Geoffrey Willour writes:
“As part of the process of becoming full communicant members of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, candidates for membership are asked to affirm five membership vows in the presence of God and the congregation:(1) Do you believe the Bible, consisting of the Old and New Testaments, to be the Word of God, and its doctrine of salvation to be the perfect and only true doctrine of salvation?(2) Do you believe in one living and true God, in whom eternally there are three distinct persons – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit – who are the same in being and equal in power and glory, and that Jesus Christ is God the Son, come in the flesh?(3) Do you confess that because of your sinfulness you abhor and humble yourself before God, that you repent of your sin, and that you trust for salvation not in yourself but in Jesus Christ alone?(4) Do you acknowledge Jesus Christ as your sovereign Lord, and do you promise that, in reliance on the grace of God, you will serve him with all that is in you, forsake the world, resist the devil, put to death your sinful deeds and desires, and lead a godly life?(5) Do you promise to participate faithfully in this church’s worship and service, to submit in the Lord to its government, and to heed its discipline, even in case you should be found delinquent in doctrine or life?*Why are such membership vows required? What is their purpose and function? Much could be said in answer to these questions, but here are a few reasons why we believe in the importance of church membership vows, and why we who have taken such vows ought to regard our vows with the utmost seriousness…”