Featured Met with the deacons and became a member

When one speaks of membership, he is speaking of an office of which there are certain responsibilities and privileges, one of which is a say in how the church is governed.

Some churches have ranks of members, by which I mean that some are accepted as members, but may not teach or be given any other responsibilities for a certain time by which it is assumed anything too scandalous or disqualifying will have surfaced.

Do you just willy-nilly baptize people? Do you have no orientation or period of instruction by which the qualifications of the baptismal candidates are assertained?

 

And who determines whether faith is evident?

 

Up North......yes, absolutely. Thats more the standard.

 

Who sets the standard? The congregation or the pastors and deacons?

 

I don't know...probably all the above. Its quite liberal and post modern in most cases.

 

Well, that's my point. Biblically, the congregation has the say in who joins. It is a vote however loosely and liberally it is cast.

 

I think you're making a pretty bold assumption that the average congregation is full of mature, biblically sound believers. I don't think I'd agree.

I wonder what the church at Corinth might have considered too scandalous ? Maybe a man having his father's wife ?
Oh, wait. They openly accepted a guy like that and had to be rebuked for it

I'm not really in favor of an entire congregation having a majority say-so on anything spiritual. The reason is that the majority of any congregation is lacking in discernment, maturity, biblical knowledge.

The majority of genuine believers wouldn't know the difference between a wolf and an antelope
That's why there are pastors and elders to train, guide, protect

That might depend on 2 things:
1) are we guided by scripture or our flesh?
I don't see any sort of probationary vetting period for the 3,000 who were added to the church on Pentecost, or the Ethiopian eunuch, or anyone else in scripture, for that matter. I wonder how long John the Baptist observed those who came to the banks of the Jordan before he invited them into the water

2) does love believe all things, or is love suspicious of all things? and how legalistic do we want to be?
If we require everyone to "have it all together" before baptizing them, I can assure you that the water will become quite stale from lack of stirring.

 

Hahaha....last week a pastor contacted me and asked me to take over leadership of a small groups meeting in my area. With it would be a Eldership if it takes off and grows. See the pastor invisions small church groups operating throughout Northern New Jersey under his pastoral umbrella. This is the way things are going today.....and I find it hilarious.

 

I assmed no such thing.

Yes, that's right. Congregations do wrong many times.

How does that bear on the example of the Apostles in the verse I cited?

. . . but not to lord.

Now who's making assumptions? Where did I say we require everyone to "have it all together?" All I said was that the congregation has a say. That implies that there are qualifications, but that there are qualifications is plainly laid before us in the narrative of John the Baptist. John sent the Pharisees away. Their repentance was not genuine, and demanded fruits meet for repentance before baptizing them.

 

CANT RESIST......well as long as you "assmeded" it!:laugh:

 

There are different ways congregations handle taking someone into the church. I was of the opinion most Baptist can take a candidate in by letter of recommendation given by another Baptist church of like faith. The Moderator opens the doors of the church in the business meeting reads the name of the candidate before the church members present and calls for a motion and a second and all in favor say yay, all oppose say nay and stand and state your reason. Then the church comes around and gives them the right hand of fellowship. With someone that has been saved and don't belong to another church the candidate is required to give a testimony of faith in the Lord Jesus and then the motion and second is put before the church and if received the candidate must be baptized into the church. Other congregations do it differently. The pastor calls for anyone that believes like the church does to come up before the assembly to present themselves for baptism. The candidate don't have to give a testimony of faith because baptism say's it all.

 

Ohhhhh ... the temptation!

 

Assmed. Hmmm....is that like a horse pill for a donkey?

 

LOL....gee I don't really know! If I was to venture a guess, maybe a medication a proctologist‎ would proscribe??? :laugh:

 

Because I only met the guy one time & now he wants to build a whole group around me. I haven't even had coffee with him.