"For the Word of God and for the Testimony of Jesus Christ"
Revelation 1:9

On Monday, June 25th 1956, four Melbourne fellowships met to form an alliance to further the preaching of the Word of God in Australia. Officers elected at the inaugural meeting of the Fellowship of Evangelical Churches of Australia were: PRESIDENT: Rev Gilbert McLaren VICE-PRESIDENT: Rev W R Betts SECRETARY/TREASURER: Mr W R Freeman ASSISTANT SECRETARY: Mr L Miles. The basis for the formation of this Australia-wide Fellowship is expressed in the following amended resolution passed at the inaugural meeting of these four fellowship groups: "Believing the times demand the formation of an Autralia-wide agency for fellowship and co-operation on the part of Bible-believing Christians for the proclamation and defence of the Gospel, for the maintenance of a testimony, pure, steadfast, and nation-wide, to those great facts and revealed truths of historic Christianity, and especially to the great doctrines of the Protestant Reformation; for the accomplishment of tasks which can be better done in co-operation than separately, and to facilitate the discharge of the obligations which inhere in the Commision of Christ to His Church to make known the Gospel of Christ to every creature: We, the appointed representatives of the fellowships above mentioned now establish the Fellowship of Evangelical Churches of Australia according to the agreed constitution." Since the initial formation of the Fellowship, the need for such has become increasingly evident. A growing interest in the Fellowship is evident, and it is hoped that it will be an effective means of strengthening the testimony of evangelical Christians in Australia.