Rev. L. B. Williams, in his book on "Holiness Illustrations," relates the following: "A young man who was desperately in love with a young lady, wrote her that he would be willing to endure the cold of the frigid zone, or cross the burning sands of the desert, or climb the highest mountains, or swim the ocean, just to be in her charming presence." Then he closed his letter by saying, "And I will see you Wednesday night if it does not rain!"
This young man did a good job at talking about commitment and a poor job at demonstrating it.
Not too long ago I had the opportunity to meet for lunch with a friend who is a pastor. And as pastors do—we talked about the state of the church.
One of the topics we discussed was the lack of commitment in the local church. We were discussing questions like:
Why are there so many churches appearing that are experiencing exponential growth while lacking doctrinal purity? How is it that their churches grow when they do not rightly divide the Word of God?
“Why do churches have so many people on their membership rolls who give little or no evidence of Christian commitment or even conversion?
The answer to the first question was simple. In the Bible, the Apostle Paul writes to Timothy, a church planter, the following words:
(2 Tim 4:2 NKJV) Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
(2 Tim 4:3 NKJV) For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;
(2 Tim 4:4 NKJV) and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
Why are there so many churches appearing that are experiencing exponential growth while lacking doctrinal purity? How is it that their churches grow when they do not rightly divide the Word of God?
In many of these churches the membership isn't being challenged from the Word of God.
* They are being taught the prosperity doctrine--It is God's will that all Christian's be wealthy, healthy and wise.
* They are being taught a “social gospel” – “We must empower ourselves.” “Just Believe”
* They are being taught a “political gospel” – “The political parties have the answer.” “Vote change”
* They are being taught a “psychological gospel” – “Have faith in yourself.” “The power lies in you…”
There is a church that recently relocated not too far from our church. It's pastor is a woman who advertises her church as "…under the covering of (and then she names a famous bishop)." I hear the church is packed each Sunday.
They are using a famous bishop as a drawing card but research shows this man has a problem with his doctrine (what he teaches from the Bible).
* He doesn't believe in the historical doctrine of the Trinity. He believes in “THREE DIMENSIONS OF ONE GOD…” —He believes that God manifests Himself in three "modes"--He is one God but sometimes, at certain times He is Father (ex. during creation), sometimes He is Son (for redemption) and at other times He is the Holy Spirit. (in regeneration).
Yes he seems to have an understanding of the emotional suffering of women and preaches to loose them from their pain.
Yes, he has a mission to restore the vitality of our men as they are taught to be responsible.
But this person has major problems with what he teaches and I need to tell you this because people are flocking to ministries like his because they appeal to the senses but are lacking in sound doctrine.
Paul writes about men and women like this that would pop up in the last days:
(2 Tim 3:5 NKJV) having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
(2 Tim 3:6 NKJV) For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts,
(2 Tim 3:7 NKJV) always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
“But Pastor Chuck I just ate the meat and spit out the bones.”
Yes, and people have been known to choke on bones and I wouldn’t recommend giving your infant and toddlers meats and fish with the bones still in—they are not skilled in the art of deboning meat and filleting fish.
The Bible speaks about spiritual …”children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting…”
Why are there so many churches appearing that are experiencing exponential growth while lacking doctrinal purity? How is it that their churches grow when they do not rightly divide the Word of God?
There are preachers out there teaching something other than the unadulterated Word of God. And we are living in a time when people will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itchy ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
Jesus tells us in Matthew 7 there is a wide gate that leads to destruction, it's way is broad and many people are on that road. He also tells us there is a narrow gate and difficult way that leads to life and there are few who even find it.
But don't get me wrong, a large church does not necessarily mean its members are entrenched in bad doctrine. Church growth in and of itself is not evil.
We learned in CLASS 101 that church growth will be evident if we are obeying the Great Commission and people are getting saved.
We also learned that we not only want to experience quantitative growth (as a result of evangelism) but qualitative growth (as a result of discipleship).
