The Meaning of Membership

INTRODUCTION:

Today we are officially ending our series entitled “Family Matters” with a final sermon on church membership.

I’ve titled this message the Meaning of Membership because in it I want to answer the question of “what does it MEAN to be a member of a local church?

Particularly, at Broadview Baptist Church, what are the expectations of membership and why should anybody really want to be a member of this local church? Is it anything more than just “making it official” or “signing the dotted line?” (not that we have any dotted lines or require signatures for membership)

This message is the summation of a series we’ve been going through for about two months now. After this morning we’ll resume our series in the book of Revelation.

Review of Series

If you’ll remember back to the beginning of this series we spend some time asking the question “Why do churches matter and what matters in the church?”

The answer to that question was pretty simple.

Churches matter because they are God’s PRIMARY vehicle for continuing the ministry of Jesus on the earth. It’s his chosen institution.

This is made explicit in Ephesians 3:10-11

Ephesians 3:10–11 (CSB)

10 This is so that God’s multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens. 11 This is according to his eternal purpose accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The church was purchased by Christ blood, entrusted with Christ’s authority and commissioned to carry on Christ’s ministry to the ends of the earth.

This is why Broadview exists and this is why every local church exists.

Thankfully, Christ has given the church particular gifts to help them accomplish this mission and live out their purpose. We’ve listed four. You could add more but not less.

The ordinances (baptism/lord’s supper)

The offices (pastors/deacons)

The Holy Spirit

The Word of God (particularly the Gospel).

We saw how the ordinances act as a door into God’s house. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are only available to those who are truly regenerate.

We saw how a healthy church has a healthy structure. In a healthy church structure “Christ rules (he’s the senior pastor), the congregation affirms the leadership of Christ, pastors lead the congregation to know and discover Christ’s will and finally deacons serve the congregation to help the pastor in shepherding the church.

When it comes to the Word of God and the Spirit of God we saw that they are basically two sides of the same coin.

We want to be a church that is centered on God’s Word and filled with God’s Spirit. When we do that, the Spirit of God uses the Word of God to transform us into the image of Christ.

My Disciple Statements

This is Christ’s design for the local church. When it submits itself to this design amazing things begin to happen.

People, within that local church, will begin to be transformed more and more into the image of Jesus.

At Broadview, we have “marks” or “proofs” of that transforming work. Sometimes we refer to them as the “my disciple” statements of Jesus.

We’ve examined several of them throughout this series. They are all part of our vision frame we’ve used throughout this series.

Members of a healthy church, with a healthy structure, submitted to Christ’s design will have members who

Abide in Christ’s Word (The Gospel)

John 8:31 (CSB)

31 Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you continue in my word, you really are my disciples.

John 15:5 (CSB)

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me.

Love One Another

John 13:34–35 (CSB)

34 “I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Bear Much Fruit

John 15:7–8 (CSB)

7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be my disciples.

In other words, they will be people who abide in Christ’s Word, love His people and bear fruit in His mission.

As we saw last week, they will be a people of faith who express that faith though acts of love. (Gal 5:6) Love for God, for one another, for the world.

The love that Christians have for one another isn’t a watered-down, wishy-washy sentimentality. It’s a love the begins and ends in God himself. It’s a love that celebrates and cultivates holy goodness in the life of the beloved.

Imagine a Church

Imagine a Church wherein that kind of love was given and displayed.

Imagine a church where truth is preached, Christ is experienced and people are changed.

Imagine a church where God’s power and God’s wisdom were perfectly displayed through an imperfect people.

That’s the beauty of the local church. But for that to happen, every member must play his or her part.

In other words, there are “expectations” to membership in a local church.

When these expectations are met then you’ll see God begin to do amazing things in the life of a church.

So what does that look like? What are the expectations a local church should have for their church members? That’s what I want to spend the rest of our time talking about this morning.

Membership Expectations

Our membership expectations all flow out of our disciple-making pathway. You hear me talk about it all the time.

Worship (in a Gathering),

Connect (in a Group),

Bless (others on a team).

Our church is committed to making these environments compelling and engaging. They are the bread and butter of our local church.

But membership in a local church is a two way street. We have certain expectations - particularly for our members.

Every one of our membership expectations flow out of our disciple-making pathway.

Here are the seven expectations in order:

Attend Regularly

Grow Continually

Connect Relationally

Give Generously

Serve Faithfully

Live Missionally

Walk Humbly

Attend Regularly

The first pillar is to attend regularly. We can’t fulfill our purpose if our members are never/rarely present.

