The second paragraph of the body of the church covenant focuses on our behavior at home and in the world, especially as it relates to our reputation before others.
“We also engage to maintain family and personal devotions…”
The need for times of fellowship with God extends beyond the worship services of the church. It is simply not enough for us to come to church once or twice a week to receive instruction and encouragement from God’s word, we must each spend regular time in reading and meditating on the Scriptures and in prayer. To neglect this personal discipline is to act as though we do not need to depend daily on the Lord for wisdom, strength, and guidance, and to neglect this family discipline is to risk failure in our relationships with one another at home. If I may put it very plainly: your personal spiritual success depends greatly on your faithfulness in personal devotion, and your family relationships will be difficult at best if you do not center them on the regular practice of devotion to God.
“…to religiously educate our children…”
This is closely related to the previous statement, because as we are faithful to practice family devotions, we will find opportunities to discuss spiritual things with our children and to teach them the principles of God’s word. This statement is not a commitment to enroll our kids in Christian schools, since Christian schools as such did not exist in J. N. Brown’s day, but it is a commitment to take seriously our role as parents to obey the principles set down in Deuteronomy 6:6-9. Moses wrote, “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” In other words, by entering into this covenant, we commit to carefully and constantly instruct our children in the commands and promises of God.
“…to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances…”
This, too, is closely related to the first statement concerning personal and family devotions. If we are taking seriously the lostness of our children, spouses, parents, and other relatives, then we will speak of the gospel at every opportunity. We may be tempted, when we have guests in our home, to neglect family devotions so as not to make them feel uncomfortable, but this would be contrary to the covenant and counterproductive in our goal of reaching them for Christ. In fact, by regularly practicing personal and family devotions in front of our children, family members, and acquaintances, we will have opportunity to point them to Christ and to pray for them and with them that they might be saved. This is also true of our commitment to attend the regular worship services of the church. Too many times we send the wrong message to our unsaved family and friends by leaving church early or skipping services entirely when they come to visit or schedule a party or some other event. Instead, we ought to tell them why we are so committed to worshiping the Lord and take it as an opportunity to tell them that we are praying for them to know and love Christ as we do. In this way, we can seek their salvation by making our church and personal spiritual commitments a high priority.
“…to walk circumspectly in the world…”
This is a direct reference to Paul’s teaching in Ephesians 5:15-16, “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” The basic idea of this verse is that we, as Christians, are to walk carefully and intentionally in this world, recognizing that we live in an evil age. We cannot simply go through life without thinking or planning but must intend to do right and take purposeful steps to see that we follow through. Good intentions are not enough, but neither are careless actions. In both cases, we will fail to live as God commands in his word, and so we must live and walk in wisdom.
“…to be just in our dealing, faithful in our engagements, and exemplary in our deportment…”
These phrases flesh out the previous one about walking circumspectly in this world. What does it mean to walk in wisdom and redeem the time? At the very least we must always deal honestly in business (see Prov. 11:1, “Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is his delight.”), be faithful to keep our obligations (see Prov. 25:19, “Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a bad tooth and a foot out of joint.”), and model excellent behavior at all times (see 1 Tim. 4:12, “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”). As Christians we ought to be known for our good business practices, personal integrity, and above-average conduct in every area of life. Sadly, this is not always the case. Many Christians are known for cutting corners or doing poor work, and others have a reputation for always being late and generally unreliable. Still other believers are known for being critical, short-tempered, judgmental, or loose-tongued. When we act in these ways, we display a poor testimony to others, we violate the covenant promises that we have made as members of Emmanuel Baptist Church.