True and genuine church growth comes not as a result of mere addition but multiplication. Multiplication growth is where someone comes to Christ and they are taught the Scriptures. They in turn go out and win someone to Jesus Christ who in turn gets trained in the Word and goes out to reach and win souls to Christ.
Soon you have tens of hundreds in the local church reaching people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
The other question that came up in discussions I had with pastors was:
“Why do churches have so many people on their membership rolls who give little or no evidence of Christian commitment or even conversion?
An answer to this question is given by Pastor Rick Warren of the Saddleback Community Church in California, a church of some 20000 members.
Pastor Rick Warren says, “Where churches have so many people on their membership rolls who give little or no evidence of Christian commitment or even conversion, the members were allowed to join with no expectations placed on them.”
He says "You get what you ask for."
In CLASS 101: Discovering Church Membership, we learn there is a difference between attenders and members and that difference can be summed up in one word: commitment.
It's like the difference between couples who just "live together" and those who get married.
When you just "live together" you can walk out of the relationship at any time. However, when you are married, you still may be able to walk away from the marriage at any time but there are spiritual, emotional, social and legal pressures that bear upon you making it harder to get out of the relationship than when you got in it.
Deb and I have been married almost 22 years but before we got married we lived together for about 6 months. We were wrong; it was sin.
When I moved in, I didn’t have to get a license—I just moved in.
Before we got married, however, I had to obtain permission from her father.
I had to get a license from the State of Maryland.
We had to get a preacher to marry us.
We had to plan a ceremony where we would make our vows before God and men.
When I got married I pledged myself to my wife to love her, honor her, provide for her needs through sickness and health, richer or poor, 'til death do us part. In other words, I pledged to be committed to her.
When you became a Christian you committed yourself to Christ.
You turned from your sin and you turned to Christ.
You vowed to forsake all and follow Him.
You committed your life and your all to serving Him.
When you became a Christian you committed yourself to Christ. Becoming a church member means to commit yourself to other Christians.
Paul mentions two different types of commitment in 2 Corinthians 8:5 (turn): "First they gave themselves to the Lord; and then, by God's will, they gave themselves to us as well" (GN).
At New Vision, we call these the first-base commitments. You commit yourself to Christ for salvation and then you commit yourself to other Christians for membership in our church family.
At New Vision we have become familiar with the Greek word koinonia which means: sharing, communion, fellowship and partnership.
Did you know that koinonia can also be defined as "being as committed to each other as we are to Jesus Christ?"
Jesus said that our love for each other was to be the mark of discipleship (John 13:33-34).
Perhaps it is an indictment of American Christianity that most believers can quote John 3:16 but they can't quote 1 John 3:16: "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers." When was the last time you heard a message on this verse?
Well you are hearing one now.
Today, most churches are silent about developing that level of commitment to each other.
Again, when you became a Christian you committed yourself to Christ. Becoming a church member means to commit yourself to other Christians. It is a commitment to a specific group of believers - to practice the "one-another"s of the New Testament.
The phrase "one another" or "each other" is used more than 50 times in the New Testament.
We are commanded to
* love each other,
* pray for each other,
* encourage each other,
* admonish each other,
* greet each other,
* serve each other,
* teach each other,
* accept each other,
* honor each other,
* bear each other's burdens,
* forgive each other,
* sing to each other,
* submit to each other and
* be devoted to each other.
All of these commands are what membership in a local body of believers is all about. These are the responsibilities of membership.
Before this church was organized, I had been a member of quite a few churches and it got to the point that I was tired of attending a church where no one cared about me and my family.
I was tired of being a member of a church where I could miss a Sunday or two because of an illness and no one calls or even noticed that I hadn’t been there when I returned.
I was tired of being a member of a church that always was reaching for my wallet but when I had a genuine need, they had an excuse for not helping me.
I was tired of being a member of churches where I wasn't encouraged and held accountable for learning and living out the Word of God.
The expectations I had were no more than what the Bible taught the church should be about.