You will neither benefit nor effectively participate in church membership if you’re not physically present when we gather.

The New Testament is not unclear on this expectation.

Hebrews 10:24–25 (CSB)

24 And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, 25 not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.

The author of Hebrews is writing to a group of Christians who are going through a difficult season, had become spiritually immature and apathetic towards the things of God. (sounds pretty similar to what churches are facing today)

The antidote to that spiritual malaise was to increase their participation in church gathering and increase their commitment to love one another.

“Consider one another” means to think about other brothers and sisters in your local church. Consider how God might use you to stir them up to love and good works.

Sunday & “That Day”

Why? Because the day is approaching. That day is the day of Christ return.

It’s because of THAT DAY that we gather together on THIS DAY.

As we’ve studied in the book of Revelation, that day is going to be preceded by insane levels of hardship, cultural sickness and disobedience and a growing lovelessness even among Christians within the local church.

We know that day is coming. We can feel the reality of that day even NOW. So we must STOP neglecting our gatherings and instead SHOW UP when the church has an opportunity to meet.

If you’ve fallen out of the rabbit of regular church attendance let me exhort you, as your pastor, to get back in the habit. It’s not just important for your spiritual health. It’s important for the health of our congregation. We need you HERE to do what Christ has called us to do.

Grow Continually

The second expectation is to “grow continually.” We will be always striving, never arriving, until the day of Christ return.

This is a two-fold word. It’s for those who are spiritually underdeveloped. But it’s also a word to those who are overly confident.

First, the underdeveloped. There are local churches full of Christians who are spiritually immature or plateaued. You might be one of them.

Spiritual stagnation in any local church is an invitation for Jesus Christ to come and shut it down.

We also saw this reality in the book of Revelation. Jesus threatening to come and take away the lampstand because the church had become characterized by spiritual laziness and/or disobedience.

Paul describes this reality in 1 Corinthians. He uses the language of “walking in the flesh” and “worldliness” to describe spiritual immaturity.

1 Corinthians 3:1–3 (CSB)

1 For my part, brothers and sisters, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ. 2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, since you were not yet ready for it. In fact, you are still not ready, 3 because you are still worldly. For since there is envy and strife among you, are you not worldly and behaving like mere humans?

There are many churches - even here in Abilene - who are chock full of “worldly Christians.” They’re “in the flesh.” They’re “unspiritual.” Here’s the worst part, there’s not much I can do about it as your pastor.

Can’t Force It. Must Want It.

As your pastor, I can’t make you GROW. I can preach and teach the Bible but only YOU can make the decision to repent and believe the truth. Only YOU can get up on Monday morning and rinse and repeat that same process.

A church full of people who only hear and respond to God’s Word on Sunday mornings (and only a small percentage of even those people do that) WILL NOT STAND.

Becoming a member of a local church is like becoming a member of a gym.

There’s an expectation that you’ll show up and work out. Otherwise, your membership is just draining your bank account and making you feel ashamed for your lack of progress.

As Paul told the church in Ephesus. Eph 4:15

Ephesians 4:15 (CSB)

15 But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head—Christ.

There’s always an area for you to grow as a Christian. You might be 80 years old and 75 years a Christian. If you’re not dead then you haven’t arrived.

In fact, the older you get as a Christian the MORE intentional you must become about growing in your walk with Jesus. New season = new challenges. Don’t stall. Don’t quit. Keep striving. Never arriving.

Connect Relationally

That brings me to the third expectation. Connect relationally. People come to a church for many reasons. They stay for relationships.

How does the church grow?

Ephesians 4:15 we just read it. Speaking the truth in love.

That implies a “one another” in the context of a local church. Speak the truth to “one another” in love.

He says it again in Eph 4:16 the church “builds itself up in love.” How? By the proper working of each individual part.

Again, you see these personal relationships that interact with one another in the church for the church to fulfill its purpose

There is toxic mindset that many Christians have towards their local church. They think of the church like a “gas station.”

I get spiritually depleted so I come to church to get filled back up again with an inspirational message and good music. (or like a balloon that looses air)

The church is not a gas station. It’s a training facility. It’s a gym. To get the most from your workout you need a spot. A workout partner.

They help you stay consistent, they push you further than you would go by yourself and they celebrate with you in your successes.

The only way to really grow is to put yourself in an environment of vulnerability and accountability.

One Another Passages

There’s a little Greek word in the NT that gets translated into English as “one another.” (ah-lay-loan)

It’s uses 100 times in 94 different NT verses. (60% by Paul) We could spend all day going through these passages.

