It seems today that people are questioning the idea of church membership. People used to join without asking too many questions or wondering why they were doing it. Instead of just blindly accepting the practice of church membership, people are increasingly asking for a Biblical defense of the practice. This is more than just hesitancy to join. It is a desire to know the what of church membership (its Biblical defense) and the why of church membership (its purpose and use). For some pastors, this reticence to join can be frustrating, and for good reason. However, this actually gives us a great opportunity. It is never a bad thing when people ask for a Biblical defense and description of a point of doctrine or ecclesiology. Instead, it is an opportunity to teach afresh the great purpose and Biblical foundation for a practice like church membership.
Usually those who ask these questions are those who grew up in church and are familiar with church membership. Because of this, when we teach and talk about the subject, we must do it employing fresh terms and new imagery. Those who grew up in church have often built an immunity to the normal ways of describing things. I was reading a book the other day, and it briefly brushed on church membership. It used some terminology that I thought was helpful and insightful. The book is The Trellis and the Vine by Colin Marshall and Tony Payne. Below is the paragraph from pages 66 and 67 that I thought was helpful. Read it and respond with your thoughts.
The gospel itself demands that we stand with our leaders and preachers in profound unity, teamwork and solidarity—not because of their personalities or gifts, but because of our common partnership in the gospel of Jesus Christ. There aren’t two classes of Christians—the partners and the spectators. We’re all in it together. One church we have been involved in tried to express this by not having a ‘membership’ of the congregation, but a ‘partnership.’ In our society, when you join as a ‘member’ of something, it can have connotations of passivity and consumerism. I join a club, and expect certain benefits. The ‘partnership’ language, on the other hand, communicates immediately that we are signing up for active involvement—for being partners together in a great enterprise: the gospel mission of Christ.
