The Wanderer

As I walked through the wilderness of this world …

Posts Tagged ‘church covenants

A question of covenants

with 2 comments

A friend asks if I know of any book or article on the subject of church covenants. He had in mind the sort of thing discussed in William Guthrie’s The Christian’s Great Interest. Can any reader suggest a helpful treatment of churches covenanting together, probably drawing on the Puritan tradition? Please let me know in the comments if you have any suggestions.

Here is Andrew Fuller on a similar topic from a different angle:

It is to be feared the old puritanical way of devoting ourselves wholly to be the Lord’s, resigning up our bodies, souls, gifts, time, property, with all we have and are to serve him, and frequently renewing these covenants before him, is now awfully neglected.  This was to make a business of religion, a life’s work, and not merely an accidental affair, occurring but now and then, and what must be attended to only when we can spare time from other engagements.  Few seem to aim, pray, and strive after eminent love to God and one another.  Many appear to be contented if they can but remember the time when they had such love in exercise, and then, tacking to it the notion of perseverance without the thing, they go on and on, satisfied, it seems, if they do but make shift just to get to heaven at last, without much caring how.  If we were in a proper spirit, the question with us would not so much be, “What must I do for God?” as, “What can I do for God?”  A servant that heartily loves his master counts it a privilege to be employed by him, yea, an honour to be entrusted with any of his concerns.

Written by Jeremy Walker

Thursday 4 November 2010 at 11:21