• The one true God who lives eternally in three persons-the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
• The love, grace and sovereignty of God in creating, sustaining, ruling, redeeming and judging the world.
• The divine inspiration and supreme authority of the Old and New Testament Scriptures,which are the written Word of God-fully trustworthy for faith and conduct.
• The dignity of all people, made male and female in God's image to love, be holy and care for creation, yet corrupted by sin, which incurs divine wrath and judgement.
• The incarnation of God's eternal Son, the Lord Jesus Christ - born of the virgin Mary, truly divine and truly human, yet without sin.
• The atoning sacrifice of Christ on the cross: dying in our place, paying the price of sin and defeating evil, so reconciling us with God.
• The bodily resurrection of Christ, the first-fruits of our resurrection; His ascension to the Father, and His reign and mediation as the only Saviour of the world.
• The justification of sinners solely by the grace of God through faith in Christ.
• The ministry of God the Holy Spirit, who leads us to repentance, unites us with Christ through new birth, empowers our discipleship and enables our witness.
• The Church, the body of Christ both local and universal, the priesthood of all believers - given life by the Spirit and endowed with the Spirit's gifts to worship God and proclaim the gospel, promoting justice and love.
• The personal and visible return of Jesus Christ to fulfil the purposes of God, who will raise all people to judgement, bring eternal life to the redeemed and eternal condemnation to the lost, and establish a new haven and new earth.
  

Core Values

PREACHING/TEACHING is absolutely vital for the spiritual health of the Church. It needs to be grounded in the Word of God, yet earthed in the reality of everyday living. It needs to be expressed with clarity and authority, in a way that is accessible to the whole of the congregation. Through it the whole depth and width of the Word of God is proclaimed (including both God’s love and judgement). It should stimulate every believer to apply the Word of God to their own situation, and to give space to God for Him to speak to each of his children. Because very few people actually learn through listening, and because the aim of preaching and teaching is for God’s people to engage in the Word of God, both visual (seeing) and kinaesthetic (doing) approaches need to be consciously employed in the process.

Preaching and teaching are an essential part of Church life, as God’s people need to be grounded in the Word of God, and therefore need the Word of God to be earthed in everyday living.

FELLOWSHIP means being family, and are therefore concerned for one another, longing to see each other journeying forward together. It enables us to strengthen each other in times of need; and with that in mind we can turn to each other in order to pray, and to share our concerns and difficulties. Being an inclusive fellowship, we show the generosity of spirit towards each other; and so we care, we love, we encourage and demonstrate warmth and friendship to each other.

Fellowship is about being family, about being inclusive and being there for one another, sharing the generosity of spirit towards each other.

SACRAMENTS

The Church of Jesus Christ has throughout its history been blessed with two Sacraments through which we can express our Faith in Jesus Christ, our reliance on Him and our relationship with the Trinity and with each other.

Baptism is about obedience. It is not necessary for our regeneration but is the sign that we acknowledge our conversion, and the change from the old way of life to the New Life that we are experiencing in Christ Jesus. It is a public witness of that change and desire to live for Christ for the rest of our lives. It also comes out of our joy in knowing Jesus for ourselves.

We therefore need to encourage (without being forceful) believers to take that step of faith as a means of growing in grace. We must also not be ashamed of speaking out about our Baptist perspective—as this is what makes us distinctive from the other major Christian denominations.

Communion draws God’s people together as a group with a common bond and experience, enabling us at the same time to feel part of the Last Supper and the Universal Church. It is an opportunity to experience God’s grace, causing us to remember the reality of Christ’s death and the greatness of His love. We may not fully understand the full implications of the Act of Communion, but again it is an act of obedience, “Do this in remembrance of me”.

The Sacraments (Believers’ Baptism & Communion) are special gifts given by God to His Church to enable them to express their faith and obedience to Him. They are therefore very precious to us, & the way in which we do them express something of our understanding and appreciation of Church.

PRAYER is a vital element of our life together, it should be the Powerhouse of the Church. Without prayer the Church becomes weak and divided: the church family that prays together stays together. As well as developing our relationships with each other, it also develops and deepens our relationship with God – both in terms of talking to God and listening from Him. Prayer is also essential for the extension of the Kingdom. Our prayer life needs to be specific, demonstrating our unity of mind and purpose, together with the dual elements of trust and faith. As a Church we need to encourage God’s people to step out in faith, to stand on the Word of God, to be specific in their prayer, and to listen to the voice of God.

Prayer is a vital element of our life together; it is the Power-House of the Church, and is essential in terms of our walk of faith. Our prayer life therefore needs to be specific, focussed and directional.

