Membership at Zionsville Fellowship

As a church we treat the idea of “membership” somewhat differently than most people do. The word has a different flavor for us, and our membership in Zionsville Fellowship is qualitatively different in our minds from the memberships we hold in various organizations outside the church. The purpose of this brief explanation is to clarify the way we understand membership and to point out some of its implications.

What Membership Means

The common idea of the term membership in our society-the one we all begin with-has mostly to do with organizations or clubs. It seems to mean essentially that as a member, you pay your dues, receive certain benefits or services, vote in meetings, and have your name on a list somewhere.

That description of membership can be thought of as having two parts: substantive and formal. The substantive part of membership is the “stuff” that an organization is and deals with: its focus, meetings, activities, direction, and so on. The formal part is a list of names on a sheet of paper with “dues paid” scribbled or stamped next to them.

You become a member of a club with other like-minded individuals, and thus the substantive aspect of membership is crucial in your choice to join. Your tie-in might be a common interest (computers, horses, or ski trips) or a social need (as in “service clubs”). So to be a member, in our ordinary sense, means simply to have a formal tie to an organization.

One can be an official member without functioning as one. As a result, organizations generally distinguish between “active” and “inactive” members. People's interests and involvements change, and often this results in them becoming disenchanted with, or less interested in, some of the organizations they once supported. Often they remain on the membership list, maintaining all the privileges of membership but not doing any of the work.

Unfortunately, American Christianity shares in this general idea of membership. It is not uncommon to find churches with membership lists running into the hundreds of names, which cannot fill three rows on a Sunday morning or come up with a quorum for a business meeting. They have large numbers of “inactive” members and, in reality, are merely religious-oriented social clubs. In short, because we have uncritically accepted the cultural idea that being a member can be merely a formal matter, we have fallen prey to the problems this idea brings with it. In this society you can hold memberships in organizations of like-minded individuals, and if your interests change you can become apathetic and still be a member.

This attitude seems to square poorly with the way the church is portrayed in the New Testament. If we, as a body, want to take seriously what “being membered” means, avoiding both the way our culture as a whole trivializes the idea and the way the church has culturalized its membership, we need to work under a different understanding of what membership means.

The New Testament Church

Though the term membership has been used in this paper, it is important to point out that it is not used in the New Testament. Christians are called “members of the body of Christ.” They are “members of one another.” There is the idea of “membering,” but not of membership. When Paul speaks of this “membering,” his idea is not one of being part of an organization, but rather of being part of a body.

“God has combined the members of the body...so that there should be no divisions in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.” (1 Cor. 12:24-26)

To be a member in the body of Christ is to be concretely involved in a common life with the other members of the body; it is to hurt when another hurts and to be glad when another is blessed. It is to work together with the other members of the body in response to the desires of Christ the Head. Properly understood, the church does not have-cannot have-an “inactive members” list. One's participation is not based upon common interests, but upon a common and shared life.

Everyone who has accepted Christ is a member of the universal body of Christ and acts out this commitment in the local church. God calls His people to be concretely membered in a local expression of the spiritual body of Christ. The local body seeks to be a community where the mutual ministry and common mission, which belong to the church, can take place practically. Being membered in a local body is rooted in being membered in the universal body of Christ; but the full experience in that universal body is impossible without participation in a local body. These two should never be separated, for each requires the other.

Oddly enough, we try to separate these two memberships. We become members of the universal body of Christ by faith alone, so our argument goes, which means that this membering cannot be contingent on membership in a concrete local body of Christ. Indeed, the argument is correct-as far as it goes. For our salvation rests solely on God's gracious acceptance, and not on any work of ours including membership in a church. But the argument plays in the other meaning of “membership.” One can be technically a member of a club without being a member functionally. What we generally mean by “church membership” can have this mere technical meaning. However, to be a member in a body means to be a vital part; in a body there are no parts which are members only technically, precisely because they would not be vitally involved with other members, and hence, not members at all.

That being a member in the body of Christ involves concrete relationships is illustrated in the church's two sacraments: baptism and the Lord's Supper. One acts out his “membering” in the universal body of Christ by being baptized and eating from the common loaf of the supper. But these very actions of baptism and the Lord's Supper assume that the universal participation we have in Christ is made concrete with some very specific people in a very specific place. You cannot baptize yourself, nor can you eat the supper of Christ alone. Thus, to be a member of the body of Christ means, at the same time, to be a member of a local body of people who call on Christ as their Lord and Head.

So, the universal church and the local church are not divided. They are seen as the same. There is one church which is expressed locally and universally. The universal church and local church are not two churches, but are one and the same. A high view of the church is to be maintained. Christians in the church are known by “local-ness.” Their fellow members and leaders are real, visible people.

