Receive Free Monthly TeachingQuestion:
Church Membership - We have never had official "membership" in our church, but I'm thinking about initiating it. I'm curious as to what experiences other pastors have had with church membership. What are the pros and the cons? What requirements should we have for people to become members? What is taught in the membership classes and how extensive are they? What reasons are there for having or not having church membership?
Responses:
Pastor Jerry Weinzierl – Sterling Heights, MI
We implemented a new protocol for membership about 2 years ago and it's unbelievable the number of people that have responded. Our situation may be a bit different because we have grown rapidly over the last couple years. We "wondered out loud" that if we made it easier to become a "member," would more people stick around and take the "discipleship" course (The Journey) in order to get involved in the church.
There are different levels of involvement: work in the cafe, cleaning the building, Valet, or Greeter Ministry all the way to Life Group Leader, Worship Team, Children's/Youth ministry worker, Altar Care, Pastoral Care Team, etc., etc. Every ministry is important, yet they may carry differing degrees of maturity, connection to Grace, etc. ANYONE that wants to be involved in ANYTHING must, (1) Become a member, and (2) Take the First Principles class (in The Journey). To be involved at higher levels of leadership and responsibility, the more classes you need to take. The final two groupings of class are Road to Service (discovering your gifts) & Road to Stability (learning about leadership principles).
Where we use to announce new members once per quarter and have 10-12 names to read, we now announce new members monthly and have 30+ (Last month we had 39!).
Our philosophy: Get ‘em connected...then get ‘em involved!
Pastor John White – Decatur, AL
When we first started the church I wasn’t sure if we should take membership or not. I didn’t have any biblical ground to do so. I thought, “If you come, you are a member.” However, as time passed I realized that it was important to have church membership. The Bible says in Proverbs 27:23, “Be diligent to know the state of thy flocks and look well to thy herds.” Well I didn’t know who my flock was until I started taking membership. I couldn’t leave the 99 and go after the one that had gone astray if I didn’t know who they were.
Membership provides accountability. It also gives the people a sense of ownership. Most people use to refer to our church as “Brother John’s church.” Now they say, “My church.” They have finally taken ownership and are more involved, more dedicated, and committed to it.
I liken membership to a marriage. There is a covenant between us. We are committed to each other and dedicated to one another’s success. We have disagreements. We get ticked off at each other from time to time, but because we are in covenant and love one another, we work out our problems. We are in a marriage relationship and not just living together where we can walk out at any time with no strings attached.
Also, because we are in a type of marriage relationship, or should I say family relationship, everyone has chores to do. Everyone has a job to do in the church. At home your job might be to mow the grass or take out the garbage. But at church, it might be to work in the nursery or be an altar worker. Every member is assigned a job.
I taught everything the church believes in eight sessions and we put those CDs in an album or manual with an application and other information about the church. I mention about once per month how to become a member and give a manual to each prospective member. After completing all of the requirements in our manual, they attend one class where we answer questions, discuss issues in the manual and find out their talents and abilities in order to plug them into a position. Then at the conclusion of a Sunday morning service, we recognize all the new members and welcome them into our family and pray for them.
This process has worked very well for us and it has helped us to retain and maintain our congregation. I believe that church membership is very important and beneficial to the success and vision of our church.
Pastor David Emigh – Sand Springs, OK
I personally believe that church membership is very important. We did not have it for the first few years of our church, but I began to see a need for people to commit to something bigger than themselves. So we started on the membership journey.
I think the most important thing is to make it practical; not too many rules, but it needs to draw a commitment from the member. I do have our “Welcome to the Family” class on CD and also have a workbook I would be glad to send it to any minister who thinks it would be beneficial to them. If you would like to receive these items, please submit your request to demigh@wolonline.net.
Pastor Denny Beavers – Jonesboro, AR
I believe strongly in church membership and that every believer should be a member of a local church. Our experience with church membership has been very positive. We endeavor to make everyone that attends our church feel welcome and an important part of the church, but we also emphasize the importance of church membership and committing to a local church and Pastor.
Church membership provides the members protection from wolves, consistent teaching for spiritual growth, opportunity for Christian service, fellowship with others of like, precious faith, and to be part of a natural and spiritual care system (a family of believers that care and pray one for another). The scriptures we use to emphasize these reasons for church membership are Eph. 4:8-16, Acts 20:28-30, Eccl. 4:9-12, 1 Cor. 12:25,26 and Heb. 13:7,17.
