For the Glory of God

Committed to the Word of God

We are a congregation that is committed to the Bible as the inerrant word of God, “the only infallible rule of faith and practice”. Our church subscribes to the Westminster Confession of Faith, and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms. We believe that they are a concise summary of the doctrines found in the Word of God. We live in covenant with the triune God of the Bible, through Jesus Christ. We believe in Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Lord. We believe that Christ shed His blood for us, and all of God’s elect. We seek to carry out the Great Commission, the central task of the church, through nurture and evangelism, so that God’s people would be called and equipped to promote the glory of God.

Desiring to glorify God

We seek to glorify God in:

• Our public worship on the Lord’s Day
• Our pastoral care, discipleship and nurture of one another during the week in various ways
• Our service to our local community by bringing them the gospel in word and deed, and in the support of world evangelism
• The faithful exercise of church governance and church discipline for the peace, purity and prosperity, of the church

Presbyterian in Government

Our church government

The government of the Presbyterian Church is a representative government in which the entire congregation elects elders, for the administration of spiritual affairs, and deacons for the administration of temporal ones. This, however, does not mean that the congregation has no further voice in her affairs, for regular and called meetings of the congregation are held throughout the year.

The Session, Diaconate, and Presbytery

These administrative Boards are known as the Session and the Diaconate. From the Session a representative is chosen each year to represent the congregation, along with the pastor, in the Presbytery. The Presbytery is composed of all representatives of the separate Associate Reformed Presbyterian churches in the area.

The General Synod

The Highest Court of the Church is the General Synod of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, which is composed of representatives from all the Presbyteries. The Synod holds its annual stated meeting in June at Bonclarken, our assembly grounds in western North Carolina.

To God alone be the glory

The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church makes no claim to a monopoly in matters of truth and faith; neither does she claim any exclusive position with regard to the Savior and His love. We accept all believers in Christ as being in full communion with us and we believe that they too are members of the body or Christ, the Church Universal. Through it all, we reaffirm the Catchword of Calvin and the Reformed Movement: “To God alone be the glory.”