Being a member in the New Testament Church was clear. Because there was one church-practicing the same doctrines, government, and sacraments-the requirements were the same in every place. The essentials for “being membered” in the church were faith, accompanied by repentance, resulting in public confession through baptism where one was “joined” to Christ and His body, the church. This “marriage” between the convert and the church was seen as a radical transfer from the “kingdom of darkness” to the “kingdom of light,” from the rule of Satan and the world to the kingship of Jesus Christ.

To take seriously being members of one another in the local church means to live out the calling God has on us as his people-to intertwine our lives: comforting, encouraging, and holding each other accountable so that we can grow up in Christ and fulfill our purpose in the world (Eph. 4:15-16). This is the way a body functions. This vision of being members of each other is very different from being members of a club or organization. Although a club might easily have an inactive member, a body cannot; in a body an inactive member is either dead or atrophied.

Celebrating Our Differences

Although membership in the various clubs and organizations of our society means being like-minded with others, this cannot be simplistically true in the church. Although all believers are called to “be like-minded” in the sense that we all recognize Christ as Lord and seek to work out a common vision which God gives each local body (I Cor. 1:10), we do so in significantly diverse ways. Paul points out in I Corinthians 12:14-26 that the basis of our need for each other is not simply our similarities (which he emphasized in verses 4 though 13), but also our differences. It is precisely because the eye is not the ear that each needs the other. Rather than seeing ourselves as a collection of like-minded individuals, we need to see ourselves as unique parts of the body of Christ, where the function of each is important for the health of the body. In the church, our commonality is growing into Christ, maturing in the Christian faith, hope, and love; yet this common goal is supported by many different parts, making us the eyes, ears, legs, hands, etc., of the body of Christ.

When Paul speaks of the unity of the body, he does so in the context of the many gifts, kinds of service, and kinds of effects which that unity includes (I Cor. 12:4-6). Being membered in the body-in contrast to membership in an organization-emphasizes just this unique contribution by every member. Rather than making any specific issue or activity its principle of unity, the body glories in the variety of God's work in his people and expects each to act in Christ's special, personal calling for the good of the whole body. It is common sense to know that “if all were one part, where would the body be?” (I Cor. 12:12)

Summary

Membership in a church differs from club membership in two important ways. First, although you can be a member of a club purely in a formal way, this cannot be true in a body. Being a member of a body requires vital functioning in its common life. Second, membership in a club is focused on similarities (common interests and so forth), while membership in a body emphasizes diversities as well. In a body, it is important to be linked together in common, as different parts.

Our Modern Understanding Of Church Membership

How did our modern concept of church membership develop? The idea of formal membership is not taught in the New Testament. It is a form that developed through history.

Initially, rather than joining an organization, believers saw themselves entering a “new community,” the church. Baptism was the sign of this, and those who were baptized were recognized as members of this new society.

With the continued development of the institutional church, several things happened. During the time of the Emperor Constantine, there was the “marriage” of the church and state, in which church membership elevated one's stature in the state. This church-state problem has continued into our present time.

Also, the development of creeds, councils, and catechisms added to the requirements for membership. With the advent of the Reformation and the development of different religious groups (i.e. Anabaptist, Lutheran, Calvinist, as well as Catholic), membership became necessary to define to which group a person belonged. Germany provided a model for determining a person's membership. The agreement reached in the Peace of Augsburg in 1555 provided that each German prince would determine the religious affiliation (Roman Catholic or Lutheran) for the territory he ruled. Actually, at this time and before, people were normally referred to as “adherents” rather than “members” of a particular church.

In the early 1600's congregational forms of government began to emerge, showing themselves mainly in New England. With this development, it was necessary to define who were the voting members-hence, formal membership.

Much of our understanding of being members in the church is colored by present cultural influences, but there is also a long history of development. These are powerful influences which impact both our understanding and behavior.

What Being Membered Implies

The implications of being a member, in our different sense of the word, are at the same time easy and difficult to discuss. They are difficult because they cannot be summarized in a list of rules or obligations. Although the description in our STATEMENT OF BELIEF AND PRACTICE section talks about our expectations of each other in general terms, the specific form a person's function takes depends on his or her giftings and maturity. Remember, participation in a body emphasizes both the unique contribution of each member and the common goals and desires they share.

The difficulty of speaking about the implications of being members of one another is further complicated in our case by the fact that we encourage non-members (peripheral people and/or people with a cultural understanding of the church) to attend and become actively involved in almost all the meetings we have as a church. Our worship times are open, and we invite everyone present, as priests of the Lord, to participate. Nearly all our other activities (special meetings, family meetings, and small groups) are open as well.