MISSION:

The Great Commission to the Church is that it is to make disciples of all nations, which includes our own. This is the command of God, which He prompts us with from time to time. It is the work that Christ began and left His disciples to fulfil. Our task, through prayer, is to seek the most appropriate ways in which to accomplish this. However it becomes extremely futile if forced, it needs to come from a genuine desire to see people saved, renewed and transformed by the Holy Spirit. We therefore also need to be aware of people as individuals, and treat them with meekness and respect

There needs to be an awareness of the personal networking of each member of the Church, both professionally and personally, and of how these networkings can be used for the extension of the Kingdom. Corporate mission within the church also depends on the personal giftings of individuals within the church – and the awareness of working within our own capabilities.

We also need to question how we can make the most of such things as our Light Lunches – by having Christian literature available, quiet background reflective Christian music, people being available just to befriend, etc. Also revisiting the concept of using such materials as ALPHA, Essence, Christianity Explored, etc.

Mission is the command of God for each Church and each individual believer. We need to be prayerfully aware of how God wants us to be engaged in mission, and of how He wants to use our personal skills and networkings. In response we need to be obedient, as well as having a desire to see souls saved.

WORSHIP is the expression of our faith and is a reflection on our relationship with God. It must be relevant, meaningful, Christ-centred and is instrumental in us uplifting the Name of God, as well as uplifting our spirits to him.

Our worship needs to continue to reflect the Christ-centredness of our meeting together, it needs to be honest and real, as well as being inclusive.

Substance is far more important than style. Our worship, especially our singing needs to draw us into the presence of God so that we are left with the sense of awe (possibly silent) before God, in that we end up being more conscious of the presence of God than the people standing near us. We must not be afraid to be expressive in our worship.

Worship is the expression of our faith, and is a reflection on our relationship with God. It is to reflect the Christ-centredness of our meeting together, with substance being more important than style. We must not be afraid of being expressive in our worship.

COMMUNITY AWARENESS that we identify the fact that God is interested in the whole person and not just the spiritual. We also recognise that Church is part of Community, Community that needs the holistic approach of our Missionary God. With this in mind, we encourage every member to involve themselves in some community enterprise either connected with their place of work or home – and that they see their involvement as something that God can use as a means of outreach. The Church as a whole is equally committed to involving itself in the life of the local Community, seeking to bring about redemption through that involvement.

Social Action means being committed to the Community of which we are called to be a part.

Church Constitution

1. This Church shall be known as the West End Baptist Church. It shall be affiliated to the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the W.E.B.A. [West of England Baptist Association]. As an evangelical Baptist Church it takes the doctrinal basis of faith of the Evangelical Alliance [of which it is a Member Church] as its doctrinal stand.
   

2. Believers may be received into membership on the following conditions:
   ~ Having been baptised upon profession of faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.
   ~ By transfer of membership from another Christian Church [Believers Baptism being necessary as a prerequisite to Church Membership, in most cases].
   ~ In very exceptional circumstances upon a profession of faith only.
   ~ Be prepared to take seriously the responsibilities of Church membership.

3. Application for membership should be made to the Minister or secretary; and those seeking membership should be interviewed by two appointed Church Members who shall then report to the next Church Meeting. The right hand of fellowship shall be given at the Lord's Table on the first convenient Communion Service.

4. The Church membership Roll shall be reviewed annually by the Minister and Deacons. Where absence has been noted for no satisfactory reason such members shall be visited by two of their number. If absence has continued for a further six months another visit shall be made, and if no satisfactory explanation has been given membership shall be regarded as having lapsed. No name shall be removed from the Church Membership Roll except by vote of the Church Meeting.

5. The Deacons shall not be less than five or more than nine in number and shall be elected for three years. Each year, those who have served their full term of office shall retire. but are of course eligible for re-nomination and re-election at the election that is held at the March Church Meeting. All members of the Church who have reached the age of 18 years shall be eligible for service upon the Diaconate, but no member shall hold the office unless he/she has been a Member of the Church for 12 months.
   ~ Each Deacon shall be elected by two thirds of those present and voting by secret ballot. If the number of Deacons elected to the Diaconate is less than five, then the elected Diaconate should nominate suitable members to make up their number for 12 months curation. Such co-opted members will not be able to vote at deacons' meetings, however.
   ~ Two scrutineers for the Deacons Election shall be appointed by the Church Meeting prior to the ballot.

6. Nominations for the Diaconate shall (by consent of the nominee) be sent to the Church secretary in writing, signed by two members, and must be received not later than two weeks before the election takes place.

7. The Diaconate shall, from among Church members (normally from within its own number), nominate the Church Secretary and Church Treasurer and shall submit their names for election at a Church Meeting (normally an Annual General Meeting). In such cases as non-Deacons being appointed, they shall automatically be co-opted onto the Diaconate with the conditions of Rule 5 applying.
   ~ The appointments of Secretary and Treasurer shall, as with other Church appointments be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting.

