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From the Pastor
As we enter Lent, we should think about our faith and the practice of it. This is how our constitution expresses it:
Faith and Practice:
McGill Baptist Church is missionary in spirit, adhering to basic Baptist beliefs and practices: “soul competency”, “priesthood of all believers”, “separation of church and state”, and “voluntary association without outside control”.
The Bible is an inspired record of God’s revelation of His plan and purpose for His creation – giving a sufficient and sure foundation for our Christian faith and for living the abundant life in Christ.
That God speaks through Scripture to each generation and that each individual has the right and responsibility to interpret the Scripture according to his or her own conscience, as led by the Holy Spirit. We believe that the pastor is the servant leader, but not the authoritarian ruler of the Church. We believe that God calls both men and women into ministry; we ordain both women and men to serve as pastors, ministers, and deacons.
We acknowledge Christ as Head of the Church and seek to honor Him through worship, witness, discipleship, and service. We observe the ordinances of Believer’s Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. And we seek to follow the Lord’s commandments in our daily lives.
Having been led to a personal faith in Jesus Christ; having been baptized as a sign of our obedience and commitment; and having been received into the fellowship of this Church Family, we are united in our desire:
To honor God with our lives – seeking first His Kingdom – guided by the Christian percepts of love, justice, and service to others;
To seek diligently to learn more about God as revealed in the created universe and in the Scriptures and other inspired writings; to study the Bible seriously and prayerfully to gain understanding for living the Christian life;
To grow in our personal discipleship and in the stewardship of our abilities, our opportunities, and our heritage;
To support the mission and ministry of our Church with our prayers, our attendance, and our resources;
To work together in a spirit of Christian love, understanding, and forgiveness that we might bring honor to the name of Christ and glory to God;
To live as Christians in our homes, loving and respecting each other and teaching our children that they are also God’s children and that His love includes all the children of the world;
To live as Christians in the world, being just in our dealings, faithful in our responsibilities, and true to the teachings of the Christian faith, as we seek to live it and share it with humility and gratitude;
To regard as the household of faith all who worship Christ as Lord and, while honoring our Baptist heritage, always seeking a unity of spirit and purpose with all Christians and with those of other faiths.
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