Believing Friends

Ron-new2x3RON HAMILTON, CCCC CONFERENCE MINISTER

I had the wonderful privilege of serving as a pastor in Woodbury, Minnesota for almost thirty years. I came to know many believers from different churches in that city and would often say, “I have believing friends in every Christian church in this community.” I had Catholic friends who shared a personal relationship with Jesus. I had Baptist friends who encouraged the life of discipleship. I had Methodist friends with a deep passion for their faith in Christ. I had Presbyterian friends who loved the Lord deeply. Some of my believing friends are like family to me.

There is a unique bond between believers that transcends the barriers of denominations, communities, nations, and races. The CCCC Statement of Faith closes with these words,

We believe in the spiritual unity of all believers in Christ.

I have been a member minister in the CCCC since 1970. I am thoroughly devoted to the shared life and shared mission of our Conference and the ministry priorities of Biblical Congregationalism. I have greatly benefitted from friendships of fellow church members and ministers within our fellowship. I have hundreds of CCCC friends and look forward to our Annual Gatherings to meet with people face-to-face. But, we all know that we do not have a corner on Jesus! The kingdom of God is much bigger than the CCCC.

Our Conference is actively involved in the World Evangelical Congregational Fellowship (WECF)* and hosted the triennial meeting of the Fellowship in Orlando, Florida last February. There are twenty members in the WECF representing like-minded Congregational fellowships from around the world. About half of those groups were represented at the 2016 meetings. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Christian brothers and sisters from around the world and count many of these people as dear friends. This is only a token representation of the family of believers from around the world.

“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! Psalm 133:1”

Followers of Jesus share relationships with hearts united in devotion to our Lord. Believers enjoy spending time together in worship and prayer. Disciples of Jesus love being together and encouraging one another in our walk of faith. This unity is much greater than a doctrinal belief. Loving relationships with other believers in Christ is one of the greatest blessings of the life of faith.

* For more infomration about WECF and read their latest newsletter go to wecf-cong.org.

Unity of All Believers
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