Church Membership

This past weekend my wife and I enjoyed a wonderful meal with a couple that is relatively new to our church. Like most of those first time dinners go, we talked about a host of things including family, hobbies, work, and of course church life and ministry. It was a wonderful time and I even violated my self imposed Saturday night curfew just to enjoy a few extra minutes of fellowship. During the course of the conversation, one of the questions that I was asked related to church membership and why I believe it to be important.

Now before I give you my response, let me first anticipate an objection. Over the years it has been pointed out to me on more than one occasion that church membership is not in the Bible. That is true to a degree. While we have no biblical account of someone joining a church as is typically done today, people were connected to a local body of believers. Most of the New Testament is written to believers in specific cities/churches such as Corinth, Thessalonica, and Ephesus. In reality, we have very few instances of unconnected believers.

I would also point out that while the process of being connected with a specific church via membership probably has little resemblance to what the church does today; Christianity in the first century was also vastly different. Back then there simply was little casual Christianity. What I mean by that is that for those who followed Christ there was often a cost. Those who came to Christ often lost their families, their jobs, and their property. With the price of discipleship so high, people did not join the church because it was the socially or culturally acceptable thing to do. In Acts 5, after God brings judgment upon Ananias and Sapphira for lying about their giving, we read these words in verses 12 and 13, “Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico. None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem.” Did you catch that in verse 13? “None of the rest dared join them.” With a God who was serious about sin and obedience, people weren’t knocking down the doors to join the church. The cost for many was simply too high.

Today, especially in the United States, we live in a different world. Church, and I use that world very broadly, is often the acceptable thing to do. For many people church is a place not only to worship God, but also to make friends, find a mate, and build business contacts. While those things aren’t necessarily bad, the point I’m trying to make is that often the church is filled with people who aren’t that serious or even interested in following Christ. With the possibility of unbelievers in the church, people who don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, I believe the church has the responsibility to, in some way, identify those who share its beliefs and support its ministry. While the membership process can take many forms, I believe church membership is first and foremost about commitment. It is the way to identify those who want to be committed to and supportive of the church and its ministry. It is a way for people to say, “This is my place of worship. I believe what it teaches. I support what it is striving to do, and the church can count on me to be involved in and committed to what goes on here.”

Sadly, that kind of commitment is quickly fading in the American church, in my opinion. Today, many people practice, what I call, “smorgasbord church.” They go to one church for the sermon, another church for the youth group, and still another for whatever else meets their needs. Rather than supporting a specific body and ministering to the needs of others in and through that church, many seek only to satisfy and meet their own needs. People want the privileges of membership without the responsibilities of membership. This “me first” approach is a practice far different than the one prescribed by Jesus in Luke 9:23. There He described a disciple as one who denies self. Here’s the point: I believe church membership is important because it is a significant way to demonstrate commitment to and support of the work of God and the people of God.

A second reason to become a church member is to invite spiritual accountability. In Matthew 18, Jesus spells out a process in which the church comes along side those who fall into sin in order to lovingly restore them to obedient living. In my experience it is difficult, if not impossible, to bring that loving accountability to those who have not invited it through church membership. While many who are not members of the church say that they want that kind of accountability, their tune almost always changes when they are living in sin. At that point, they typically tell me I have no right to confront them and essentially tell me to get lost. By becoming a church member, you are entering into a spiritual relationship with like minded believers who are committed not simply to the church, but to Christ. You are taking responsibility to watch over your brothers and sisters in Christ and inviting them to do the same for you, even as you worship and serve together.

Do we twist peoples arm to join the church, at Harvest Bible Chapel in West Olive, Michigan? No! But we do encourage it when and where possible, including through this blog. If you are not a church member, I would invite you to prayerfully consider it. If you are a church member, be one that demonstrates your commitment through faithful support, encouragement, and service. If you approach church membership seriously, I believe you will find it a source of joy and fulfillment in your spiritual walk with Christ.