What we believe
On the first or second Sunday of the year, the church renews its Covenant with the Lord and with each other. The Covenant - which goes back to 1779 - is an affirmation of what we believe.
The Words of the Covenant
We, who desire to walk together in the fear of the Lord,
do, through the assistance of His Holy Spirit,
desire wholeheartedly
to profess our deep and serious repentance for all our sins,
humbly to implore the free and full forgiveness of them all
through the blood of His dear Son, our only Saviour, Jesus Christ,
and sincerely to give up ourselves to the Lord and to each other
by the Will of God,
that He may be our God and we His people
through the everlasting Covenant of His Free Grace.
In this we hope to be accepted through His Son, Jesus Christ,
whom we take to be our High Priest to justify us,
our Prophet to teach us,
and our King to rule over us,
that we may serve Him in our day and generation.
Being fully satisfied that a gathered company of believers,
who by Divine Grace give up themselves to the Lord and to each other,
to walk together as Saints
in Love,
in Peace,
and in Constant Worship of Christ
is a Gospel Church of Divine Institution,
we do therefore in the Name and by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ,
solemnly join ourselves together in a holy union and fellowship,
and, professing his strength,
humbly submit to the Discipline of the Gospel
together with all Holy Duties
required of a people in such a Spiritual Relation.
We resolve:-
1. To walk in holiness, godliness and mutual love,
so that our fellowship will be honouring to God,
lovely to others of the Lord’s people,
comforting to ourselves,
and convincing to the World.
2. To provoke one another to love and good works,
to pray for one another,
for the glory and increase of this Church
and for the presence of God within it.
3. To bear one another’s burdens,
to bear with one another’s failings with much tenderness,
and to keep the Unity of the Spirit in the bonds of Peace.
4. To meet together on the Lord’s day
and at all other times, seasons and places
as the Lord shall give us opportunity and ability,
only to serve and glorify Him
and to edify and build up one another in our most Holy Faith.
5. To endeavour always to promote and encourage
a holy, regular and gifted ministry
to go in and out before us as the Shepherd before the flock,
together with such other offices
as are by Christ appointed in His church.
To these and all other Gospel Duties we humbly submit,
purposing to perform them not in our own strength,
but in the power and strength of our ever Blessed God,
through His Son, Christ Jesus
whose we are and whom we desire for ever to serve.
This revised form of the Covenant was authorised by the Church on December 15th, 1949, to take the place of revised form dated January 27th, 1938, and is to be interpreted and understood in the terms of the full Covenant, drawn up by the Church, then meeting in Hosier's Lane in 1779. An amendment to paragraph 3 was authorised by the Church on October 23rd, 1979.
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- Abbey Square
- Reading
- Berkshire
- RG1 3BE
0118 957 2197
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