There are 13 “one another” passages that deal with unity,

15 that deal with loving one another,

7 or so that deal with humility and

many others that span from encouragement and hospitality to prayer and comfort. (even 4 on kissing!)

Every single one of these imply personal relationships within the local church.

Why Groups?

That’s why the second pillar of our pathway is “connect in a group.” Groups facilitate genuine Christian community.

Groups don’t CREATE Christian community. But they do facilitate it. AKA they make it easier and produce an environment from which it can organically spring.

If you’re really going to connect relationally with people in this church it’s going to require more than 1-2 hours on a Sunday morning.

Show some hospitality and invite some people over to your home. Create an environment where friendship can flourish.

If you become a member of our church don’t just sit and wait for someone to make friends with you. Go up and try and make a friend with them. It’s a way that we grow up into the fullness of Christ.

Give Generously

The fourth of the seven expectations relates to our tithes and offerings. Give generously. Generous members make for a generous Church.

One of the only ways to externally measure the state of your heart is to examine your faithfulness in giving your tithe and offerings.

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus made it very clear.

Where you put your treasure, is where you’ll find your heart. Matthew 6:21

Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

You can love God or you can love money. But you can’t love both.

If greed has taken root in your heart - the only way to break that power is through generosity. Giving breaks the power of greed.

The Tithe & God’s Blessing

But it’s not just that. Giving the tithe (10% of your income) also invites the blessing of God on your life and on our church.

Malachi 3:10 (CSB)

10 Bring the full tenth into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord of Armies. “See if I will not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing for you without measure.

Some people debate whether tithing is still applicable to Christians since we are under the New Covenant.

It’s true we’re not under the OT Law. We’re under a new Law, the Law of Christ.

But suggesting that we no longer need to tithe because we’re under the law of Christ is simply a gross misrepresentation of the law of Christ.

If anything, the Gospel ought to promote GREATER levels of generosity not less. We should give BEYOND the tithe, not under the tithe.

Grace Giving

The clearest explanation on giving through a local church in the NT is 2 Corinthians 8-9.

Some describe it as “grace giving.” According to Paul this is a grace in which we should “excel” and a grace that “proves” the genuineness of our love ( 2 Cor 8:7-8)

There are particular attributes that stand out.

It’s patterned after Christ himself.

“though he was rich he became poor...” (2 Cor 8:9)

It’s proportional in it’s cause & effect...

“give according to what one has...” (2 Cor 8:10-12)

“receive according to what one gives...” (2 Cor 9:6)

It produces a blessing from God in your life.

“[God] will provide for and multiply your seed and increase your harvest of righteousness...” (2 Cor 9:10)

“You will be enriched in every way for all generosity...” (2 Cor 9:11)

A good summary of this grace giving is found in 2 Cor 9:6-8

2 Corinthians 9:6–8 (CSB)

6 The point is this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each person should do as he has decided in his heart—not reluctantly or out of compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make every grace overflow to you, so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work.

What This Means For Us

So what does this mean for our local church? As Americans, the vast majority of us have WAY more than what we need and so our level of generosity ought to reflect that fact.

There will be certain cases where a believer may be so far in debt even a tithe is unfeasible. But that person should begin to honor God in their finances by getting OUT of debt and adjust their lifestyle to be able to honor God in their giving.

I believe in the vast majority of cases for the vast majority of people generosity in our giving ought to begin with the tithe and exceed the tithe when the Lord impresses it upon your heart or a special need arises within the congregation.

I know this is unpopular in our day but it is a biblical expectation of church membership and it’s an invitation to God’s blessing on your life if you’ll simply be obedient to him in this area of your life.

Serve Faithfully

The fifth expectation is related to service in the local church. Serve faithfully. Every member has a ministry. You’ve been gifted and empowered for service.

1 Peter 4:10 (CSB)

10 Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.

When you become a member of Christ’s body you are baptized into the Holy Spirit and given a spiritual gift with which you are able to build Christ’s body.

The Bible has these different “lists” of spiritual gift and no one list contains every gift and every list is a little bit different. So when you think about what your gift is you don’t necessarily need to take some kind of spiritual gift inventory quiz.

The way I think about it is the confluence between what you’re good at, passionate about and what other people affirm in you.

It can be summarized under three A’s. Abilities, affinities, affirmations.

Often times, the Holy Spirit will take something you’re already talented in and then give you a unique ability to bring that to bear in the life of the local church and spiritually build people up through that gift.

