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Church Membership?

Discussion in 'Polls Forum' started by gekko, Nov 10, 2005.

?
  1. Yes, as a matter of fact. Every church must have church membership in place

    66.7%
  2. Maybe the majority should have church membership in place

    2.1%
  3. No, the majority of churches should not have church membership in place

    31.3%
  4. let the church do what it wants, don't think it really matters one way or the other...

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
Multiple votes are allowed.
  1. gekko

    gekko New Member

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    I've wanted to start this poll to see how many of you either agree or disagree with church membership. why does a church need 'church membership'? is what i say. i want to hear what your thoughts are, after this poll.
     
  2. Pete

    Pete New Member

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    Boy was I surprised to find myself with majority (so far) on first question [​IMG]
     
  3. tenor

    tenor New Member

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    What are you actually asking?

    The primary role of local church membership is to keep in touch with one another and to have a sense of belonging.

    Is it necessary in a formal sense, no.

    Yes, all who profess Christ as Lord and Savior are members of the universal church.
     
  4. gekko

    gekko New Member

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    yah yah. see "the primary role of local church membership is to keep in touch with one another and to havea sense of belonging." is what you said. right?

    ok then. isn't it possible to keep in touch with one another without obtaining local church membership? i believe it is possible.

    to have a sense of belonging? jeepers. if you don't have a sense of belonging once you attend the church for the first month or so... then why are you there? if you think you don't belong there... then don't be there. let God lead you elsewhere. unless it is to that specific church.

    what i'm getting at is this. i've been to so many churches that hold to church membership. so much infact that nobody who is not a member cannot, no matter what, can help the church in any aspect. i've also seen that once you get baptized in that church, you become an instant member of the church. i've also seen that once you become a member, you gotta dress a certain way, if you don't dress that way, you can't help in that church.

    it's all this crazy stuff i've seen. so i thought i'd ask. is local church membership really needed in the local churches?

    i've also heard that the more members the church gets, the more support from the government they get money-wise? is this true? i don't know.

    i don't believe local church membership is needed. not one bit. a church can function the same way without it as with it. so why have it? besides, we are all members of the Body of Christ.

    hope it makes sense.
    gekko.
     
  5. bapmom

    bapmom New Member

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    gekko........

    churches that get support from the government?????

    Not in America my friend....don't know what its like up there where you are. [​IMG] Here we get absolutely no help, monetarily or otherwise, from the government, and we MUCH prefer it that way. We do not want money from them and we are vigorously against it. In fact, many of our church's constitutions actually have sections on our beliefs about the separation of church and state.

    That being said, membership is important to a point. Having it means the person becoming a member feels (hopefully) more connected to that church body. It is now THEIR church.

    It also means we can have some sort of expectations from those we place in ministry. This is important legally speaking. While we believe in church/state separation, we also believe in following the laws of the land which we are subject to. And if a church has membership requirements they can show that they do have a standard which their leaders must uphold. (Im talking about matters of law, not necessarily matters of personal standards like dress or music preferences.)

    BUT, matters of personal standards ought to have some sort of bearing when a church picks leadership. The leaders are being upheld as people who we consider to be an example for the rest of us. Now, just as we expect certain ways of behaving for our pastor, when we have members-only leadership we can then ASK that the leaders also uphold a certain standard of living.

    Just think of it this way.....we all have standards of expectations. Yours might be different than mine, but we all have them. You most likely would not be impressed if your pastor came to church drunk out of his mind........so you have some sort of expectation of how he ought to act based on the fact that he's your pastor and leader.

    There is more responsibility towards the church body when a person is a member.
     
  6. Bro. James Reed

    Bro. James Reed New Member

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    As member of a church, we have a decision-making role that "outsiders" do not have. We are allowed to vote on the direction that the church is moving. We get to decide how our donated money is spent, and who our Pastor is, as well as the other officers.

    When you join a church, you are identifying yourself with that particular body of believers.

    We have regular attendees who are not members of our church. Some are members of sister churches, and some are not members anywhere. They participate in the same way that every member does, but they do not get to vote on anything officially.

    Now, if your question is about joining a church and being baptized altogether, then I can simply say that the bible says we are to be baptized as an outward show of faith. We are required to do it as followers of Christ.
     
  7. tenor

    tenor New Member

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    Gekko,

    I'm that you have apparently been burned by a very legalistic church in regards to the membership role.

    You are correct in saying it is not absolute necessary. There is trend of attending and not becoming formal members in many churches today.

    Membership is one of the many things involved inhelping decide leadership roles.
     
  8. Artimaeus

    Artimaeus Active Member

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    [​IMG] And who gets to decide a multitude of things? Who gets disciplined when they need it? Does everyone in attendance who claims to be some sort of christian get to fully participate in any meeting or service? Doesn't sound like it would be in much order to me.
     
  9. Bro. James Reed

    Bro. James Reed New Member

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    [​IMG] And who gets to decide a multitude of things? Who gets disciplined when they need it? Does everyone in attendance who claims to be some sort of christian get to fully participate in any meeting or service? Doesn't sound like it would be in much order to me. </font>[/QUOTE]Are the questions directed at me?

    I'm a bit befuddled, what with the thumbs up and then the questions.
     
  10. preacher

    preacher New Member

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    The churches here gert something from the government all right, but it sure ain't help!! [​IMG]
     
  11. Thankful

    Thankful <img src=/BettyE.gif>

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    I definitely believe in church membership.
     
  12. Dr. Bob

    Dr. Bob Administrator
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    Church membership lists involve a commitment of people to the organization.

    Church membership lists allow input on decisions, officers, programs, etc.

    Church membership lists find root in the NT when the body (who is part and who isn't?) made decisions, helped widows on the list, etc.
     
  13. kubel

    kubel New Member

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    I believe in seeking membership at a local, new testament assembly, yes.

    Government help? There's 501(c)(3) and incorporated status, which all that does is aid in tax exemption and legal issues- doesn't really help the church out. So government help? No. More like less government hurt.

    All members of the Body of Christ? Yes. That is absolutely true. But Christ also set up the local assembly. When the 7 letters were sent, they were delivered to 7 local assemblies- not just one big universal church.

    Why do we have membership?

    The pastor often seeks members for voting on certain things. Members vote, and the church follows the vote.

    Members are required to be born again and scripturally baptised and live pure testimonies. In a memberless church, there's no telling who you are fellowshipping with. There would be no discipline. That could cause problems. Christ established the assembly for believers. Membership identifies not just believers, but believers that are specifically part of that assembly.

    Membership also assists in keeping financial records which can benefit the members when it comes time for tax season.

    Membership keeps a sense of unity and commitment. Having no membership means people could just hop from one church to the other. Membership helps to keep you grounded. It helps establish a goal and commitment to that assembly. At our church, if you are not active as far as attendance, you are not a member.

    Members are often expected to help out with the church. If you have a source of income, tithing is a requirement of membership at our church. Members also help out with their time and effort doing things around the church. Members can be candidates for certain positions in a church.

    I'm sure there are many other reasons. Personally, I would not consider regularly attending a church that does not have a membership.
     
  14. Artimaeus

    Artimaeus Active Member

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    No, not at you, sorry about the confusion. I was agreeing with you and then asking questions along the same line directed at whoever would disagree.
     
  15. Bro. James Reed

    Bro. James Reed New Member

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    oh, okay.

    Glad that's cleared up. [​IMG]
     
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