Our Constitution
PREAMBLE
We declare and establish this Constitution to preserve and secure the principles of our faith and to govern this Church in an orderly manner, consistent with New Testament doctrines and practices, and to preserve the liberties of individual church members and the freedom of action of this Church in her relation to the Nigerian Baptist Convention, other churches and organizations.
ARTICLE I. NAME
This Church shall be known as “Good News Baptist Church”, which situates at 47/49 Olufemi Road, Surulere, Lagos, Nigeria, hereinafter referred to as “the Church” except the context suggests otherwise. The title of the corporate body shall be “The Incorporated Trustees of Good News Baptist Church, Surulere, Lagos.”
ARTICLE II. PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES
As persons committed to knowing and serving God as revealed through Jesus Christ, we band ourselves together as a body of baptized believers in Jesus Christ to sustain a vital personal relationship to Him, to become increasingly aware of the Church’s relationship to Him, and to be used of God to make Him known in all the ways He can be known. Our objectives which seek to reflect God’s eternal purpose in the Church’s contemporary situation are as follows:
To be a covenant fellowship of Christians empowered by the Holy Spirit to share Christ with as many people as possible in our Church, community, nation, and throughout the world.
To be a worshipping fellowship, experiencing the presence of God, recognizing His holiness and majesty, and responding in joyful and loving obedience to His leadership in glorious hope.
To be a nurturing fellowship of maturing Christians who experience a growing knowledge of God and man.
To be a church that ministers in Jesus’ name to persons in the local community and throughout the world.
- To be a church whose members, as individuals and as a body, seek to be Christ like in their daily living by emphasizing total commitment of life, personality, and possessions to the Lordship of Christ.
To be a Baptist Church that cooperates, without prejudice to the over-riding demands of absolute loyalty to the Lord Jesus Christ, with other Baptist Churches, Associations, Conferences, the Nigerian Baptist Convention, other Christian Churches, and other organizations to help achieve the above objectives.
ARTICLE III. ARTICLES OF FAITH (STATEMENTS OF BASIC CHRISTIAN BELIEF AND COMMITMENT)
The Church accepts the Holy Bible as her authority in matters of faith and practice. The Church’s understanding of Christian truth as contained therein is in essential accord with the belief of Baptist churches as indicated in the “Articles of Faith”.
THE BIBLE
The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired by God. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth without mixture of error for its matter. It is the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds and opinions shall be tried. (2 Pet. 1:19-21; 2 Tim. 3:15-17, John 10:35b)GOD
There is one, and only one living and true God, an infinite, intelligent Spirit who is revealed in the Old and New Testaments as the Maker and Supreme Ruler of heaven and earth, holy, and worthy of honour and love. He is Father of those who become children of God through faith in Jesus Christ. (Gen. 1:1; Eph. 4:6; 1 Tim. 1:17; Jer. 10:10; Isaiah 64:8).THE HOLY TRINITY
In the Godhead are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. There three are one and are equal in every divine perfection and execute distinct offices in the great work of redemption. (John 17:21; Gen. 1:26a; John 14:16).
PROVIDENCE
God from eternity decrees or permits all things that come to pass, and perpetually upholds, directs and governs creatures and all events; yet so as not in any wise to be the author or approval of sin nor to destroy the free will and responsibility of intelligent creatures. (Prov. 3:19; 19:21; Ps. 33:11; 104:24; Acts 2:36; c.f. 3:13-15; 4:10f; 24:28; Rom. 8:28).
Election
is God’s eternal choice of persons unto everlasting life – not because of foreseen merit in them, but of His mere mercy in Christ – in consequence of which they are called, justified and glorified. (Romans 8:39; Phil. 1:6).
MAN/FALL OF MAN
Man was created in God’s own image in holiness. However, by voluntary transgression he fell from the holy and happy state. Consequently, all mankind become sinners, not only by nature but also by choice. (Gen. 1:26, 27; Psalm 51:5; Rom. 3:23; 5:12).
SALVATION
The salvation of sinners is wholly by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who by appointment of the Father freely took upon Himself our nature. Yet he was without sin. He honoured divine law by His obedience, by His death He made a full atonement for our sins; having risen from the dead He is now enthroned in heaven. (Rom. 5:8; 1 Cor.1:30; Gal. 3:13; Eph.1:7; 2:8-10; Heb.5:8-9; 1 Pet. 3:18; John 1:29). Salvation is free to all persons and is accepted by a penitent and obedient heart and nothing prevents the worst sinner on earth from being saved except his own voluntary rejection of the gospel. (Acts 2:21; 4:12; Rom. 10:9-10).
ASSURANCE OF SALVATION
Every true Christian is made secure by the grace and love of God in Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:38, 39; John 5:24; 10:28-29) and not by human efforts. (Gal. 2:21). Salvation by grace implies that a Christian is kept by the grace and power of God to continue in the Christian life to the very end. (1 Cor. 15:10; 1 John 5:13).
PERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS
Those whom God has accepted in the Beloved and sanctified by His Spirit, will never totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere to the end; and though they may fall, through neglect and temptation, into sin, whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, bring reproach on the Church, and temporal judgments on themselves, yet they shall be renewed again unto repentance, and be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation (John 2:19, 1 Cor. 11:30, 31; Phil. 1:6).
SANCTIFICATION
At conversion the sins of a person are forgiven and cleansed by the blood of Jesus. (Eph. 1:7; 1 John 1:7).Every Christian is therefore sanctified. This experience of positional sanctification is instantaneous. Every Christian, however, is to continue in good works (James 2:26), to pursue moral holiness, to grow day by day in Christlikeness. This practical or progressive sanctification is a life-long process of daily consecration to God. (2 Pet. 3:18). The scripture does not teach a second work of grace or instantaneous sanctification on the same level. The spiritually maturing Christians in the New Testament continually appropriated holiness through daily submission. (1 Cor. 9:27; 15:31; Phil. 3:12-14).
THE CHURCH
Jesus Christ is the Head of the universal Church (Matt. 16:18; Eph. 5:23) and the universal church is composed of all Christian believers of all ages. Pastors and deacons are officers of a local church. (1 Tim. 3:1,8) Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are the two ordinances of Jesus to be administered by a local church. (Matt. 28:19-20; 1 Cor. 11:24-25; Matt. 26:26-29). Every local church is independent (autonomous) and can voluntarily choose to be interdependent with other churches. (Acts 15).
THE LORD’S DAY
The Lord’s Day is the first day of the week, otherwise called Sunday, and is a Christian institution for regular observance, and should be employed in exercise of worship and spiritual devotion, both public and private, resting from worldly employments and amusements, works of necessity and mercy only excepted.
BAPTISM
Christian baptism is the immersion in water of a believer in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is a beautiful and solemn emblem to show our faith in the crucified, buried and risen Saviour. It is a prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and participation in the Lord’s Supper. (Luke 3:21-22; Acts 2:41-42, 8:36-38; Rom 6:3-4).
LORD’S SUPPER
The Lord’s Supper is to commemorate together the atoning death of Christ. (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 10:16; 11:23-26). The bread and the cup symbolize the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
PRAYER
Prayer is communion and fellowship with God. Prayer is therefore a communication which involves talking to God and hearing from God. Prayer is adoration, thanksgiving, confession of sins, intercession for others and petition for personal help. (Rev. 4:11; 5:12; 7:12; Matt. 6:9-13). Public/corporate prayer is a worship experience that should be characterized by wakefulness and alertness as well as reverence and decorum. (Psalm 100:1; 2:4; Heb. 2:20; 1 Cor. 14:26,40).
FULLNESS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
The Holy Spirit is present in every believer in salvation. All believers are baptized (immersed, incorporated) by the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ at the moment they believe. (1 Cor. 12:13; Gal. 3:27; Eph. 4:5). Salvation and baptism of the Holy Spirit come at the same time as a once-for-all event, but the filling of the Holy Spirit may be a subsequent experience (Acts 2:4; 4:8, 31; 6:3, 5; 7:55; 9:17; 11:24; 13:9,52) and may be repeated many times. When the Holy Spirit is given exclusive use of the temple (person) the believer is said to be filled with the Spirit. Every believer is commanded to be filled with the Spirit. (Eph. 5:18). Nowhere in the Scripture is one commanded to be baptized with the Spirit.
FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
The evidence of the Spirit-filled believer include: Desire to live for God; power and boldness to speak for Christ (Acts 1:8, 4:8; 31); Christ like character, godliness shown by the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22,23); and the fellowship of a joyful Christian community. (Eph. 5:19-21).
GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
The indwelling Holy Spirit gives gifts to believers. (1 Cor. 12:4-6). Every believer has at least one gift. (1 Cor. 12:7). The gift may or may not be exercised in the life of the believer. The gifts are given by the Holy Spirit in accordance with the will of God. (1 Cor. 12:11). Several gifts are mentioned in the New Testament. (1 Cor. 12:8-11, 27:28, Rom. 12:6-8; Eph. 4:11; 1 Pet. 4:10,11) All the gifts are given for service, to carry out the mission and ministry of the Church. No gift is superior to any other gift. Manifestation of a gift is not an evidence of the Spirit-filled or spiritually maturing believer. (1 Cor. 1:4-7; 3:1-4).
SPEAKING IN TONGUES
Speaking in tongues is a genuine gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:4; 1 Cor. 12:11) However, not every Christian is gifted to exercise the same gift like tongue speaking. (1 Cor. 12:29,30). Therefore, a Spirit-filled Christian may not be gifted to speak in tongues. When used in public/corporate worship, speaking in tongues must be interpreted to edify other believers. (1 Cor. 14:26-28).
