Why should you consider church membership?
Context: This was intended
as a little handout for our connect group at CFC. We thought we would post it
as a helpful resourse to others.
Amanda and I both believe
that church membership is something every Christian should prayerfully
consider.
Many people switch off to the idea and are quick to point out
that Jesus never spoke about membership, neither did the apostles. Whilst this is true we must remember that we are looking at
a church in its infancy. As it matured there is clear evidence of membership in
early Christian writings. It’s worth noting that the first Christians were Jews
and thus already were “members” of the Jewish faith and Christianity was not considered
a separate religion. “Becoming a
Christian” was for them a matter of belief and baptism—believing that Jesus was
the promised Messiah of Israel and
identifying with him. The Jews already
had a strict behavioural code; they needed no instruction on the existence of
one God or even on how to respect authority, give of their time, money, energy
and prayers—in many ways the Jewish lifestyle was stricter than the Christian
standard would be. As the Church
expanded so did the challenges of engaging new cultures. Evangelists to the
Jews had it easy when it came to behaviour—most Jews already behaved, or at
least knew how to behave. The gentile
“dogs” were very different. They were
called dogs by the Jews because they had the morals of a wandering dog. It soon
became clear that there was a need for some mechanisms for instruction and
support as these new Christians where baptised and joined the local church… it
is here that early evidence of membership began to develop. By 200 A.D church membership
programmes where in operation in preparing new converts for baptism.
Amanda and I moved church for the first time in 2014. It was
not an easy decision and one that took months of prayer and conversations. We
knew it was not a matter of God calling us out of a church but God calling us
to a new church family and a new chapter. We had been members of our previous
church since we had come to faith around 20 years ago. When we finally made the
decision to join C.F.C. (October 2014), we became members within a matter of
weeks. Why? It was a natural response from
our hearts to say… we belong here, this is our new home.
Here are a few thoughts and reasons why Amanda and I think you should
consider church membership.
1, it is a wonderful tool to assist in your discipleship. Christianity is not a
spectator sport or activity you participate in in isolation. Your discipleship develops
best when belonging to a community.
2, it makes a statement that you are committed to your local church, its leadership, vision and values.
3, it allows you to
identify yourself clearly and publically to your church. It’s a public
declaration that says ‘this is my team, my family.’
4, it improves
communication within the church. There is often a channel of communication which can only be
accessed by members, it is for good reasons and helps with levels of
confidentiality. When you join any organisation, including the church, channels
of communication should become much clearer and more accessible.
5, it creates more
opportunities for you to serve in the Church. Service should not be exclusive
to members however responsibilities such as leading home groups, eldership, home
visitation/pastoral care is best kept to those members who are committed to the vision
and values of the church.
6, your commitment as a member helps the church leadership plan for the future. It’s impossible for a leadership to plan if no
one is committed to the vision and values. If everyone avoids responsibility
and commitment no team or organisation can thrive.
7, membership has little or no special privileges other than
the privilege of responsibility. One
of the greatest dangers in the church today is the crazy gang of freelance Christians
who hop for church to church and display none of the characteristics of a ‘good and loyal solider.’ (2 Tim 2:3). Taking
up responsibility is to keep rank, show loyalty, play your part in the
battle and help carry one another’s
burdens. (Gal 6:2). Membership carries expectations
and responsibilities that we
should not shrink back from. Many do not become members because the want to avoid
these two words and yet they are the essential building blocks of spiritual
maturity.
8, just as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for
her (Eph 5:25), so should we love her and give ourselves to her. Too many
people today ‘date the church’, some even ‘date’ two churches at once. They
attend one church in the morning and a different one in the evening. They get
the best of both churches but no church community gets the best out of them. Membership
is a little bit like a marriage, it gives us an opportunity to say ‘This is my church, I feel responsible for
her. I am committed to her mission, vision and ministry. I want to serve God
here and grow in my faith.’
9, the church is the body of Christ. Membership brings a connectedness to the body which
helps us function in our gifting and support others exercise their gifts.
10, church is a
family and membership says to everyone in the family, I love you; I want to
be identified with you as my brothers and sisters. It places value on
individuals by demonstrating acceptance to each other and saying ‘I want to journey with you’.
11, by becoming a member you are presenting four gifts to the
church: Time, money, energy and prayers. I can’t think of better way to spend
these gifts than into the local church.
12, Accountability: membership to a local church places us
in a healthy place of accountability.
Honouring the authority of the lead team and living in community with them,
agreeing to live by certain established godly principles and standards will
safeguard us from bad doctrine and choices. It honours what God has already established
and demonstrates our commitment to each individual as well as the bigger
organisation.
As you consider membership please remeber it is not about exclusivity, superierity, position or rights; it much more about responsibility, service and commitment.
The next course on exploring mebership is on Monday 22 February at 7.30pm in the Ark Room, CFC East Belfast.
https://thisiscfc.com/activity/exploring-membership/
