Church Membership - Part 2

I hope many of you had the opportunity to read the post by Dr. Mark Dever that I linked for you yesterday. Today I would just like to raise some issues as it relates to church membership. Many people view church membership in the same way that they view a "Country Club" Membership. You pay your dues and then you get to use the facilities to meet your needs. You can come as often as you like. You only use those facilities and those resouces that meet your own needs. If it doesn't meet your own need, then you don't use it. If you haven't been there in a few weeks or a month or so, no one is going to be calling you on the phone saying, "Where have you been, we're going to drop your membership if you don't come this week." Your response is, "You can't drop my membership because I paid for it. I paid for the right to come whenever I please." Is this the way church membership should work as well? Is it all about me and what will meet my needs? Can I just come whenever I want to come as long as I pay my tithes? I want to propose to you that church membership is meant to be something so much greater than this.

There is something that is radically different between a country club and a church. The purpose of a church is not to keep its facilities running and to make a profit. The purpose of the church is to present people mature in Christ for the glory of God. You see, I may join a country club so that I can play golf, use its pool, and meet some very nice people. There is nothing necessarily spiritual about any of this. Lost people can join a country club and believers can join a country club. This is not so within the church. This leads to a crucial question: why become a member of a local church? If what you really want is to meet some nice people, use its babysitting service, and use it facitilities, then go join a country club.

On the other hand, if God has radically changed your life and you see that God's plan for your life is pursue holiness, then by all means, go become a member of a church. For the church is full of sinners who are saved by the grace of God and are pursing holiness for the glory of God. Church membership consists of sinners saved by God's grace coming together and commiting their lives to each other to do whatever it takes to pursue holiness. It involves giving, teaching, serving, loving, sharing, worshipping, etc. in order that we might be mature in Christ and present others mature in Christ. When I become a member I am saying to the rest of the members, "If you see anything in my life that is hindering me from becoming mature in Christ, please help me." That help might involve church discipline, rebuke, and correction but if it leads me into holiness, praise be to God. This is why a person who hasn't been there in a while ought to be confronted and challenged to rejoin the fellowship for in church membership, there are no fans. We are all participants. We don't just pay our dues, we give our lives. And if a person wants to be a member but doesn't want to be commited, they need to be challenged concerning their commitment first to Jesus Christ and then to OTHERS.

Finally, you may already see why it is important that the requirements for membership be clear. For if a person has not been saved, how can they help others pursue holiness? The goal for membership is that it would reflect who truly are saved. It is also crucial that the expectations for membership be clear as well. People need to taught what every member expects of them as well as the leadership of the church. Do you understand what is expected of you as a church member? One final thought: if church membership doesn't mean anything, then why do we have it? If it's sole purpose is just to boast about how many people we have at our church, is that biblical? I would encourage you all to pursue meaningful church membership and to seek out what that looks like in your church. Tomorrow I will post some comments about being a "Healthy Church Member."