At this church, we only expect of our members what the Bible clearly expects of all believers. These expectations are summarized in our Membership Covenant.
Spiritual Covenants
The most important part of a marriage ceremony is when the man and woman exchange vows. Before witnesses and God, they make certain promises to each other. This covenant between them is the essence of the marriage.
Throughout the Bible and church history, spiritual covenants have been made between people in order for mutual edification and accountability.
God and Noah
(Gen 9:9 NKJV) "And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you,
(Gen 9:10 NKJV) "and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth.
(Gen 9:11 NKJV) "Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth."
(Gen 9:12 NKJV) And God said: "This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:
(Gen 9:13 NKJV) "I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.
God's Covenant with Abram
(Gen 15:7 NKJV) Then He said to him, "I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit it."
(Gen 15:8 NKJV) And he said, "Lord GOD, how shall I know that I will inherit it?"
(Gen 15:9 NKJV) So He said to him, "Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon."
(Gen 15:10 NKJV) Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, down the middle, and placed each piece opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in two.
(Gen 15:17 NKJV) And it came to pass, when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces.
(Gen 15:18 NKJV) On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates;
Joshua and Israel
(Josh 24:19 NKJV) But Joshua said to the people, "You cannot serve the LORD, for He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
(Josh 24:20 NKJV) "If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you, after He has done you good."
(Josh 24:21 NKJV) And the people said to Joshua, "No, but we will serve the LORD!"
(Josh 24:22 NKJV) So Joshua said to the people, "You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the LORD for yourselves, to serve Him." And they said, "We are witnesses!"
(Josh 24:23 NKJV) "Now therefore," he said, "put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD God of Israel."
(Josh 24:24 NKJV) And the people said to Joshua, "The LORD our God we will serve, and His voice we will obey!"
(Josh 24:25 NKJV) So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made for them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.
(Josh 24:26 NKJV) Then Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God. And he took a large stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the LORD.
(Josh 24:27 NKJV) And Joshua said to all the people, "Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us, for it has heard all the words of the LORD which He spoke to us. It shall therefore be a witness to you, lest you deny your God."
Between David and Jonathon
(1 Sam 18:1 NKJV) Now when he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.
(1 Sam 18:2 NKJV) Saul took him that day, and would not let him go home to his father's house anymore.
(1 Sam 18:3 NKJV) Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul.
(1 Sam 18:4 NKJV) And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.
The Bible also speaks of the New Covenant which is better than the old:
(Heb 9:11 NKJV) But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.
(Heb 9:12 NKJV) Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.
(Heb 9:13 NKJV) For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh,
(Heb 9:14 NKJV) how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
(Heb 9:15 NKJV) And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.
The Apostles' Creed
The basic creed of Reformed churches, as most familiarly known, is called the Apostles' Creed. It has received this title because of its great antiquity; it dates from very early times in the Church, a half century or so from the last writings of the New Testament.
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell. [see Calvin]
The third day He arose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy *catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.
*The word "catholic" refers not to the Roman Catholic Church, but to the universal church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
So we see throughout the Bible and church history, spiritual covenants have been made between people in order for mutual edification and accountability.
In the same way, the essence of church membership is contained in the willingness to commit to a membership covenant. Committing to our membership covenant is the most important element of our membership class.
At this church we have four requirements for membership:
1) A personal profession of Christ as Lord and Savior.
2) Baptism by immersion as a public symbol of one's faith.
3) Completion of the membership class.
4) A signed commitment to abide by the membership covenant.
I used to worry, "If we adopt a membership covenant, there will be some who leave our church over it."
So far we haven't had any causality that I am aware of but I know there may be some in the future.
But here is the fact of reality: Not all people who come through our doors seeking a church are going to join ours and there are going to be people who will leave our church no matter what we do. But I will not get bent out of shape over this--people even walked away from Jesus.
Being a congregation that has adopted a membership covenant, the Word of God is determining the kind of people who stay.
There are many other organizations that have a pact or list of expectations that one needs to abide with in order to join.
