It is my contention that commitment to the local church—at least in my lifetime and in our western society—has digressed to become an afterthought even in the lives of most believers! It’s kind of the attitude that we can give God the leftovers of our lives … and that’s O.K….
What this has done to the Church is this: The result is lackadaisical Christians that are not held accountable to be living out the Gospel in community and on mission. Instead of having and holding a high view of ecclesiology (the doctrine of the church), Christians are more prone to apathy … treating church membership like membership in any other club or service organization. However, that’s not what we’re talking about when we discuss being ‘members’ of a local Body of Christ…
Let’s look at our scripture for today to see what God’s Word has to say about being ‘members’…
The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit. 14 Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part.
15 If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear? Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything? 18 But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. 19 How strange a body would be if it had only one part! 20 Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. 21 The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.” 22 In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary. 23 And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, 24 while the more honorable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. 25 This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. 26 If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad. 27 All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. 28 Here are some of the parts God has appointed for the church: first are apostles, second are prophets, third are teachers, then those who do miracles, those who have the gift of healing, those who can help others, those who have the gift of leadership, those who speak in unknown languages. 29 Are we all apostles? Are we all prophets? Are we all teachers? Do we all have the power to do miracles? 30 Do we all have the gift of healing? Do we all have the ability to speak in unknown languages? Do we all have the ability to interpret unknown languages? Of course not! 31 So you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts. But now let me show you a way of life that is best of all. – 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 (NLT)
Folks, for way too many, the church is simply a place they ‘go,’ whether they physically go there or not! You know, people will ask ‘Where do you go to church?’ and most respond with the church where their name is on the rolls. But, is that all that church is?
Here’s the problem. The church is not just a place we ‘go’ to… It is also not just a building. It’s a people—the people of God … sent on God’s mission to proclaim God’s message! Folks, we are the Church. The local church is a collection of committed followers of Jesus Christ banded together to live out the Gospel in community and on mission. With this in mind, I want to offer up 3 important reasons (though there are many more) why local church membership matters:
The ONE ANOTHER’S of Scripture. Even a cursory reading of Scripture lets us know that God’s people lived in radically other-centered ways (see Acts 2:42-47, for example).
All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. 43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity— 47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved. – Acts 2:42-47 (NLT)
Throughout God’s Word we see Christians being instructed to exercise the ‘one another’s of Scripture’ and, in turn, see them living out these ‘one another’s’ in obedience to those instructions. This may sound a bit corny, but please know that today … as we read these, we also need to heed these! Folks, here are some of the ‘one another’s of Scripture’ that I’m talking about: As Christians, we are commanded to…
…love one another (John 13:14, Romans 12:10, 1 Peter 1:22, etc.)…
…instruct one another (Romans 15:14)…
…comfort one another (2 Cor. 13:11)…
…serve one another (Galatians 5:13)…
…bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2)…
…forgive one another (Ephesians 4:22)…
…admonish one another (Colossians 3:16)…
…exhort one another daily (Hebrews 3:13)…
…stir one another to love and good works (Hebrews 10:24)…
…confess our sins to one another (James 5:16)…
…and at least 25 other ‘one another’s’ that I can count…
Local church membership matters because the LOCAL CHURCH is where we live out these ‘one another’s’ of Scripture—with real people, people with personal and spiritual and missional discipleship needs … people with real problems, real burdens, and real sin! So, first the ‘one another’s’ of scripture is why Membership Matters! Then comes…
Commitment to ONE ANOTHER. If we are truly to live out the ‘one another’s’ of Scripture, we must be COMMITTED to one another and know who’s COMMITTED to us! Membership Matters in this way…
Do you know where the word ‘member’ as it applies to church membership comes from? It is ‘body language.’ One of the definitions of member in the dictionary is this: a part or organ of a plant or animal body, especially a limb… In other words, your arm is a ‘member,’ etc. It’s referring to being a member of a living body. And, folks, we are the Body of Christ…
Think about it: It’s those parts or ‘members’ of a living body who are truly committed to one another that makes for a very healthy and functional body! Again, if we are truly to live out the ‘one another’s’ of Scripture, we must be COMMITTED to one another and know who’s COMMITTED to us! Let me share this idea with you from another perspective…
Jesus Christ died for the Church—that’s you and me. He obtained it with his own blood. Acts 20:28 tells us: “So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as elders.” Now, one of the metaphors that Scripture uses for the Church—purchased with Jesus’ own blood—is ‘the bride of Christ.’ With that in mind, think about this:
If a man tells a woman he loves her and wants to spend the rest of his life with her … yet refuses to commit to her in marriage, she really ought not to take him seriously! If he simply showed up at the house whenever he felt like it … or needed something, never emotionally invested, never demonstrated his love for her, never sacrificed for her in any way, never put her needs before his, never financially supported her, that wouldn’t be much of a commitment, would it?
