THE NATURE, FAITH AND ORDER OF THE UNITED REFORMED CHURCH

(Version II, as approved by the General Assembly, 1990)

With the whole Christian Church the United Reformed Church believes in one God,

Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  The living God, the only God, ever to be praised.

The life of faith to which we are called is the Spirit’s gift, continually received through the Word, the Sacraments and our Christian life together.

We acknowledge the gift and answer the call, giving thanks for the means of grace.

The highest authority for what we believe and do is God’s Word in the Bible, alive for his people today through the help of the Spirit.

We respond to this Word whose servants we are with all God’s people through the years.

We accept with thanks giving to God the witness to the catholic faith in the Apostle’s and Nicene Creeds.

We acknowledge the declarations made in our own tradition by Congregationalist, Presbyterians and Churches of Christ in which they stated the faith and sought to make its implications clear.

Faith alive and active: gift of an eternal source, renewed for every generation.

We conduct our life together according to the Basis of Union in which we give expression to our faith in forms which we believe contain the essential elements of the Church’s life, both catholic and reformed; but we affirm our right and readiness, if the need arises, the change the Basis of Union and to make new statements of faith in ever new obedience to the Living Christ.

Our crucified and risen Lord, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection.

Held together in the Body of Christ through the freedom of the Spirit, we rejoice in the diversity of the Spirit’s gifts and uphold the rights of personal conviction.

For the sake of faith and fellowship it shall be for the church to decide when differences of conviction hurt our unity and peace.

We commit ourselves to speak the truth in love and grow together in the peace of Christ.

We believe that Christ gives his Church a government distinct from the government of the state.  In the things that affect obedience to God the Church is not subordinate to the state, but must serve the Lord Jesus Christ, its only Ruler and Head.  Civil authorities are called to serve God’s will of justice and peace for all humankind, and to respect the rights of conscience and belief.

While we ourselves are servants in the world as citizens of God’s eternal kingdom.

We affirm our intention to go on praying and working, with all our fellow Christians, for the visible unit of the Church in the way Christ chooses, so that people and nations may be led to love and serve God and praise him more and more for ever.

Source, Guide, and Goal of all that is: to God be eternal glory.