8. The Deacons shall have charge of the finances and all the property of the Church and its agencies whether on the church premises or not. The position of Deacons also means their recognition as a Local Management Trustee for the Church (and therefore subject to Criminal Records Bureau clearance). Without their consent none beyond the usual meetings shall be held, no fund shall be started, and no property of any kind shall be used, removed, lent, sold or purchased. [Short-term use/loan of church property should be cleared with the Minister and/or Secretary as a mark of courtesy.]

9. The Deacons shall at their discretion, give consent for non-Church groups to meet on Church premises (subject to "Safe to Grow" recommendations). Recognised Church Groups shall include in their constitution a `Steering Committee', having a voting majority of Church members. The names of all members of such Committees, together with any amendments that may occur from time to time, shall be notified in writing to the Deacons.

10. As the safety and welfare of the children / young people under our charge is both a legal and social priority, the guidelines and recommendations outlined in "Safe to Grow" are implemented regarding minors involved in the life and witness of the Church. The Church's Child Protection policy is to be read and ratified annually at the AGM.

11. The Minister shall be chosen by a vote of not less than three-quarters of those present and voting by secret ballot at a special meeting.

12. The Minister (by Office) shall be President of all Church agencies and preside (when present) at all business meetings, to whom an Agenda should be sent before any meeting is held. The Minister may of course delegate the chair to another Church Officer if he/she wishes.

13. At those times when the Church is without a Minister, the Diaconate should nominate the name of someone either from within the membership of the Church or from a neighbouring Baptist Church who is willing to act as its Moderator (such appointment to be ratified at a Church Meeting). The appointed Moderator will work closely with the secretary and Treasurer together with the remaining Diaconate to provide Pastoral and Oversight care of the Church during this period.

14. The Lord's Supper shall normally be observed on the first Sunday evening and the third Sunday morning of each month, and shall be open to all believers.

15. There shall be six Church Meetings each year, in January, March, May, July, September and November on the Thursday evening after the second Sunday of the month. The March meeting will include the Deacons Election, while the May meeting will include Annual General Meeting matters. Other church meetings may be held as a special need arises on the request of the Minister and/or Deacons, or six members, one of whom shall be a Deacon, and the business shall be specified to the Church Secretary in writing, an Agenda and Notice be displayed on the Church Notice Board for the two Sundays before the meeting take place.
    ~ Members of the congregation, who are not Church members, can attend Church Meetings and enter into discussion but will not be entitled to vote.

16. Notice of the Annual General Meeting and of all Church Meetings shall be announced at both Services on each of the two preceding Sundays.

17. All decisions at Church Meetings to be normally agreed by: (a) consensus for minor matters; (b) proposal and show of hands for major matters: and (c) secret ballot regarding election of Minister and Deacons as agreed elsewhere in this document.

18. It is the responsibility of all Church Members to attend Church Meetings unless unable to do so because of health, or work or family commitments. In which case an apology for absence should be given to the Meeting.

19. Members and non-members present at Church Meetings are pledged to keep all church business strictly confidential.

20. Major matters of "Any Other Business" must be raised with either the Minister or Deacons prior to the Sunday before the Church Meeting at which the member intends to raise the matter.

21. As the Church is run as a Theocracy (i.e. corporately seeking the will of God) each person present needs to be prayerfully prepared for the Meeting (Agendas normally to be made available on the Sunday prior to the meeting, together with the minutes of the previous meeting). The usual rules of debate shall govern all discussions.

22. If a quorum of one third of the membership is not present then the Meeting is deemed to be inoperative, and is therefore cancelled. In the event of this happening the Diaconate has the power to make emergency decisions as is deemed necessary.

23. It is the obligation, to be met honourably by all, to support the Minister, Deacons and Church by constant attendance; prayer; personal service and witness and free-will offerings, as the Lord shall bless.

24. As it is not felt that the Church Meeting is the right place to express personal grievances, we take our lead from the scriptures which advocate the need for each of God's children to live at peace with each other: and that if a member of God's family has a grievance against a fellow member it is their responsibility to privately go to that person/s in order to seek a mutual solution. If no satisfactory outcome arises from this, then the matter is to be brought to the attention of the leaders of the Church, who will then advise on further procedure (Matt 18:15-17 plus 1Cor 1:10; Phil 2:14-16; 1Tim 5:17-19, etc).

25. Periodic re-appraisals of Church Rules are deemed necessary. Any proposed alterations to the Church Rules must be raised at a Church meeting, to enable full discussion to take place at a later Church meeting (which shall not take place within four weeks of the first meeting).