In the same way, folks, ‘Christians’ who fail to commit to the local church treat Christ’s bride in a very cheap manner! Local church membership matters because our commitment to ‘one another’—the Church—matters! We have to know who is committed to the mission & vision of the local church … and to us as members. And the final reason why membership in the local church matters is…
Commitment to CHRIST and Obedience to HIS WORD. And, this is the one that finally convinced me that local church membership truly does matter! First though, let me make this bold statement this morning (because the longer I live & study God’s word, the more I believe it to be true): It is impossible to live in obedience to God’s word without being a member of a local church! Why? Because ‘the Church’ is God’s medium provided to us whereby we can live out all that God has asked us to do in the world we live in! Let me give you an example…
Hebrews 13:17 says this: “Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit.”
The only group of leaders, according to Scripture, who are responsible or ‘accountable’ to God for leading God’s people … are the pastors/leaders of the local church. If you are not a church member, how can you obey this command of scripture? In other words, what body that has pastors/leaders—for this purpose—are you submitted to? Does that make sense? You can’t be obedient to what’s being asked of you in God’s word … unless you are connected to a local body…
Note: It must be implicitly recognized that leaders in a local church are not accountable for every person who comes through the door for worship each week! They are only held accountable for those who have formally committed to be a part of the local church under its care, thus becoming a part of the ‘flock’ who they are commanded—by Scripture—to pay close attention to (Acts 20:28). So, Membership Matters … very much, scripturally speaking…
As we close today, I need to make a couple of comments regarding what we’ve talked about today:
If someone is not committed to living out the ‘one another’s’ of Scripture, if they are not committed to doing that with a specific group of real live people, how are we ever—as leaders in the church—to evaluate their commitment to Christ? There has to be some way, if we’re to be held accountable for members of the Body…
If someone is trying to function apart from the Body, is Christ truly their head?
If a failure to commit to the local church is equated to disobedience to God’s Word, what do we make of someone who consistently refuses to even consider this type of connection?
Some of you might know the name Church Colson, once a part of the Nixon administration in the White House, he is currently the head of a ministry called Prison Fellowship. In his book called ‘The Body,’ Colson says this: “Yet membership in a confessing body is fundamental to the faithful Christian life. Failure to do so defies the explicit warning not to forsake ‘our assembling together.’ His understanding of this prompted Martin Luther to say, ‘Apart from the church, salvation is impossible.’ Not that the church provides salvation; God does. But because the ‘saved’ one can’t fulfill what it means to be a Christian apart from the church, membership becomes the indispensable mark of salvation. … ‘So highly does the Lord esteem the communion of His church,’ Calvin wrote, ‘that He considers everyone a traitor and apostate from religion who perversely withdraws himself from any Christian society which preserves the true ministry of the word and sacraments.’ (The Body, Charles W. Colson, 1992, Word Publishing, Page 70.)
Biblically speaking, membership really is serious business, isn’t it? Membership Matters. And we need to all consider it … seriously!