But if the implications of being a member are difficult to specify, they are fairly easy to describe. To put it in a sentence: “If you are a member, you are responsible.” When you are a member, the church is not something “out there” - something you “go to” and “come home from”- which can be spoken of in the abstract or criticized as if you were not involved. The members are the church because the church is a body, not a club. What it means to be a member is to be responsible for the life and health of the other members and to contribute to the growth of the body as a whole. To be blunt, if the church has a problem, and since you are membered, it is your problem.

In brief, then, to be a member is to be responsible. Concretely, this means several things in our case.

First, it means to live as a “covenant person” in community with the other members of the local church. We have tried to express what it means to love and care for one another in the next section, THE CHURCH AS A COMMUNITY. The practice of community brings reality into the concepts that have been spoken of thus far in this paper. When people understand the provisions of the New Covenant they realize the significance of their relationships with others who are also recipients in this covenant. The New Covenant is a way of saying that we are Christians together and that we are members of one another in suffering and joy, and in worship and service.

Second, to be a member means to be concerned for and involved in the direction of the body as a whole. A body, after all, moves as a whole. The legs may do the actual locomotion, but the shoulder does not stay put because it has something else to do. It moves with the body. As a body, we seek to be responsive to God's voice and to listen for it through every member, not just through a few leaders. Though the eldership is the form of government we believe the Lord has given, we try to hear God's direction in prayer, His Word, in a message brought from a member or members of the congregation, and in our consensus process. All the members are responsible for taking serious, active roles in these processes and living out the decisions arrived at by the elders.

Third, to be a member means to put your resources (spiritual and material) at the disposal of the Lord in the body. Because we are “committed to people as a priority,” we work at keeping our facilities overhead to a minimum. We keep our overhead low not so we can give less, but so we can give more to mission work and to human needs. Being a member means sharing in these things by committing time, effort, and money.

Fourth, to be a member means a willingness to be accountable about the important aspects of life. God calls us to “submit to one another out of reverence for Christ” (Eph. 5:21), and to “accept and obey the leaders who watch over our souls,” (Heb. 13:17). Being membered in the body means we have become interdependent. My life and my decisions affect you, and your life and decisions affect me. None of us “lives to himself.” We should be willing to care for and hold one another accountable in terms of service, moral behavior, and the effects our choices bring upon the body. It is difficult to give hard and fast rules about this process which is of critical importance to our life together as members of one body.

Fifth, to be a member means to be involved in the concrete activities of the body. We have defined the priorities of our church as worship, body-building, and outreach. Our church-life is structured to support these priorities, and the Sunday morning meeting is informal with emphases on worship, teaching, and fellowship. House groups meet during the week to promote care, encouragement, and growth among their members. These times of congregating are important but we must not be known only for our meetings. There must also be community. Out of our “lives together” comes outreach, evangelism, discipleship, and the overall building of the body.

Becoming A Member

Churches like ours have what has been called an “informal” or “open” membership. This means one does not join in the customary way. This is because we believe New Testament church membership was more functional, organic, and dynamic rather than formal.

Rather than taking people through a series of classes or meetings to become members, we would rather ensure that people gain an understanding of what it means to be “members of one another” and enter the life of the church. One way to begin this process is through our Discovery Group which is repeated each spring and fall.

Our informal process is difficult to describe, for it basically amounts to “hanging out.” It is involving oneself in the lives of people in the church, sharing meals, projects, and all kinds of activities and discussions with them. In this process, the Spirit of God works to intertwine lives, and makes our being “members of one another” come to life.

How You Fit In

This organic process of membering involves getting to know others in the body and opening yourself to be known by them. In order for people to make a significant commitment to you, and mean it, they need to have some personal sense that you are serious about wanting to be membered to them-and there is no other way to do this than by being together. There are all kinds of ways to do this: take the initiative and invite people for meals (and/or games), do things together, find or start a small group with which you can participate, and so on. The goal in spending time is not just to take part in activities, but to cultivate relationships with others that will produce understanding and trust.

A WARNING! You will not be able to do this with everyone-and you do not need to do so. You need to involve yourself with enough people so you become known in a general way to people in the church. The people you know more deeply will be able to communicate to others their confidence in you-and you will become a member without the “official” status ever taking place. (When a person understands this, he can begin to see how a formal or “official” membership actually takes away from truly becoming “membered,” because the membership list gives the illusion of being “membered.”)

Finally, expect this process to take about a year or so. It cannot and should not be rushed, because that is not the way relationships work. Time and nurture are needed to bring fullness into our lives together.