It’s also common for the Holy Spirit to gift you in area with which you already have an emotional connection. If you’re passionate about studying and learning then the Lord might gift you to be a teacher. If you’re passionate about people and sharing the Gospel God might give you the gift of evangelism.

Finally, your gift can also be discovered by what other people affirm about you. In fact, if you believe Christ has gifted you for a particular area of ministry but you never receive any affirmation in that calling then it might be a sign that there’s somewhere else Christ wants to deploy you to build up the body.

Gift < Need

I’d also say that your gift for ministry shouldn’t be your only filter for where you should serve. In the local church, sometimes the “need” of the church trumps your “gift” for ministry.

For example, I’ve not met many people who say “I feel like I’ve been gifted by the Holy Spirit to change diapers and work with three year olds.” (in fact… if I DID hear that I would probably keep that person at an arms distance!)

That being said - we have a great NEED for people to serve in our preschool wing. It’s the easiest and shorted mission trip you’ll ever take. They’re the future of our church but it’s like pulling teeth to get people to serve.

Allow the needs in a church motivate your willingness to be faithful in service.

Live Missionally

The sixth expectation of church membership is to “live missionally.”

What we mean by this is that you leverage everyday opportunity to share the truth about and love of Christ.

Paul tells the church in Colossae

Colossians 4:5–6

5 Act wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you should answer each person.

1 Peter 3:15

15 but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, ready at any time to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.

The truth is, Broadview Baptist Church doesn’t just exist when we “gather” on Sundays or Wednesday or any other time.

The church is not a building. The church is a PEOPLE.

Broadview exists when we gather but it also exists while we’re scattered.

Learning to live on mission is filtering all of your experiences and conversations through the lens of God’s mission to save a people for himself through faith in Jesus Christ.

It’s embracing the idea that not only has ever member been gifted for ministry. We’ve also be empowered to be a witness. (Acts 1:8)

Walk Humbly

The final expectation for church membership is an attitude that ought to permeate the other six and that is to “walk humbly.”

One of my favorite passages in the NT is in 1 Peter 5:5.

He has just given instructions to the elders of the church and those who are young in the faith.

He follows that with a charge for EVERYONE in the church to clothe themselves with humility.

1 Peter 5:5–7 (CSB)

5 In the same way, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. All of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because

God resists the proud

but gives grace to the humble.

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you at the proper time, 7 casting all your cares on him, because he cares about you.

Just as pride acts as the root for all other sins, humility is the root from which all Christian virtues grow.

Love, patience, kindness, goodness, all of these things flow when humility is embraced.

Humility is the virtue that makes us most like the Lord Jesus. Phil 2:3-5

Philippians 2:3–5 (CSB)

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. 4 Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others.

5 Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus,

Humility is what promotes and maintains unity in the local church.

Humility is what makes true Christian community possible. (it motivates forgiveness, patience, gentleness, self-control, etc)

Humility is what enables us to become aware of our own need for growth and constant improvement. (don’t think of yourself more highly than you ought)

Every one of these seven expectations of membership intersect with humility.

Humility is the essential Christian virtue because it fuels and motivates every other virtue. It isn’t thinking more or less of yourself. It’s thinking of yourself, less.

Attend Regularly: Your willingness to sacrifice your time and attend regularly will grow as you value the needs of the church beyond your selfish wants and desires.

Grow Continually: When you live from a place of constant need you’ll always be eager to grow. If you allow pride to inflate your ego/maturity then growth stalls.

Connect Relationally: Humble people are the best friends you can have. Relationships are built on vulnerability and accountability. You can’t have either without vulnerability.

Give Generously: Humility enables you to hold your earthly possessions loose because building your own kingdom becomes LESS important than building God’s kingdom.

Serve Faithfully: The son of man came not to be served but to serve. Why? Humility. It’s what enables you to discover and deploy your spiritual gift and motivates you to use it for the good of others instead of yourself.

Live Missionally: Becoming someone who joins God in his mission to save requires a level of self-forgetfulness that only humility can create.

Humility is the essential Christian virtue because it fuels and motivates every other virtue. It isn’t thinking more or less of yourself. It’s thinking of yourself, less.

It’s denying yourself - taking up your cross (daily) and following Jesus.

When we all pursue humility, not only will these membership expectations materialize in our life. They will do so effortlessly because the Holy Spirit will have so much freedom to motivate and empower these Christ-like virtues.

Conclusion

So as we bring this message to a conclusion