian to pursue a life characterized by personal holiness and
faithful discipleship in obedience to Jesus Christ.
7. We believe that the Church, the "body of Christ," is composed of
all those of every nation who through saving faith have entered into a vital
relationship with Jesus Christ. We further believe that the Church is at the
very center of God's cosmic purpose, and that He has committed to the Church and
every member of it the task of making Christ known throughout the world.
8. We believe that local congregations of baptized believers exist to equip the
body of Christ – through such means as worship, teaching, fellowship and
prayer – to spread the Gospel of Christ; to extend the influence of the
Kingdom of God in the world; and to turn themselves outward to their local
communities in evangelistic witness and compassionate service.
9. We believe that the reality of sin in the human heart results in suffering,
injustice, strife, and moral decay in society and fosters negligence toward
nature and the environment.
10. We believe that, in Jesus Christ, the way of love and reconciliation is
revealed as God's way for His people and that the people of God are called to
value the sanctity of human life, alleviate suffering, oppose injustice, refrain
from force and violence, work for peace in all relationships, and to live as
responsible stewards of all of God's creation.
11. We believe in the resurrection of all people: those who are saved unto the
resurrection of everlasting blessedness with the Lord, and those who are lost to
eternal separation from God.
12. We believe that, in the fullness of time, God will bring all things in
heaven and on earth together under One Head, the Lord Jesus Christ.