Family Covenant

We are a fellowship of Christians committed to God and to one another, seeking to reach into the communities in which we live with the love of Jesus.

We affirm

That our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, is the sole and absolute authority in all matters pertaining to faith and practice, as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, and that each Church has liberty, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to interpret and administer His laws.
That the usual form of Christian Baptism and the one generally practised in this fellowship is the immersion in water into the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, of those who have professed repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ who "died for our sins according to the Scriptures; was buried; and rose again on the third day."
That it is the duty of every disciple to bear personal witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to take part in the evangelisation of the world.

We commit ourselves

To share in worship together on the Lord's Day.
To pray fervently, persistently and faithfully, both individually and together.
To study God's word both privately and in small groups and to seek to live according to it.
To grow Christlike through obedience to His Word and listening to His Spirit.
To seek the life, fullness, work and gifts of the Holy Spirit.
To care for one another in practical ways as needs arise.
To be willing to both give and receive encouragement and counsel.
To bear with each other's weaknesses and to affirm each other's strengths.
To deal with difficulties which may arise between us by speaking the truth in love and by forgiving one another.
To generously support the church as God enables us; through finance, time and abilities.
To share fellowship with Christians in other churches locally and nationally, both within and outside our Baptist family.
To care for the world in both social concern and in sharing the gospel of Jesus.

We are part of the wider Baptist Family, and in common with other Baptist churches we hold the following values:

The Lordship of Christ: Stocksfield Baptist Church is Jesus' church, part of his world-wide body in every time and place. We seek to give Jesus our allegiance and priority in everything.
The authority of the Bible: The Bible is described as the 'Word of God' because Baptists believe that its writers were inspired by God's Spirit. As such, it has authority to guide both what we believe and how we live our lives.
Believers' baptism: We believe that baptism is a sign of both God's grace in salvation, in bringing a person to faith in Christ and also a person's response to God's initiative. We baptise by full immersion, representing the person's dying to their old way of life and being reborn to a new life in Jesus Christ.
The Priesthood of all believers: We believe that everyone who belongs to our church has a role to play and can use their God-given skills and talents for the good of the church and the community. These gifts include teaching, evangelism, social action, pastoral care, prayer, healing, taking part in worship, administration or hospitality. We believe that all the believers together have the responsibility to discern the mind of Christ for our church, not simply those appointed to leadership.
The gathered church of believers: We aim to be a church of Christian believers, who choose to gather together in community for worship, witness and service. But we also welcome within our wider sphere those who are at different stages on their Christian journey, including those who are not Christians and those who are seeking God.
The autonomy of the local church & the Church Meeting: When a person is baptised in a Baptist church, they normally become a church member. Church members are called to prayerfully discern God's will for their shared life. Final authority does not rest with the ministers, deacons or any other local, national or international body, but with the members meeting together under God's guidance. Church meetings will make appointments, ministers, and agree financial policy and mission strategy.
Associating together: Nevertheless, we recognise the importance of belonging to the wider church of Christ and so we seek to form close relationships with other Christians, especially within our Baptist family. We recognise the value of wisdom and guidance from beyond our own congregation.
The missionary task: We believe that mission is the primary task of the church and we give great emphasis to this, in our planning, programmes and finance. We believe that each Christian has a responsibility to share their faith with others. We recognise that mission also includes promoting justice, social welfare, healing, education and peace in the world.
Freedom of conscience: Baptists were heavily persecuted during the first century of their existence in England, and have always valued freedom of conscience and expression not just for Christians but for people of all beliefs. We accept differences of outlook and diversity of practice and aim to value all who are part of our church, whether members of visitors.