Page:The church manual (Church of the Brethren 1916).djvu/21

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CHURCH MANUAL.

Minister.— Dost thou believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that he has brought from heaven a saving Gospel? Applicant. — Yes.

Minister. — Dost thou willingly renounce Satan, with all his pernicious ways, and all the sinful pleasures of this world? Applicant. — Yes.

Minister. — Dost thou covenant with God in Christ Jesus to be faithful until death? Applicant. — Yes.

Upon this, thy confession of faith, which thou hast made before God and these witnesses, thou shalt, for the remission of sins, be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

After baptism, while in the water, the administrator lays his hands on the head of the candidate and invokes the gift of the Holy Spirit and the divine blessing upon the person baptized. The member is then received, by hand and the salutation, into church fellowship.

Thus we enter into covenant relation with one another, as one body in Christ Jesus. Thus, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, we mutually agree to walk together in Christian love, to strive together for the advancement of the church in knowledge, holiness and prosperity; to promote spirituality, humility and peace; to sustain its worship, ordinances, and doctrines, and cheerfully to contribute of the means that God gives us, for the building of churches, for supporting the