Constitution of Reformed Bible Church
Rutland, Vermont

Preamble

We, the members of the Reformed Bible Church, being grateful to the Triune God for our salvation and all blessings of life, and acknowledging the leadership of the Holy Spirit in establishing and carrying on the witness of the Gospel through this Church, do hereby ordain and establish the following articles and rules to which we voluntarily submit ourselves.

ARTICLE I

The NAME of this Church shall be “REFORMED BIBLE CHURCH”.

ARTICLE II

Church Covenant
Having been led by God to repent of my sins and trust the forgiveness God alone offers through faith in the death of His Son and my Lord Jesus Christ, and... Desiring to unite in the worship, fellowship and testimony of Reformed Bible Church and to place myself under its spiritual care and direction, and... Having read the Doctrinal Position and being in full agreement with it, do hereby express my desire to enter into the following agreement with other Believers at Reformed Bible Church:
  1. To give myself regularly to the study of God’s word and to prayer;
  2. To worship God in spirit and in truth, in response to God’s revelation of Himself in His word, in the splendors of nature, in systematic ordering of my life, and above all in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, my Lord;
  3. To spread the gospel of Christ near and far, as God may direct, with the intention of bringing each one who is saved to a place of maturity in Christ;
  4. To share with others out of my abundance, whether in insights, time or material resources;
  5. To help others discover their spiritual gifts and use them for the building up on one another and for the glory of God;
  6. To demonstrate my love to the Lord and my loyalty to others by saying only what is good about another unless I follow Matthew 18 with a goal of restoration;
  7. To encourage others to not forsake the assembling of the saints and to come prepared to both receive and give a blessing;
  8. To encourage men to function with godly maturity, as those who are accountable for the welfare of the Body and of their individual families;
  9. To motivate women to a life of godly faithfulness by providing meaningful ministries and financial assistance for them when they are older and without husband or relatives who can support them; and...
  10. To project to all a loving and helpful spirit, contributing toward unity in Christ’s Body, so that the world may know the reality of Christ in my life and that I am a true disciple of Jesus Christ.

ARTICLE III

MEMBERSHIP

QUALIFICATIONS:
Any person, saved by grace through faith alone, promises obedience to Him, having been baptized subsequent to his or her faith, supporting the Statement of Faith of this church without reservation, voluntarily agreeing to the provisions of the Church Covenant, shall be accepted as a member.

PROCEDURE:
All candidates for membership will be interviewed by the Elders. Candidates must be able to give a clear testimony to the fact that they have been saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ Jesus. They must participate in the membership class and sign the agreement of fellowship. Those who meet with the approval of the Elders shall be welcomed into the fellowship of the church during a Sunday Morning worship service.

STATUS:
All persons in good and regular standing shall be considered as active members until they indicate, through verbal request or through inactivity, that they no longer are willing to accept the responsibilities of church membership. Any member who for a period of at least THREE MONTHS, fails to attend any stated meeting of the church and fails to support it financially shall be DISCIPLINED. EXCEPTIONS to the previous rule:
  1. Persons who because of work or sickness, or physical disability are unable to attend regularly, but indicate a desire to continue to support the church in prayer and giving.
  2. Persons who leave the community temporarily, indicating the intent to return, such as college students, those in the military, people vacation, etc., shall be considered active members.
  3. Reformed Bible Church does not recognize mere resignation. The church is not a club from which one may freely resign. This would be the equivalent to renouncing God and repudiating the Lord Jesus Christ. The board of Elders is obligated to do all within its power to keep every member on the roll as a worshipping Christian.
CHURCH DISCIPLINE:
Ecclesiastical discipline, one of the marks of a true church, involves the responsible oversight of the membership of a particular church to the end that no member by his acts or words may be able with impunity to bring shame upon the Lord Jesus Christ or to wander from His way without loving admonitions and all effort to keep him active in the worship and fellowship. The proper exercise of discipline seeks to maintain the glory of God, the purity of His Church, and the keeping and reclaiming of disobedient sinners. Proper DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES are set forth in the Scripture and must be followed. They are:
  1. Instruction in the Word
  2. Individual’s responsibility to admonish one another (Matthew 18:15, Galatians 6:1)
  3. If the admonition is rejected, then the calling of one or more witnesses (Matthew 18:16)
  4. If rejection persists then the Church must admonish (Matthew 18:17)
  5. 5. If rejection still persists than the Elders will remove them from the local body (I Corinthians 5:13)
CORPORATE:
Any member who is bringing a public reproach on the name of Christ by some flagrant sin of action, word or attitude shall be confronted by the Ruling Elders for the purpose of publicly correcting the situation. The Elders are obligated to act with the hope of restoration.

ARTICLE IV

AUTHORITY

HEAD:
It shall be understood that the Head of this church is Jesus Christ.