We require potential members to attend a one session orientation/membership class that lasts 2 - 2 1/2 hours (includes a break), or listen to the teaching on CD if they can't make the class. Attendance at the class is strongly encouraged, but if they can't attend, we make the CD's available to them. In the class, we cover the following areas: the importance of the local church and the Pastoral ministry, including the responsibility of Pastors/leaders and submission to Pastors/leaders; how God places members in the Body; the power of unity and the poison of strife; that each member has a three fold supply for the church – physical (Rms. 12:1, 1 Cor. 12:28, "helps ministry"), spiritual (Phil 1:19, 1 Cor 14:26) and financial (Malachi 3:7-12); the ministry of deacons; our form of church government; benefits and responsibilities of church membership; our church doctrine; our vision.
After attending the class or listening to the CD's, those desiring to become members are required to fill out and sign a membership application form that states they meet the requirements of membership and agree to support the Pastor and church in attendance, service, finances, and prayer. The application form also states that by becoming a member, the Pastor and congregation agree to faithfully serve them and pray for them and their family.
The requirements of membership are: (1) Must be born again (John 3:3-18, Rms.10:9,10). (2) Live a consistent Christian life (Eph.4:22, Rms. 6:1-7). (3) Attend Church regularly (Heb. 10:24,25). (4) Agree with our tenets of faith (1 Cor. 1:10). (5) Support the church with tithes and offerings (Mal. 3: 7-10). Serving in the Helps ministry is not one of the requirements to be a member, but our membership form states that members are expected to volunteer and serve in the ministry of helps.
To receive a copy of our membership CD or for more information, please e-mail me at lwc@suddenlinkmail.com.
Pastor John Pfeffer, Jr. – Seekonk, MA
I look at the concept of membership both from the perspective of a former attorney who formed churches and now as a pastor of a church that has existed for over 30 years.
Legally, I think that it is important to identify what is meant by “membership.” In many denominational churches, membership carries with it the right to vote on important issues. Legally, they operate like stockholders of a for-profit corporation. These issues would include approval of the budget and final approval over hiring a new pastor. In other words, membership means control of the significant issues of the church.
In typical non-denominational churches, membership has no voting rights and consists essentially of a “belonging” to the organization. This type of membership gives a sense of being part of the community of believers.
In either case, it is the corporation’s by-laws that should set out which type of membership your church uses.
We have had the informal type of membership almost from the beginning, and I believe that it has been a real blessing. Membership in our church requires completion of a five-week course (two hours per week), which explains the basic doctrines that the church believes. This course has several advantages:
- It lets the prospective member know more about who we are;
- Because it requires a commitment of their time & energy, the course also signifies to them how seriously we consider membership;
- It also allows us to see how committed and dependable a prospective member is by their completion of the course’s assignments;
At the end of the last class, we have the elders and pastors meet and greet the graduates, and I address them to express our appreciation. A few Sundays after the completion of the course, we have a short ceremony before the entire congregation, presenting certificates of membership and acknowledging them as members.
We have found that through this type of membership and the process of preparing for it, our new members have a greater sense of belonging to the church and our older members have a greater sense of the church as a growing community.Pastor John Larkam – Austin, TX
The late Pastor John Osteen, founder of Lakewood Church, once stated in a ministers conference that he didn’t have an “official” membership. If people were attending, giving and serving, he considered them “members.” The wisdom found in that statement alone helped us develop a purposeful membership at World Harvest Outreach Church. We designed a Membership Class around helping people become involved in the church through their attendance, giving and serving. At the core of membership is commitment- the giving of our time, our talent and our treasures to further the Kingdom of God.
Pros
Official Membership helps identify those people who are committed- the core group of people who you can depend upon and build around. Those who show up on Sunday morning may be a part of your congregation, but those who are committed with their time, talent and treasures are your core who will catch your vision and help you build. Membership helps identify those people.
Cons
Some are opposed to “organized religion” and since membership is a tool to help organize people for maximum impact in the community, those people will most likely be turned off by the thought of membership (or anything organizational in nature).
Membership Class
We have found that a membership class serves many purposes, among them:
- It gives the leadership an opportunity to meet and receive pertinent information from those interested in “joining” the church.
- It gives those who are interested in “joining” the church an opportunity to “get to know” the leadership.
- It provides the leadership an opportunity to share the history, the values and core beliefs, the tenants of faith, the structure (how they operate) and most importantly, the vision.
- It provides an opportunity to help people understand the importance of the local church.
- It helps people understand what they can expect of the leadership and what is expected of them.
- It helps people understand that they are important and that they have a part to play in the success of the church.
Requirements for Membership
These are entirely up to the pastor; however, here are some suggestions:
- Be born again.
- Successfully complete the Membership Class.
- Agree to a “Commitment” either by signing a form, making a public declaration or by other means.