Boy Scouts of America Scout Oath
On my honor I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country
and to obey the Scout Law;
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong,
mentally awake, and morally straight.
McDonald’s Restaurants
* Our crewmembers are expected to report to work on time, neat and clean.
* The most important thing crewmembers do to help make sure our customers receive safe food is to wash their hands often.
* Training will provide you with the skills you'll need to perform your job.
* Crew members follow standard operating procedures so customers always receive exceptional quality & service.
* Our crew members rely on teamwork and high energy to get the job done.
* Our customers expect every McDonald's will be clean.
* Our crew members make each customer feel like a welcomed guest.
* We depend on our crewmembers to deliver fast, accurate and friendly service with a smile.
Perhaps you have expectations for the members of your household—“If you are going to live under this roof you will…”
Again, being a congregation that has adopted a membership covenant, the Word of God is determining the kind of people who stay.
The alternative is to give an emotional appeal for members at the end of the service with soul-stirring music playing in the background. When the people come forward, make them members before they have a chance to change their mind. And don't make it a major concern as to whether or not they are saved--just as long as they "love the Lord."
My wife remembers coming forward when invited to join a church. When she reached the altar, they asked her "Did she love the Lord? How does one answer a question like that? "Yes."
They proceeded to accept her membership into their church on the basis of her "Christian experience" which was none at that time for she didn't even know who this "Lord" was.
The problem with many churches is that many people join them in ignorance. They join not knowing what these churches believe concerning God, the Bible, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, salvation, etc…
They join not knowing anything about the leadership of the church and the church’s vision, mission, perspective on money and how the church is governed.
Many people are taken away with the persona or charisma of the pastor or the performance of the choir or even the building and when reality hits, they become the #1 complainer or at the least they leave.
Here is our membership covenant. If you've been through CLASS 101-Discovering Church Membership and have been accepted into our church as a member, you have read and signed this covenant. In other words, you don't even see this covenant until you have sat through four hours of indoctrination about the Scriptures and our church.
The New Vision Membership Covenant (Preamble)
Having received Christ as my Lord and Savior and been baptized, and being in agreement with New Vision's statements, strategy, and structure, I now feel led by the Holy Spirit to unite with the New Vision church family. In doing so, I commit myself to God and to the other members to do the following:
That paragraph serves as a "preamble" of sorts for the rest of the covenant.
Remember what we said earlier:
Churches have so many people on their membership rolls who give little or no evidence of Christian commitment or even conversion the members were allowed to join with no expectations placed on them.
"You get what you ask for."
The covenant serves to define who we are as a church and gives prospective members an opportunity to accept or reject it before committing to membership.
The New Vision Membership Covenant
Having received Christ as my Lord and Savior and been baptized, and being in agreement with New Vision's statements, strategy, and structure, I now feel led by the Holy Spirit to unite with the New Vision church family. In doing so, I commit myself to God and to the other members to do the following:
1. I WILL PROTECT THE UNITY OF MY CHURCH
There was a startling exhibit in Del Mar, California. A man took a glass beaker which had a small neck, but was enlarged to about seven inches in diameter below the neck. The beaker would hold about a quart. The demonstrator used the glass beaker as a hammer to drive a spike into a wooden plank. The glass was so well tempered that the beaker did not break. The man then took a small steel marble bearing the size of a pea, and holding it at the neck of the beaker, dropped it inside. When it struck the bottom the glass was shattered and the beaker was broken from within.
The Church of our Lord, when perfectly united and tempered together with love, can resist the heaviest of blows from the outside. But just a small force on the inside can destroy this unity and harmony. The first section of our church covenant deals with protecting our church unity.
