Constitution

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Preamble

The purpose of this constitution is to serve as a formal statement of the identity, purposes, objectives and basic doctrinal beliefs of this body. Believing the Bible to be the inerrant and complete written Word of God, we declare the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments to be the basis of our constitution and the final authority for our faith and practice. This document, and any other issued by this church, is only authoritative in so far as it agrees with the precepts [direct commands] and principles [properly derived] from the Bible. We are a Bible-centered church.

Article I. Name

The corporate name of this church shall be Fellowship Southern Baptist Church of Olathe, Inc. Hereafter in the document the church is referred to as Fellowship.

Article II. Denominational Affiliation and Polity

Fellowship is voluntarily and actively affiliated with the Kansas City Kansas Baptist Association, the Kansas-Nebraska Convention of  Southern Baptists and the national Southern Baptist Convention for the purposes of following and fulfilling the Great Commission of Jesus Christ (Matt. 28:18-20).  This church body reserves the right to voluntarily associate with any organization, temporarily or permanently, for the advancement of God’s Kingdom.  Under Christ this congregation is governed by its members.

Article III. Purposes and Objectives

The purposes of a Bible-centered  church are summarized in the Great Commandment and the Great Commission of the Lord Jesus Christ.  We exist to glorify God by loving him passionately and loving one another sacrificially (Mk. 12:28-31).  We exist to glorify God by making disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:18-20).

By the grace of God and through the power of the Holy Spirit, we desire to be a church that takes the bible seriously, both in our faith (theology) and practice (daily lives).  We desire to live out the “feeding” and “tending” of God’s flock in Christian community.    We desire to give God pleasure through praise and adoration in our worship.  We desire to be a church devoted to prayer,  in our private and in our corporate lives.  We desire to raise up a godly generation to change the world by passionately following Jesus.  We desire to cultivate a missions lifestyle in Olathe, the United States and around the world.

Article IV. Doctrine

The members and leaders of Fellowship are in general agreement with The Baptist Faith and Message, adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention on June 14, 2000, as a statement of our basic doctrinal beliefs.  The Baptist Faith and Message is broad enough to be inclusive and narrow enough to be orthodox Christian doctrine.  A copy of The Baptist Faith and Message may be read or downloaded at www.sbc.net/bfm/bfm2000.asp. In specific, a somewhat consolidated statement of our basic beliefs follows:

I. The Word of God
We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and that it has supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct.

II Timothy 3:16; II Peter 1:20,21; Mark 13:31; John 8:31,32; John 20:31; Acts 20:32

II. The Trinity
We believe that there is one living and true God, eternally existing in three persons; that these are equal in every divine perfection, and that they execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence and redemption.  They are without division in nature, essence or being.

Genesis 1:1,26; John 1:1,3; Matthew 28:19; John 4:24; Romans 1:19,20; Ephesians 4:5,6

III. God the Father
We believe in God the Father, an infinite, personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power and love. We believe that He infallibly foreknows all that shall come to pass, working all things according to His own will.  He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, He hears and answers prayer, and He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ.

Luke 10:21,22; Matthew 23:9; John 3:16; 6:27; Romans 1:7; I Timothy 1:1,2; 2:5,6; I Peter 1:3; Revelation 1:6; Ephesians 1:11

IV.Jesus Christ
We believe in Jesus Christ, the eternal Son, God’s only begotten, not made, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father, fully God and fully man.  He was conceived by the Holy Spirit. We believe in His virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, and teachings. We believe in His substitutionary atoning death, bodily resurrection, ascension into heaven, perpetual intercession for His people, and personal visible return to earth.

Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38; John 1:1; 20:28; Romans 9:5; 8:46; II Corinthians 5:21; I Peter 2:21-23; John 20:30, 31; Matthew 20:28; Ephesians 1:4; Acts 1:11; Romans 5:6-8; 6:9,10; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 9:28; I Timothy 3:16

V. The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit who is fully divine proceeded  from the Father and Son.  He convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and regenerates, sanctifies, and empowers all who belong to Jesus Christ. We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Christ, and that He is the abiding helper, teacher and guide.

