Here at Southside Baptist Church, we recognize the
need for a formal membership, and we would ask you to commit yourself to
becoming a member of our Church and seek to find whatever gifts that God
has given to you.
1. The main reason and the most important one would be
because of Ephesians 5: 25b - "Christ loved the church, and gave His
life for it." The church is the instrument that God uses today to
continue His work here on earth. It is God's desire that we get in
a local church and grow in Him.
2. The next most important reason would be that it shows
others a physical commitment to something that is very important to you.
In this day and age, very few people are really committed to anything.
Real commitment means learning how to truly pray for the leaders, church
itself, and how to hear God and learn what His desires for your life
are. Commitment to God and His Church builds character.
3. Membership in the church defines who can be counted on to
carry out the tasks of the church. In every organization, there
are certain people who can be counted on to carry forward the work of
that organization. The same is true with the church.
Wholehearted commitment to God and His Work can enable Him to work
through us and achieve remarkable and miraculous things.
4. When you join a church of like-minded people, it
helps you to learn to be accountable for your own actions. The New
Testament places a major emphasis on this so that new Christians can
learn to grow in Christ in a stable atmosphere. A person must take
accountability seriously, though, and know that it is for their own good
that God wants them to set a high standard for their life so that they
won't be deceived and brought down by Satan.
It is Satan's desire to disrupt and destroy The Church so that the
Good News of Jesus cannot be proclaimed. As we come into membership
into the Church of God, we need to always strive to protect her by staying
united in Christ.
We can protect the unity of the church
- By acting in love toward other members
- By refusing to gossip
- By following the leaders as long as they are acting under God's
leadership and instruction, and always by praying for them
- By praying for God to send unity and love to us continually
- By always building up instead of tearing down
Romans 15: 5 - Now may the God who gives the power of patient
endurance and Who supplies encouragement, grant you to live in such mutual
harmony and such full sympathy with one another, in accord with Jesus
Christ. (AMP)
I Peter 1: 22b - See that you love one another fervently from a pure
heart.
Ephesians 4: 29 - Let no foul or polluting language, nor evil word
nor unwholesome or worthless talk ever come out of your mouth, but only
such speech as is good and beneficial to the spiritual progress of others,
as is fitting to the need and the occasion, that it may be a blessing and
give grace (God's favor) to those who hear it.
Hebrews 13: 17 - Obey your spiritual leaders and submit to them
[continually recognizing their authority over you], for they are
constantly keeping watch over your souls and guarding your spiritual
welfare, as men who will have to render an account [of their trust].
[Do your part to] let them do this with gladness and not with sighing and
groaning, for that would not be profitable to you.
We can share in the responsibility of the church
- By praying for its growth
- By inviting the unchurched to attend
- By warmly welcoming those who visit
- By openly receiving new people into our circle of friends and
truly making them feel a part of the church
- By really being "The Church That Cares For You"
Romans 15: 7 - Welcome and receive [to your hearts] one another,
then, even as Christ has welcomed and received you, for the glory of God.
(AMP)
Acts 1: 8 - But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and
might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My
witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the
earth.
We can serve the ministry of the church
- By discovering our gifts and talents
- By being equipped to serve by pastors and leaders
- By developing a servant's heart for true ministry
I Peter 4: 10 - As each of you has received a gift (a particular
spiritual talent, a gracious divine endowment), employ it for one another
as benefits good trustees of God's many-sided grace.
Ephesians 4: 11-12 - 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 ...
Philippians 2: 3-4, 7 - 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 ...
We can support the testimony of our church
- By attending faithfully
- By living a godly life
- By giving regularly
Hebrews 10: 25 - Not forsaking or neglecting to assemble together,
as is the habit of some people, but admonishing (warning, urging, and
encouraging) one another, and all the more faithfully...
Philippians 1: 27 - Only be sure as citizens so to conduct
yourselves that your manner of life will be worthy of the good news of
Christ, ... that you are standing firm in united spirit and purpose,
striving side by side, and contending with a single mind for the faith of
the glad tidings.
Leviticus 27: 30 - And all the tithe of the land, whether of the
seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's; it is holy to
the Lord.
For more information on How To Become a Member,
click here.