REPRESENTATIVES:
The church recognizes the proper biblical norm for church leadership to be invested in a plurality of God-ordained Elders, as opposed to a one-man dictatorship or the opinion of the majority. The Ruling Elders are the ordinary and perpetual officers of the church and the immediate representatives of Christ to the congregation. They shall be the final human authority to the church in spiritual matters, exercising oversight of the flock as under shepherds of Christ and being accountable to Him for its welfare. They shall establish policy, determine programs and give general direction to the ministries of the church. They may delegate to Deacons or Committees the power to transact any of its business. The membership shall have the privilege and responsibility of providing input to the Elders in regard to matters of special importance.

OFFICERS

ELDERS:
This office has been understood to be designated in the Scriptures by the title of “Governments” and of those who “rule well” but do not necessarily labor in the Word and doctrine as a vocation.

QUALIFICATIONS:
This office is one of dignity and usefulness. They that fill it should possess a competency of human learning and be blameless in life, sound in doctrine and apt to teach. They should exhibit a sobriety and holiness of life becoming the Gospel. Elders are to be the husband of one wife, in this case a biblically divorced man, who biblically remarries, may not serve as an Elder since he is not “the husband of one wife”. They are to rule their own houses well and should have a good report of them that are outside the Church. Elders should cultivate zealously their aptness to teach the Bible. I Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9.

DUTIES:
An Elder is to watch over the spiritual affairs of the church, to guide, guard and feed the flock of God according to the principles of the Word of God to prevent corruption of doctrine or morals from entering. They are to preside over the ordinances of the church and to lead its people in the Worship of God. An Elder is to visit people, instruct the unlearned, comfort the mourner, nourish and guard the children of the church, evangelize the unconverted and make disciples. They are to pray with and for the people, being careful and diligent in seeking the fruit of the preached Word among the flock. An Elder is to rule in moral and spiritual matters with wisdom, meekness, loving kindness and firmness. I Thessalonians 2:1-12, Hebrews 13:17, I Peter 5:1-4.

DEACONS:
In addition to the Elders, Deacons are ordinary and perpetual officers of the Church.

QUALIFICATIONS:
Deacons must be above reproach, the husband of one wife. In this case a biblically divorced man, who biblically remarries, may not serve as an Deacon since he is not “the husband of one wife”. They should be noted for sobriety and discretion, well behaved, hospitable, not prone to violence or contentious, but gentle, and free from the love of money. They should be good leaders in their own home, with dependent children showing them respect and obedience. Deacons must not be new Christians but men of proven spiritual maturity, sound in doctrine and an active participant in the affairs of the church. I Timothy 3:8-13.

DUTIES:
Deacons are spiritual men who perform practical service in meeting temporal needs and providing relief and complementary support to the ministry of a local church. They are to visit the sick and care for those in the flock who have temporal needs. Deacons are to provide for the physical needs of the church and maintain its properties and equipment. Acts 6:1-4.

TREASURER

QUALIFICATIONS:
The treasurer of the church must be above reproach and have a sufficient knowledge in bookkeeping and skill in preparing financial statements to administer the duties of this office.

DUTIES:
The treasurer shall receive, count, classify, deposit and disburse all funds of the church. They shall keep a record of such transactions, and regularly present a financial statement to the Elder Board. A report shall also be presented at the annual congregational meeting. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the payment of such funds each week to the account of the church in a bank designated by the Elders. They shall draw countersigned checks against these funds. There shall be kept under their direction a ledger showing the cash amount of all funds and a balance taken at the close of the month. They shall also have custody of all legal papers pertaining to the property and finances of the church such as deeds, abstracts, insurance policies, bonds, notes, etc. These items shall be kept in a depository designated by the Elders and be submitted for audit periodically as directed by the board.

BOARDS

ELDER BOARD DUTIES:
It is charged with the maintaining of the spiritual government of the church for which purpose it has power to inquire into knowledge, principles and Christian conduct of the church members under its care; to censure those found delinquent; to receive members into the communion of the church; to remove them for just cause; to grant letters of dismissal to other churches; to approve and adopt the budget; to approve actions of special importance affecting church property; to call congregational meetings when necessary; to establish and control Sunday schools and Bible classes; to establish and control special groups in the Church; to promote World missions; to promote obedience to the Great Commission in its totality at home and abroad; to order collections for pious uses; to exercise authority over the time and place of the preaching of the Word and the administration of the ordinances; over all other religious services; over the music in the services; and over the uses to which the church building and properties may be put to; and to determine the best measures for promoting the spiritual interests of the church and congregation.

ARTICLE V

FINANCES:
This church shall be financed according to the biblical method of freed-will offerings of God’s people. There is to be no selling of goods or services to provide for normal financial needs of the church.

ARTICLE VI

DISSOLUTION:
In the event of the dissolution of this organization, the property and other physical assets belonging to Reformed Bible Church will be turned over to a similar group with like purpose and objectives selected by the Board of Elders.