Covenants, Covenants, Everywhere Covenants

Make Churches Congregational

One of the most foundational elements to the “Congregational Way” is the idea of covenant. When I talk of covenants I am not speaking about those annoying little rules that neighborhood associations have, that will not allow me to put a pink flamingo in my yard. Rather, I am speaking of covenants from the framework that says a Congregational church is a, “covenanted body of gathered believers.” What does that mean, and why is it important? To make this meaningful for our day, we first need to understand covenant from a Biblical point of view.

In the Bible, whenever God interacts with humanity he does so through a covenant, a sacred promise. God made a sacred promise to Noah and the animals of the earth that he would never again destroy the earth with a flood. The sign for that covenant was/is the rainbow. (Genesis ch. 9) God made a sacred promise to Abraham that would make his descendants as numerous as the stars and that God would bless the nations of the earth through Abraham’s progeny. The sign for the covenant with Abraham was/is circumcision of the male children. (Genesis ch. 15 & 17) In Exodus chapter 19 we read that again God makes a sacred promise with the nation of Israel at Mt. Sinai, that if they keep it he will make them into a royal, priestly nation. The sign for this covenant is the tablets themselves. Finally, God initiates a new covenant with all of humanity in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. (Jeremiah 31:31-34 & Luke 22:20) The sign for this covenant is the bread and the wine of Communion. Today we live out God’s sacred promises. When a man and a woman seek to bind themselves in marriage, it is a covenant that they are establishing between themselves and God. The sign for this type of promise is often a ring. Covenants, covenants, everywhere covenants.

While all this may be interesting, what does it have to do with you and me as members and pastors of Congregational churches? Everything. Our forebears saw that God did indeed interact with humanity through covenants. Since that was the case, it was only logical that the community charged with revealing God to the world should also interact with God and each other in like manner.

“Saints by calling, must have a visible-political-union amongst themselves or they are not yet a church . . . saints, or believers, are not a church, unless they are orderly knit together. Particular churches cannot be distinguished from one another except by their forms, and these forms are the various covenants. A visible covenant is when the saints give themselves unto the Lord, to observe the ordinances of Christ together in the same society; this is usually called the church covenant. We see no other way how members can have church power over one another mutually.” (See: Cambridge Platform ch. 4)

It seems clear that as far as our forebears were concerned, a church is not a church until it has a covenant. This is crucial because it is the covenant that separates a Congregational church from a generic community church that practices congregational polity. No covenant, no church. Covenant is the mechanism that allows us to do, and be, church.

By following God’s example and using covenant as the benchmark by which we establish ourselves as a church, we have something that will encourage dynamism and allow for change and movement, while at the same time creating boundaries and stability. Let me use Mayflower Congregational Church’s covenant as an example. Like many churches, our covenant is the Salem Church covenant of 1629,

“We covenant with the Lord and one with another and do bind ourselves in the presence of God to walk together in all his way according as he is pleased to reveal himself unto us in his blessed word of truth.”

Look at the language. We (this body of gathered believers) covenant with the Lord and one with another (enter into a sacred promise with God and each other) and do bind ourselves in the presence of God (and with God as our witness we hold ourselves accountable to the obligations of the covenant) to walk together in all his ways (the biggest of which is that as a body we will strive to be Christ-like) according as he is pleased to reveal himself unto us in his blessed word of truth. (as God revealed, and continues to reveal, to us in the holy Scriptures) Note the dynamism within the boundaries.

Boundary 1:

Our first boundary is that we have entered into this agreement as a group. While church is comprised of individuals, Christianity is a communal experience. Because we have entered into covenant together, we have a right to hold each other accountable to the obligation of the covenant. This boundary addresses the radical individualism that is so prevalent in our society, while at the same time allowing, even encouraging, each member to pursue a distinct and dynamic relationship with God.

Boundary 2:

Our second boundary allows for a dynamic relationship with God in the person of Jesus. This also creates a boundary which combats the “think and let think, all faiths are saying the same thing” mindset that is beginning to plague our Congregational and other Protestant churches. As a church, we enter the promise with God through Jesus, not Buddha, not Muhammad, and not Vishnu. Do not misunderstand me, we at Mayflower Church desire to treat people of other faiths with the utmost respect. At the same time, we are Christians and Christianity is not the same as other faiths. If someone from another faith desires to join us in worship, he/she is more than welcome, but here, we acknowledge God in Christ as the true Deity, and we have made a binding promise with Him.

Boundary 3:

Our third boundary is the actual obligation of the covenant; to be like Jesus. That means any behavior that exemplifies Christ is acceptable and any behavior that does not, is not. This sets the boundary for what our intent ought to be without becoming so legalistic that we begin to police others’ behavior.

Boundary 4:

The last boundary created by the covenant says that we are to look for our instruction in Scripture because it is in Scripture that God has shown us how to live. However, within the boundaries of Scripture there is room to move. One need not be dogmatic because, as we travel the path of faithfulness, Scripture will speak to us anew.

So, for Mayflower Congregational Church we:

• Live as a community
• Enter into a sacred promise with God as revealed in the person of Jesus
• Strive to be Christ-like
• And ever search the Scriptures to deepen our faith

These are our boundaries that allow for dynamism and anything that satisfies all four is acceptable, while anything that does not, is not. The covenant is minimalist so there is room to breathe and grow.

Covenant is important because it makes a church Congregational. Covenant is important because it sets up boundaries that create structure and stability, but allow for great dynamism within those boundaries. There is one more aspect of Covenant that we have not discussed, it is the most crucial of all, and therefore I wish to conclude my thoughts with it.

Our covenant is with each other, but it is also with God. That means even when we do not fulfill our end of the covenant agreement of our church, God will still honor His. God will still provide everything at his eternal disposal to ensure the vitality of the church; all God’s love, all God’s power, everything God is, and nothing held back. This is what God has for our churches in covenant; all we have to do is allow God to be God. As members and pastors of Congregational churches let us not abandon our sacred promise with God and each other, but rather dig deep and offer all we have.

The Rev. Bruce Pratt, pastor of Mayflower Congregational Church, Flower Mound, Texas, is a former Congregational Foundation for Theological Studies Student, who attended Ilif Theological Seminary.