Membership In Christ’s Church Robert Meredith How does one become a member of Christ’s church? First, when one considers this question, he must realize that one does not join the church, but is added to it by God when he obeys the gospel (Acts 2:41, 47; Colossians 1:13; Romans 6:16-18). One may choose to be identified with a particular congregation of the Lord’s church (Acts 9:26), but he does not join the church, the Lord adds him to it. The church is Christ’s spiritual body (Ephesians 1:22-23) and is composed of the saved (Ephesians 5:23). When one considers how it is that he can become a member of the church, he must realize that he is not saved because of his own worth or merit, but by the grace of God (Ephesians 2:5). By God’s grace, the Father eternally purposed a plan of redemption (Ephesians 3:10-11), Jesus willingly took on flesh so that He might die for man (Hebrews 2:9), and the Holy Spirit has revealed God’s grace and given instructions on how to become a Christian and live the Christian life (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Acts 20:32; Psalm 119:105). Man accesses God’s grace (Acts 2:40) by an obedient faith (Romans 5:2; 1:5; 16:26; James 2:21-24). The Apostle John wrote, “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God” (John 1:12). Once one believes on Christ, he then has the ability to become a child of God. Too, the Spirit teaches through the Word of God that one must repent of his sins (Luke 13:3; Acts 2:38; 17:30; 2 Peter 3:9). Repentance is a change of mind produced by godly sorrow (2 Corinthians 7:10), which leads to a changed life. Also, one is taught in the Scriptures that he must confess his belief in Christ’s deity (Acts 8:37; Matthew 10:32; Romans 10:10). Furthermore, baptism is involved in the spiritual birth (John 3:5). Jesus said, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” On the day of Pentecost, following Jesus’ resurrection, those who received Him were told to repent and be baptized to have their sins forgiven (Acts 2:38), and the Lord added them to the church (Acts 2:47). The Apostle Paul wrote, “That He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water (baptism) by the word” (Ephesians 5:26). The Apostle also declared that when one obeyed the Spirit and was baptized, he was put into the church (1 Corinthians 12:13), thereby being saved by God (Ephesians 5:23).
Posted on: Wed, 09 Oct 2013 09:23:14 +0000
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