It was a great privilege to welcome 11 people into membership at Hope Church yesterday.
I get asked from time to time why we have a membership at Hope Church. My first response is that many, many churches have membership and we're certainly not an exception! My second response is that in a growing church, which we are, it's so important for the leadership team to know who's really identifying Hope Church as the place they want to call home and who's just checking us out.
Here's five quick reasons why we feel membership is important.
It is stated in the Bible: “Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about 3,000 were added to their number… and the Lord added to their number daily” (Acts 2:41&47). The biblical pattern is that people come to know Jesus and then get added to a local church.
It is implied in the Bible: The Bible describes local church as a “body”; this metaphor for the church assumes functioning, meaningful membership.
Leadership held to account: The Bible cautions church leaders that they will be held to account for how they lead, and equally church members are instructed to honour their leaders. Both instructions presuppose meaningful church membership.
New Testament structure: The epistles (the letters in the New Testament) were written to local churches assuming all believers would be members of local churches and therefore would hear their epistles being read out.
New Testament discipline: In cases of serious on-going un-repentance, Paul instructed the churches to expel members from the church. This instruction assumes that there is a group of people who are members of the church, distinct from those who are just visiting.
As well as there being some snacks and drinks (bonus!) we'll be presenting the key values of Hope Church and what our vision is going forward.
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| Tom Scrivens |
