Suppose you have a daughter with a very serious romantic interest in a certain guy.  This guy is very into in your daughter, seems to like everything about her, and has already taken her out on several dates.  One day, the guy comes to you confessing his love for her and asking your permission for her to move in with him where they can live together forever or at least until they get angry or want something new and are then free to look for a new partner.  At this point, every guy reading this has images of loading the shotgun running through his mind.  No loving father would ever want that for his daughter, yet that is precisely how many Christians treat the local church.

Somewhere along the path of Church history, the modern idea has emerged that it is not necessary for a Christian to become a member of a local body.  Those who hold such ideals may well find a church they enjoy and spend at least the majority of their Sundays there.  They will serve if asked and will bake cookies for church fellowships.  They are good people and good Christians, but they just don’t feel the need to become an “official member.”

This idea is advocated my many Christian leaders today including George Barna, who in his book “Revolution” recognizes several “models of church experience resident in the nation today.”  Just one of these models is the traditional form of congregational church complete with membership, worship services, and women’s ministry.  Barna goes further, however, placing on even ground with the traditional model what he calls “distributed” models of faith.  These are little more than gatherings of Christians where a well-known worship leader plays “extended sets of worship music for audiences who had no prior connection with each other.”  According to this description, one who regularly attends Christian concerts should be considered a faithful church-goer.  Sadly, they likely pay more for concert tickets than they tithe to a local congregation.  While traditional churches can and should learn a lot from his book, on this particular point Barna and others like him who give credence to the transient, non-commital nature of modern Christians do damage to the Biblical model of local church membership.

This begs the question of whether the Bible in fact commands believers to become members of a local congregation.  Yes and no.  What the Bible does not say is any sort of “thou shalt be a member of a local church.”  However, what the Bible does say concerning membership is obvious.  While the word “membership” is not used, it is implied through the ideas of commitment, accountability, submission to spiritual authority, and regular fellowship (breaking bread together) and gatherings for worship and teaching from God’s word (Heb. 13:17; Jam. 5:16; Acts 2:42-47).  Membership at the local church level is the avenue through which the Universal Church continues its advance.  As part of the membership process many local congregations require their pledges to sign a “covenant” or membership agreement.  This covenenant first mandates that members must be Christians.  What sense is there, afterall, in advocating a Christ-like lifestyle to someone who has not even placed faith in Jesus to begin with?  Then, the covenant will have various requirements for faithful service, giving, and being an active part of the church community.

In addition to the covenant requirements, church membership serves other advantages as well.  Membership constructs a basic pathway through which church leaders are recruited, developed, and empowered for service (Acts 6:1-6).  Finally, church membership sets a framework for submission and accountability.  When one joins a church as a member that person is in essence submitting him or herself to the spiritual authorities that the Holy Spirit has placed at that church.  This is critical for matters of church discipline in which the church leaders must lovingly rebuke and restore a member caught in sin (Matt. 18:15-20).  This simply has no effect on someone who has not committed to the local body through membership.  If the Corinthians weren’t members of their local church what right would Paul have had in condemning their lifestyles (1 Cor. 5:4,5)?

One might argue that while fornication is condemned in the Bible, not becoming a member of a local congregation is not.  In that I agree.  However, in lieu of a mandate that Matrimony be commemorated through official ceremony, it is possible to believe that two people can in fact make a life-long commitment to one another, leaving their family and starting a new one of their own without going through any sort of official procession.  In that case, the couple could seek permission from the parents, make a verbal life-long commitment in the presence of witnesses who would hold them accountable, and create a new loving family of their own.  But doesn’t that sound a lot like a marriage ceremony (without all the tradition)?  Likewise, couldn’t a Christian commit to faithfully serve and give to a local body, submitting to the spiritual authority in place, and seek opportunities to regularly participate in community?  Of course!  But doesn’t that sound a lot like membership?  And once you arrive at that point is taking a class and signing a paper really going to be a point of contention for you?

“Membership” may not be a title you particularly care for.  Fine.  But the process and meaning are what you should value.  If you have been reluctant to join a church, check your heart and ask the Holy Spirit to illuminate you as to why.  Most of our apprehensions stem from a fear of commitment or unwillingness to submit to spiritual authority.  Like so many “live-in” boyfriends and girlfriends, we don’t want to be tied down to one place, maintaining our freedom to leave if we ever feel the need to.  Be weary of masquerading your pride as a deeper spiritual insight into what it looks like to serve God.  Find a church and commit to it.  You may not get a card and save money like at some grocery store, but it will make a world of difference in your life and in the church who needs a member like you.

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