THE OBJECT OF THE CHURCH TO GLORIFY GOD IN:

• The promotion of Christian fellowship and the edification of the believer through the teaching of the Word of God.
• The salvation of the lost through the preaching of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
• The worldwide proclamation of God's grace as expressed in the shed blood and finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ on Calvary
• The defense of "The Faith Once Delivered" in harmony with God's Holy Word, The Bible until He comes.

ARTICLES OF FAITH

• The equality and distinct personality of the Father/ The Word and Holy Ghost, in the unity of the Godhead.
• The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God; they were given by Divine inspiration; and this system of Divine revelation comprehends everything necessary for us to know concerning God and the direction of our obedience to Him. By this Divine Book, God hath made revelation of His gracious design of saving poor sinners, and pointing out the way, through the mediation of the Lord Jesus. By the instrumentality of this Sacred Word, when used by the Holy Spirit, stubborn and obstinate sinners are brought into the obedience of the Faith, and the incorrigible are left without excuse; and by this word of Faith, and the incorrigible are left without excuse; by this Word of the Lord all men shall be judged at the last day.
• The fall of mankind in Adam; their guilt and condemnation, together with their entire and universal depravity, by which they were utterly alienated from God and are unable in and of themselves to turn to Him.
• God from the beginning, or in eternity, chose His people in Christ unto salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ; all of which are set forth and affected through the Gospel.
• The special and complete redemption of all the family of God. Through the blood of Christ by virtue of His vicarious suffering and sacrificial death.
• Regeneration and sanctification by direct agency of the Holy Spirit through the instrumentality of divine truth/ simultaneous and coetaneous with which are all the fruits of the Holy Spirit.
• Justification of the ungodly by grace/ through the imputed righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is unto all and upon all them, that believes.
• The absolute necessity of a holy life in conformity to the life of Christ as the result of faith and the evidence of regeneration.
• The resurrection of the dead and the judgment of all mankind, the wicked driven away in their wickedness into everlasting punishment, but the righteous received into life eternal.
• The commission of our Lord Jesus Christ given to His disciples makes it imperative on their part to preach the Gospel in the entire world, to every creature, until the Lord shall come again from heaven to raise His sleeping dead, to change His living and waiting saints and translate them to glory. Furthermore, the revealed will of Christ makes it the indispensable duty of the churches to support the labors of their ministry with their prayers, active cooperation and material contributions.
• Christian Baptism is an ordinance of Jesus Christ and consists in the immersion of a believer in water, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost.
• The Lord's Supper is an ordinance of Jesus Christ and is to be observed within the Church; and to take part therein none are entitled except baptized believers.
• The officers of the church are elders, or bishops and deacons, members of the body, who have been ordained by examination and imposition of the hands A Gospel church is the highest earthly ecclesiastical tribunal in no wise subject to any other church, or the decrees of associations or councils but of a presbytery, under the authority of the church.
• Dependent for its acts on the Word and Spirit of God alone. The order of its government is congregational, wherein all its members have an equal voice and authority.
• We believe in the sanctity of the first day of the week; that it should be observed by abstaining from secular employment and occupied in the public and private worship of God and in works of necessity and mercy.

CHURCH COVENANT

"And they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul."
(II Corinthians 15:12)

• Having been led, as we believe, by the Spirit of God, to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and on the profession of our faith having been baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost/ we do now/ in the presence of God, angels and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another, as one body in Christ.
• We promise by the aid of the Holy Spirit to forsake the paths of sin and to walk in the ways of holiness all the days of our lives. With this view we engage to strive together for the advancement of this Church in knowledge, holiness and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; cheerfully and regularly to the support of the ministry, the expenses of the church and the relief of the poor and the spread of the gospel throughout all nations.
• We also engage to maintain regular daily devotions, to educate religiously our children; to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances; to walk circumspectly in the world; to be just in our dealings; faithful in our engagements and exemplary in our deportment to avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of intoxicating liquors as a beverage and to be zealous in all our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Savior.
• We further engage to walk together in Christian love and watchfulness, giving and receiving admonition with meekness and affection to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy of speech; to be slow to take offense, but always ready for reconciliation and mindful of the rules of our Savior, to secure it without delay.
• We moreover engage that when we remove from this place to a place where we cannot attend and keep an active interest in Mt. Carmel we will as soon as possible, unite with some other church where we can carry out the Spirit of this covenant and the principle of God's Word.

CHURCH MEMBERSHIP

• The membership of this church shall consist of baptized (immersed) believers on the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.
  ADMISSION OF MEMBERS
  
  • All members must be accepted by a majority vote of the members at any regular meeting of the church after one of the following conditions has been met.
  • Public confession of faith in Christ and a public demonstration of it by baptism.
  • Public confession of faith and letter from another church in which baptism is in like mode and meaning as ours.
  • Public confession and transfer of membership from another Regular Baptist Church.
  
  DISMISSAL OF MEMBERS
  
  • No member shall be dismissed from the church without every effort being made to first restore that member to fellowship and after every effort, then, only by vote of the congregation.
  • A letter of transfer will be granted to any member who joins another church of like faith.
  • A letter of dismissal will be granted to any member who joins churches other than like faith.
  • Members who fail to communicate with the church in any six-month period without sufficient reason (such as sickness/ service duties, etc.) shall be dropped from the active roll and be put on an inactive roll.
  • Members who fail to respond to church discipline may be dropped from the rolls.

CHURCH OFFICERS

• All officers of Mt. Carmel shall be Godly men or women with lives of good report both within the church and within the community. For those with scriptural qualifications (Pastor, Deacons) they shall be met also.
  PASTOR
  • His duties shall be to feed and lead the church of Christ. He shall preach and teach the Word of God, visit the sick, endeavor to win souls, help those in need.
  • He shall be moderator of business meetings and a member of all committees ex officio.
  • If it is deemed advisable for the good of the church the Pastor may be dismissed at any time by the vote of the congregation at a meeting before which the membership shall know his dismissal is to be considered. He shall be given 30 days notice of such intention.
  • The Pastor upon the leading of the Lord may resign his duties upon 30 days notice to the congregation.
  • In absence of the Pastor, the congregation shall elect a moderator