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NASB | Ephesians 1:23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Ephesians 1:23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills and completes all things in all [believers]. |
Bible Question:
Greetings all! If we automatically become members of the body of Christ at salvation (Acts 2:47; 20:28; Ephesians 1:23; 5:25), then what is "church membership?" If we are already members of the church (the body of Christ), as the Bible sees it (when we become saved), then why do some churches have a "Church Covenant"? For instance, I attend a Conservative Mennonite/Anabaptist church, where I had to agree to a "Church Covenant" in order to be a member of that church. I already fulfilled and continue to fulfill all of the obligations of the Covenant (obligations including 'short hair' for men, the wearing of the veil for women) just by being who I am. So there is no problem whatsoever for me in fulfilling any of the points in the "Covenant." However, my question is: is it entirely Biblical for a church to make the acceptance of a "Church Covenant" a requirement for membership in their congregation in the first place? Thank you in advance for your answers! |
Bible Answer: Brother Markarios: I agree that in the early church Acts 2 that those who trusted Christ became immediate members of the church which is his body 1Cor.12:27. I believe that the scripture teaches that every person who has been saved by his grace from Calvary onward are part of this body. You ask: "What is Church Membership?" The church which I have referred to consists of only believers and includes all believers. We sometimes refer to this as the universal church (not a scriptual term) We find that Paul wrote "Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus,..." (1 Cor. 1:2) In this verse Paul was writing to a group of Christians who represented Christ in Corinth or in a local locality. The local church originally consisted of all professing believers who were baptised. The difference between the universal church and local church is that within the local church there may be members who are only professors and not possessors of Christ, whereas, in the universal church all are possessors of Christ. No Christian can be excluded or put out of the Church which is his body, whereas, within the local testimony people can be excluded and put out. You mentioned the "Church Covenant" in your church. We know that the apostles as they were guided into all truth by the Holy Spirit (John 16:13) gave teaching to the early church which provided them with doctrinal truth and guidance in daily life as members of a local church. It would seem that in the modern day "Covenant" reflects some of this teaching by the apostles. In reading the scriptures regarding the early church it would appear that admission is accomplished the moment we trust Christ. We must remember that in these early days that Christ was the head of the church, the divine teacher the Holy Spirit and that overseers were appointed to lead, to feed, to be a role model and to guard the flock in the local church. Is a "Covenant" unbiblical? I say this with great care: on the one hand most local gatherings have an official or unofficial requirements for membership with the view to maintaining the local testimony. Nevertheless, if such a Covenant excludes people who are truly born again than I would suggest it is unbiblical. Is it not better if the members of the flock have the fellowship of each other as they grow in Christ. Sorry brother, I have gone on long enough In Christ Robert |