Picking a New Church in a New City (part 4a)

“Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which He obtained with His own blood” (Acts 20:28).

In his final meeting with the pastors of Ephesus, Paul reminds them that the Holy Spirit has set them apart to care for the church of God, which God obtained with His own blood. We were ransomed from sin and eternal punishment not with perishable things such as silver or gold but with the precious blood of Christ (1 Pet. 1:18-19), something of infinite value!

Pastors are entrusted with something of infinite value in God's eyes. Not surprisingly, the writer of Hebrews encourages all believers to obey their leaders because leaders are accountable to God:

“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account” (Heb. 13:14).

What does this mean for the local church? What are the implications for church leaders?

We cannot think about spiritual care and responsibility apart from church membership. Church membership is often viewed as outdated. People move every few years and don't like being tied down to a particular place or employer.

It's not unusual to hear that someone goes to the worship service of one church but goes to a small group at another church. Or, someone may go to one church because of its fellowship, worship, etc... but go to another church (or a para-church ministry) for outreach or Bible study.

There's certainly nothing wrong with supplementing our knowledge or building relationships beyond the walls of the church. But, complications arise because those involved in multiple places have multiple spiritual leaders. How does a pastor provide spiritual care for people when it is unclear who is the spiritual authority? Which pastor or staff worker is responsible for their souls? Are leaders restricted to their spheres of influence (e.g. worship, small group, Bible study, etc...)?

The confusion for leaders extends to the church body. Who is allowed to vote or make decisions? Who is allowed to teach Sunday School or serve on the worship team? Basically, who will represent Christ within the church and outside its walls?

In this post and the next one, I'll walk through the process for how the pastors at our church bring in new members in order to provide spiritual care and oversight for them. This will include commitments and responsibilities for new members as well.

MEMBERSHIP CLASS

When Teresa and I were looking for a new church in a new city, we were planning to attend a membership class to learn about the church's beliefs and leaders.

Before we joined Covenant Fellowship, we attended a 10-week class called “Explore.” It was a class for us to explore whether we would commit ourselves to the church. A pastor taught for the first 30 minutes, and the second 30-minutes was a small-group discussion led by a pastor.

Initially, 10 weeks seemed like a big commitment. Who has time for that? We liked the free food (coffee, yogurt, bagels, donuts, fruit, and more!). We also liked the approach. The pastors weren't trying to build their empire by increasing numbers. Their primary concern was that we would join a Bible-believing church where God's word is preached and practiced. They even offered to recommend other good churches in the area.

We started going to “Explore” to get our feet wet. As the class progressed, we learned a lot. We understood Covenant Fellowship's view of

• SCRIPTURE - Is scripture one voice among many or do all other voices take a back seat to it?
• THE GOSPEL- Is the gospel primarily about making the world a better place or reconciling sinners to a holy God?
• SPIRITUAL GIFTS – Which gifts are practiced today?
• CHURCH LEADERSHIP – Who are the leaders, what are their qualifications, is there accountability, etc...
• CHURCH GOVERNMENT – Are decisions made by all members or only the pastors?
• CHURCH MEMBERSHIP – What are the responsibilities for church members?

There were other topics, but these are some highlights. The 10-week class served everyone well. There was plenty of time to understand the church and for the pastors to learn about the people wanting to join.

Any disagreements between a potential new member and the pastors could be discussed openly. Some topics are non-negotiable (e.g. the gospel of Jesus Christ). A person wouldn't be allowed to join if they had incorrect understanding of the gospel. So, church membership is also the way to make sure all incoming members are actually Christians who know and embrace the gospel, not just those who are religious or spiritual.

The class showed us that Covenant Fellowship takes church membership seriously- the pastors invest significant amount of time and energy into “Explore” (and so do all the participants!).

Church membership, though is more than attending a class. In the next post, I'll go through the responsibilities of membership. Rather than scare us away with requirements not expected at most other churches, it was encouraging to see scripture's teaching on the church taken very seriously.