HOLY SPIRIT ANOINTING, POWER, “SLAYING”
At conversion every Christian is anointed by the indwelling Holy Spirit (2 Cor. 1:21,22; 1 John 2:20,27) in order to ensure continuous fellowship with God and thereby know His thoughts. The Christian is therefore enabled to discern true and false teachings and spirits. Spirit anointing also relate to the seal of the Spirit as a mark of possession (ownership) by God and security (guarantee) of redemption till the end. (Eph. 1:13, 14; 4:30). The Holy Spirit is God and powerful. There is no difference between the Holy Spirit and the power of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8). The power of the Holy Spirit is not a force or influence that slays. A Christian experiences the power of the Holy Sprit through walking in the Spirit and submitting totally to the indwelling Spirit (Gal. 5:16,25). The power of the Holy Spirit is for witnessing, soul winning and discipleship. (Matt. 28:18-20; Acts. 1:8).The receiving of the power of the Spirit is not always accompanied by falling or slaying. Of all the nine cases of the fullness or empowering by the Holy Spirit in the Acts of the Apostle (Acts 2:1-4; 4:8; 6:3, 5; 7:55; 9:17; 11:24; 13:9; 13:48-52) there is no single incidence when Christians fell or were slain by the Holy Spirit. While the experience of the Holy Spirit can not be restricted, there is no scriptural justification to teach or require a post-conversion experience of Holy Spirit anointing, power or slaying.(“Slaying” is a term used to describe the experience of those who fall down, presumably under the power of the Holy Spirit, and who experience loss of consciousness for some time during a worship service).
ANGELS
Angels are “Spirits” (Heb. 1:14) and personal created beings (Ps. 148:2-5). Good angels worship God, (Rev. 5:11), assist, protect, and deliver God’s people (Gen. 19:11; Ps. 9:11; Dan. 3:28; 6:22; Acts 5:19). They also minister to (Heb. 1:14), guide (Acts 8:26), encourage (Acts 27:23,24) God’s people. Evil angels are agents of Satan.
SATAN AND DELIVERANCE
Satan, also called the devil, is the chief of the fallen spirits, the grand adversary of God and man (Zech. 3:1-2; Matt. 16:23). Satan is the ruler of the kingdom of “spirit-beings” standing in opposition to God (Luke 11:18; Matt. 25:41; Eph. 6:12). Satan is created by God and therefore has limited power. (Col. 1:15-17). We believe that deliverance is an integral part of salvation. At the moment of conversion a soul is delivered from sin, death, the world, Satan and his kingdom and agents/demons (1 Pet. 2:9). Every Christian is united with Jesus, above dominion, principalities and power (Col. 1:13, 14: Eph. 2:4-6). However the full realization of deliverance of a Christian may come late to certain individuals.
LAYING ON OF HANDS
The laying on of hands is only a symbol of the empowering of the Holy Spirit. It is also a confirmation of gifts already bestowed by God (2 Tim. 1:6) or a recognition of God’s call and the setting apart of a person for a special service of the church (Acts 13:1-3), Laying on of hands is also connected with healing (Mark 16:18a) and the receiving of the Holy Spirit (Acts 8-9-17). However the practice itself is not a flow of the power of the Holy Spirit, blessings, anointing, healing or deliverance. There are many other cases in the New Testament when the sick were healed (Matt. 8:5-13, Mark 2:3-12; Matt. 12:10-13; John 5:5-9) and people experience the fullness of the Spirit (Acts 2:4; 4:31; 7:55; 13:9, 52) without the laying on of hands.
SIGNS, MIRACLES, HEALING
Genuine signs, miracles and healing are supernatural acts of God and exist today for the purpose of leading people to faith in God by authenticating His revelation and message, by teaching and edifying people (John 20:31; 10:37; 1 Cor. 12:7, 10). Signs, wonders and miracles are given and performed to strengthen the faith of unbelievers (1 Cor. 14:22). Signs are to follow and confirm the preaching and teaching of the word of God for the salvation of souls (Mark 16:17a, 20). The New Testament does not teach or justify the practice of advertising signs, miracles, deliverance to draw people to a Christian gathering. Inordinate desire and enthusiasm for signs and wonders is a mark of an evil generation. (Matt. 12:39). The redemption of souls is the goal of the gospel and Christian ministry. It must always be the emphasis. The ministry of Jesus and the apostles consisted of preaching, teaching and healing (Matt. 9:35-38; 10:1,5-8a) to minister to the body, soul and spirit of man. (Luke 4:18,19). The blood of Jesus, His death, and resurrection are primarily for the atonement, forgiveness and healing of sins. (Isaiah 53:5; Matt. 8:14-17) physical healing is of secondary importance and may take place when the sins are forgiven (Mark 2:1-12).
CIVIL GOVERNMENT
Civil government is of divine appointment and leaders are to be prayed for, honoured and obeyed. (1 Tim. 2:1-3; Rom. 13:1-7).
JUDGMENT
All who continue in unbelief are in God’s sight wicked and under the curse in this life and after death (2 Pet. 3:7).
THE WORLD TO COME
The end of the world is approaching. At the last day Christ will descend from heaven and raise the dead from the grave to final retribution. A solemn separation will then take place and the wicked will be adjudged to endless punishment and the righteous to endless joy. This judgment will fix forever the final state of man. (Matt. 16:27; 25:31-33; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; Dan. 12:2).