Beliefs

Our Purpose

It is the purpose of Strickler’s Mennonite Church to:

  1. bring honor and glory to the Lord Jesus Christ.  (John 5:23, 1 Corinthians 10:31)
  2. lead each member of the congregation to spiritual maturity and strengthen his Christian life by providing opportunities for worship, instruction, spiritual discernment, fellowship, counsel, and accountability. (Ephesians 4:4-7, 11-16)
  3. bring the Gospel to the unsaved at home and abroad and to lead them to faith in Christ and to membership in a local body of believers. (Matthew 28:18-20)
  4. demonstrate God’s love and concern by sharing with those who are in need within the congregation, the local community, and beyond. (Galatians 6:10)

Our Mission Statement

Our goal is to be a caring community of faith, guided by the Holy Spirit, committed to glorifying God, magnifying Christ, edifying our brothers and sisters, and sharing the Gospel with all people. We do this by striving to teach and live in obedience to God’s revealed Word, the Bible.

Beliefs

As a fellowship of New Testament believers, we believe that the Holy Bible is the inerrant Word of God.  The 1963 Mennonite Confession of Faith forms the basis of our statement of belief and practice.  Here are a few key truths taken from the New Testament, which we hold as our creed:

  • Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, a free gift given by God to those who repent and believe.  (Ephesians 2:8,9)
  • All men are unrighteous sinners before a holy God.  (Romans 3:10,23)
  • Jesus is the one mediator between God and man.  He died to redeem us from sin, and arose for our justification.  (I Timothy 2:5, I Corinthians 4:3,4)
  • Christians are not to be conformed to the world, but seek to conform to Christ in every area of life.  (Romans 12:1,2)
  • At death, the unsaved enter into everlasting punishment, but the saved into everlasting bliss with Christ, who is coming again for His saints.  (Revelation 20:15-21:4, I Thessalonians 4:16-18), Philippians 2:9-11)

BMA Position and Policy Statement

Below is a summary of the BMA Position and Policy Statement, outlining the stand that our church takes on various issues based on the teachings of the Word of God.  These are the standards to which all BMA churches agree.

  1. We agree that the church is the pillar and guardian of the truth.
  2. We agree that the proper application of the headship order is for the Christian man to take seriously the Biblical commandment to be a Christ-like leader in the home and congregation and for the woman to complement him as his helper.
  3. We agree that the best application of the headship ordinance is that the sisters wear their veiling as part of their regular attire. We believe that Christian men should have short hair and unveiled head.
  4. We agree that divorce and remarriage is outside the will of God and thus unacceptable. A second marriage with a former spouse living constitutes a state of adultery, requiring repentance and separation.
  5. We agree that God’s gift of sex is to be reserved only for marriage. All forms of homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, and pornography are sinful perversions.
  6. We agree that human life is a special gift of God. Abortion constitutes the inexcusable taking of unborn human life; thus, it is murder.
  7. We agree to prioritize the command of Christ to make disciples in all nations, and to establish churches for membership in the Alliance across North America and beyond.

Click on the links to view the full BMA Position and Policy Statement and a list of Present Day Concerns.

BMA Position and Policy 2009.pdf
BMA Present Day Concerns 2009.pdf