The name of this church shall be Maranatha Evangelical Free Church. Pursuant to Sec. 6(1) of the Religious Societies' Lands Act our corporate name is The Trustees of Maranatha Evangelical Free Church, a religious society in the City of Winnipeg, in the Province of Manitoba.
The Evangelical Free Church of Canada is an association of autonomous churches united in a common commitment to God’s evangel–the gospel of Jesus Christ, who died and rose again to give us eternal life. To God’s glory, the gospel is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. Our essential theological convictions are vitally connected to this gospel.
1. We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.
2. We believe that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavour should be judged. Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.
3. We believe that God created Adam and Eve in His image, but they sinned when tempted by Satan. In union with Adam, human beings are sinners by nature and by choice, alienated from God, and under His wrath. Only through God’s saving work in Jesus Christ can we be rescued, reconciled and renewed.
4. We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus—Israel’s promised Messiah—was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.
5. We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.
6. We believe that the Holy Spirit, in all that He does, glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ. He convicts the world of its guilt. He regenerates sinners, and in Him they are baptized into union with Christ and adopted as heirs in the family of God. He also indwells, illuminates, guides, equips and empowers believers for Christ-like living and service.
7. We believe that the true church comprises all who have been justified by God’s grace through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head. The true church is manifest in local churches, whose membership should be composed only of believers. The Lord Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which visibly and tangibly express the gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish the believer.
8. We believe that God’s justifying grace must not be separated from His sanctifying power and purpose. God commands us to love Him supremely and others sacrificially, and to live out our faith with care for one another, compassion toward the poor and justice for the oppressed. With God’s Word, the Spirit’s power, and fervent prayer in Christ’s name, we are to combat the spiritual forces of evil. In obedience to Christ’s commission, we are to make disciples among all people, always bearing witness to the gospel in word and deed.
9. We believe in the personal, bodily and glorious return of our Lord Jesus Christ with His holy angels when He will bring His kingdom to fulfillment and exercise His role as Judge of all. This coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic mission.
10. We believe that God commands everyone everywhere to believe the gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God will raise the dead bodily and judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to condemnation and eternal conscious punishment and the believer to eternal blessedness and joy with the Lord in the new heaven and the new earth, to the praise of His glorious grace. Amen.
Maranatha is to be a family of believers which glorifies God through Christ-centred teaching and application of His Word. The Core Values of this church are:
1. To preach and teach the Word of God for the edification, encouragement, instruction and discipline of our family of believers.
2. To provide opportunity for Christian worship, service and prayer.
3. To promote and support world-wide evangelism, discipleship and social justice by word and deed.
4. To create and promote a welcoming atmosphere where individuals can grow in their knowledge of God and His Word.
The organization shall be carried on without purpose of gain for its members and any profits or other accretions to the organization shall be used in promoting its objectives.
This church shall receive as members those of any age who profess to have accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour, and who in their lives manifest the evidences of a true faith in God, and who are willing according to their ability to support the church by their personal participation, prayers and contributions.
The government of the church is vested in the members eligible to vote in business sessions. The church shall hold business sessions at least semi-annually (usually in April for election of officers and other business, and usually in October for the establishment of the annual budget and other business). Special meetings may be called by recommendation of the Board of Directors or the formal request to the Board by 10% of the voting membership.
The church shall be administered through appointed or elected officers who shall constitute the Board of Directors. This Board shall include at least the Chairman, Vice-chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, and the Chairpersons of Standing Committees of the Board, and the Pastor(s).
The Administrative Committee shall consist of the Chairman, Vice-chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer, with special responsibility of the legal documents and shall oversee the administration of the entire church program.
Although the church is autonomous, it is formally affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of Canada and shall seek to co-operate with the denomination in the fellowship of the Gospel.
The church shall have the power to acquire and own, by purchase, gifts, lease or otherwise, such real and personal property as is deemed necessary for the realization of the objectives of the church. If division occurs in this church, the names and property shall belong to those who abide by its Constitution and Bylaws. If the church ceases to function and its organization is dissolved, the property shall be assigned to the Evangelical Free Church of Canada (the “EFCC”) to enable the EFCC to renew the work or use the value thereof for further Gospel enterprises within the province of Manitoba.
Amendments to this Constitution shall be made at a business session of the church, by a two-thirds vote, when the proposed amendments have been submitted in writing and introduced at a business session of the members at least three months prior to taking action on it. Quorum bylaws apply.
A supplement to this Constitution, known as Bylaws, shall embody decisions of the membership such as the conditions of various categories of membership, terms of office of Directors, and other such rules and regulations governing the activities of the church. Bylaws include matters that should not be subject to suspension or modification at any one business session.