This morning we come to the last sermon in my short series on the makeup of the church. We’ve seen the two offices of deacon and pastor, and now we turn to a final subject – that of the common member of the church. What does it mean to be a member of the church? Why should one join a church? To answer these questions, we are going to consider the qualifications and responsibilities of church members, as well as some myths about church membership. To do that, let’s read 1 Cor. 12:12-20.
First, let’s consider the qualifications of a church member from verses 12-13. What does it take to be a member of any Christian church? Well, here we have one requirement, with two details. The requirement is simply stated – you must be a part of the body of Christ. To be a member of the church, you must be “in Christ”, which is to say, you must trust that he lived a perfectly sinless life, that he died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins, and that he rose again from the dead, defeating death and hell for you.
So, what are the details of being in the body of Christ? What does that look like? Paul describes that in verse 13 – “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” Being “in Christ” looks like being filled with the Holy Spirit, which is to say that you are led by the Spirit. Your conscience and will are governed by him. You seek every day to live for Christ by the work of the Spirit in your life. It also looks like being baptized. As Baptists, we believe that one of the prerequisites to church membership is that the candidate has been baptized. We get that belief from passages like this. Baptism is a covenant sign. It marks you out as part of the family of God. Think of it this way: baptism is like a wedding ring. A wedding ring is a covenant sign that the groom and bride give to each other as a physical marker of their love and commitment. So, let’s say that you get up on stage with your fiancé during the wedding ceremony, and he goes to give you a wedding ring and make a vow to you and you say, “Oh no, I don’t want to have to wear that ring around all the time. You know, it will probably leave a mark on my finger. Besides that, it’s going to be uncomfortable. And, in certain situations, I’m probably going to be embarrassed for wearing it. So, no thank you. But, trust me, I still love you and want to be married to you.” I doubt very seriously that your fiancé would take too kindly to that. In a similar way, refusing to be baptized while claiming commitment to Christ is a contradiction. One cannot be committed while refusing to take the most basic sign of that commitment in baptism.
So, the qualifications for church membership are faith in Christ, evidenced by a changed life that is led by the Spirit and submission to baptism. Now, let’s consider the responsibilities of membership from verses 14-20. Here we have one responsibility given with two details. The responsibility of each member is simply to be a part of the body. Notice how Paul puts it down in verse 27 – “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.” Every believer is called to be a member of the body of Christ. You are called, not to just to fulfill a weekly obligation of attendance, but to be a part of a family. You are called to care about the other members of this church. You are called to keep each other accountable and rescue the wayward member from sin. You are called to encourage and pray for other members. You are called to support your fellow members in their times of need. God has given you to this church so that you might bless it.
Now, you might be thinking, “But I’m no pastor or deacon. I’m not talented enough or bold enough to serve in those ways.” Well, that’s exactly the concern Paul deals with in verse 15. He uses the analogy of a body to show that no member of the church is useless. He asks, what would happen if the hand or the foot said, “I’m not qualified, so I’m not a part of the body.” Well, obviously, if a hand or foot said that we couldn’t function very well as a body. In the same way, every member of the church is needed, no matter their dispositions or gifts. I repeatedly say – those who serve with quietness are the ones who are missed the most when they are gone. I felt the loss of Doug Griffin the heaviest on the Wednesday night after his passing, because the air conditioning wasn’t on when we got to the church that evening. Bobby Gene’s loss is felt in the juggling we now have to do with our Sunday school attendance records. You may feel that you can only serve in small ways – maybe even by just simply praying for others – but that service is needed and felt far more than you can know.
Along with that, let me emphasize that this church cannot function without a willingness among its members to serve. We need people to lead committees, teach Sunday school, go with youth to camp, help organize supplies, and much more. These are basic needs that aren’t always glorious, but they are necessary to the mission of this church.
So, now let’s consider some myths about church membership. Myth #1 – I don’t have to “join the church” to serve the church. In answering this myth, I want to kill two birds with one stone. First, for the person who might not be a member but who thinks this, let me emphasize the analogy of marriage. This is akin to a couple saying, “We don’t have to be married to live like we are married.” In the eyes of the world, maybe not, but in the eyes of God, you’d be wrong. Just like marriage, church membership is a covenant. By joining this church, you are committing yourself to be a part of this body. You are committing to its discipline and teaching. And, you are committing to care for and love its members.
Along with that, let me address this same issue from the church’s side. While Baptists, on paper, believe very strongly in “regenerative church membership”, we don’t always practice it that well. Understand, as a church, we should never nominate or approve of a non-member serving in a position within this church. Membership means that the people who serve are accountable to us. They are under our discipline. Someone who has not made that covenant should not serve because they have no accountability.
Myth #2: Anyone who comes down the aisle should automatically be accepted into membership. This is an assumption that has landed many a pastor in hot water. On occasion, there will be a person who comes with baggage and wants to join our church, or a stranger that the pastor doesn’t know. In those cases, a pastor should have (and does have, biblically speaking) the leeway to investigate further. There is no requirement (biblically or constitutionally) that demands that the pastor should automatically present anyone who comes down this aisle for membership. Sometimes, I need the room to find out if they understand the gospel, if they have evidence of repentance and faith, if they have been or are willing to be baptized, or if they are living in sin that they need to confess and repent of. And, I will warn you now – I will make sure of these things and will take the time I need, maybe even after the service, to ensure these things.
Membership matters because it is a covenant with God and his people. May we each commit to one another and to the Lord as we serve in his church.
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