John 14:16,17,26; 15:26,27; John 16:9-14; Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; Galatians 5:22-26; John 17:2,6,9,11,12,20,24

VI. Regeneration
We believe that man was created by God in His own image; that he sinned and thereby incurred physical, spiritual and eternal death. As a consequence, all human beings are conceived in sin, born with a sinful nature and become sinners by choice and therefore are under condemnation. We believe that those who are regenerated by the Holy Spirit repent and forsake sin, trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and become new creatures delivered from condemnation and receive eternal life.

Genesis. 1:26; 5:2; Genesis 3; Genesis 2:17; 3:19; Eccl. 2:11; John 3:14; 5:24; John 5:30; 7:13; 8:12; 10:26; Romans 9:22; II Thessalonians 1:9; Rev. 19:3,20; 20:10;14,15; 21:18; Psalm 51:7; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:19; 5:19; Proverbs 28:13; I John 1:9; John 3:16; John 1:13; II Corinthians 5:17; Romans 8:1; John 3:1-8; Titus 3:5; 1Peter 1:3,23; James 1:18

VII. The Church
We believe in the universal church, a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all regenerated persons are members. We believe in the local church, consisting of a company of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible profession of faith. We believe that the responsibilities of the members of each local church include the ministries of the Word, worship, prayer, spiritual maturity and evangelism giving the gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world.

Ephesians 2:19-22; Acts 1:8; Ephesians 5:19-21; Acts 2:42-47; Hebrews 10:23-25; Matthew 28:18-20

VIII. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church, baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion of the believer in water into the name of the triune God. We believe that the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ for all believers to remember and meditate on His death. We believe that the Church should practice baptism and the Lord’s supper until the return of Christ.

Matthew 26:26-28,28;18-20; Mark 14:22-26; Luke 22:14-20; Acts 2:38; 10:48; 19:5; Romans 6:3-5; I Corinthians 11:23-26

IX. The Last Things
We believe in the glorious, personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ and the fulfillment of His kingdom. We believe in the resurrection of all mankind, the righteous and the unrighteous, to face final judgment.  The righteous will enter eternal joy in the new heavens and new earth; the wicked will be condemned to eternal punishment in hell.

Matthew 16:27; 25:31-46; Mark 14:62; John 14:3; Acts 1:11; Phil. 3:20; I Thessalonians 4:15; II Timothy 4:1; Titus 2:13; I Corinthians 4:5; I Corinthians 15; II Thessalonians 1:7-10; II Peter 3:10-13; Revelation 20:4-6,11-15; 21:1-8

Article V. Church Covenant

As a statement of faith tells what a church generally believes, a covenant describes how they agree to relate to one another in their personal and corporate lives.

The Heart Attitudes of Fellowship
We confess that we have been born again by the Spirit of God and have received Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour. We have been baptized as believers in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

We ask followers of Jesus Christ who join Fellowship to maintain godly attitudes in their hearts as we follow Christ together.  To be a member of Fellowship includes a joyful commitment to live out your faith with these Christ-like attitudes.

1) A Selfless Heart: Seek God’s best for Others.

Philippians 2:3–4 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;  do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Romans 12:10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;

2) A Loving Heart: Live an honest life before others; keeping relationship clear in the church.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is  not arrogant,  does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails . . . .

Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the  altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.  (cf. Col. 3:8-17).

3) A Servant’s Heart: Be invested in the life of the church.

Hebrews 10:24-25  and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

1 Corinthians 12:7  But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

4) An Obedient Heart: Follow spiritual leaders as they follow Christ.

Hebrews 13:17  Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be  unprofitable for you.

Matthew 20:26 – 28  “It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant,  and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave;  just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

5) A Humble Heart: Be open to receive and give scriptural correction.

Proverbs 10:17  He is on the path of life who heeds instruction, But he who ignores reproof goes astray.  (cf. Heb. 3:13)

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;  (cf. 2Tim. 4:2; Col. 1:28)

6) A Generous Heart: Cheerfully give our tithes and offerings to support the ministries of Fellowship.

Proverbs 3:9-10  Honor the LORD from your wealth And from the first of all your produce; So your barns will be filled with plenty And your vats will overflow with new wine.

2 Corinthians 9:6-8  Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.  Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.  And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;

7) A Disciple’s Heart: Be a fully devoted follower of Jesus.

Deuteronomy 6:4-7  “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!  “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. “These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.

Matthew 28:18-20  And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.  “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”