...By acting in love toward other members
"So let us concentrate on the things which make for harmony, and on the growth of our fellowship together." Rom. 15:19 (Ph)
"Have a sincere love for your fellow believers, love one another earnestly with all your hearts." 1 Peter 1:22 (TEV)
...By refusing to gossip
"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs..." Eph. 4:29
...By following the leaders
"Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be no advantage to you." Heb. 13:17
2. I WILL SHARE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF MY CHURCH
John Brodie, former quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, was once asked why a million-dollar player like him should have to hold the ball for field goals and points after touchdown. "Well," said Brodie, "if I didn't, it would fall over." The second section of our membership covenant deals with sharing in the responsibility of our church.
...By praying for its growth
"To the church ... we always thank God for you and pray for you constantly." 1 Thess. 1:2
...By inviting the unchurched to attend
"The Master said to the servant, 'Go out to the roads and country lanes, and urge the people there to come so my house will be full.'" Luke 14:23 (NCV)
...By warmly welcoming those who visit
"So, warmly welcome each other into the church, just as Christ has warmly welcomed you; then God will be glorified." Rom. 15:7 (LB)
3. I WILL SERVE THE MINISTRY OF MY CHURCH
The church is the only place in the world I know of where you can take a job and a responsibility, only show up half the time and when you do show up you're late and unprepared. The church is the only place in the world where you can do all that and then get upset when someone asks you where you were last Sunday. The third section of our church covenant deals with serving the ministry of our church.
...By discovering my gifts and talents
"Serve one another with the particular gifts God has given each of you..." 1 Peter 4:10(Ph)
...By being equipped to serve by my pastors
"God gave...some to be pastors and teachers to prepare God's people for works of ministry, so that the body of Christ may be built up..." Eph. 4:11-12
...By developing a servant's heart
"Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Jesus Christ...who took on the very nature of a servant..." Phil. 2:3-4,7
4. I WILL SUPPORT THE TESTIMONY OF MY CHURCH
A church member was once teaching the Bible in his home to a group of his coworkers. Halfway through the lesson, one of the women got up and walked out. A short time later, she came back and listened more intently than ever. At the close of the hour the leader inquired, "Why did you leave the meeting? Weren't you interested?" "O yes," the lady replied. "I was so impressed with what you had to say about Christ that I went out to ask your neighbor whether you really lived the way you talked. When he said you did, I hurried back so I wouldn't miss out on anything."
...By attending faithfully
"Let us not give up the habit of meeting together...but let us encourage one another." Heb. 10:25
...By living a godly life
"But whatever happens, make sure that your everyday life is worthy of the gospel of Christ." Phil. 1:27 (Ph)
...By giving regularly
"Each one of you, on the first day of each week, should set aside a specific sum of money in proportion to what you have earned and use it for the offering." 1 Cor. 16:2
"A tenth of all your produce is the Lord's, and it is holy." Lev. 27:30
In the Peanuts cartoons, Lucy demands that Linus change TV channels and then threatens him with her fist if he doesn't.
"What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?" asks Linus.
"These five fingers," says Lucy. "Individually they're nothing but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold."
"Which channel do you want?" asks Linus.
Turning away, he looks at his fingers and says, "Why can't you guys get organized like that?"
A beautiful little girl wandered out one cold day into the countryside of Canada. The family finally realized she was lost and started a search. Then they called the people of the community together. Each went his own way. It became dark and the cold of the Canadian winter settled down. After some time someone suggested the searchers join hands and cover the grass fields. But it was too late. They found the girl curled up, frozen in the cold. Then the shout went up, "If only we had joined hands before!" The spiritual meaning of this story is clear. Christ's love demands unity among His believers.
People are lost in sin and on their way to a Christ-less eternity in hell. While many in churches across our county, state and nation are going off in their own way, we at New Vision Bible Fellowship Church must join hands and cover the fields which are ripe for the harvest.
Our Membership Covenant gets us off to a good start by organizing us and bringing us together in our commitment to God and each other as we strive together to:
1. PROTECT THE UNITY OF OUR CHURCH
2. SHARE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF OUR CHURCH
3. SERVE THE MINISTRY OF OUR CHURCH
4. SUPPORT THE TESTIMONY OF OUR CHURCH
