Meaningful Membership
Pastor Eugene reflects on how the “let us” commands in Hebrews 10 shape our life together as fellow church members.
Vegetables are good for us. Therefore, we must eat our greens. In the Bible, there is a passage that has been called a “spiritual salad”—beneficial to the church’s health when taken in and taken to heart.
I’m referring to Hebrews 10:19-25, which has been called a “salad” because of its “lettuce”—that is, the repeated “let us” commands found in it: “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith… Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering… And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works.” (vv 22-24) Poor pun notwithstanding, these verses show us what meaningful membership of a local church looks like.
As we’ve been hearing from 1 Corinthians 12-14 in our “Body Building” sermon series, being a church member is not merely about “me”, but more so about “us”. Since we are one body in Christ, membership concerns more than my personal spiritual walk. It also has to do with how we follow Jesus with one another. Biblical church membership is essentially obeying and putting into practice all of Scripture’s “one-another” commands. (There are more than 50 of them in the New Testament.) Certainly, being a member is about much more than just having our name on a membership list.
God has saved us in Christ to belong to a spiritual community. The gospel creates the church, uniting all who believe in Jesus as fellow members of His body. Therefore, because we have been joined to Christ, we are joined to one another as well. God calls us to love and serve one another. “One-anothering” is not optional to the Christian life, but a vital part of our discipleship. Indeed, after the great and first command to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind, Jesus said the second great command is: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” (Matt 22:39)
Jesus Christ, our great High Priest, has brought us back to God through His death and resurrection. This ought to also transform how we relate to one another. Hebrews 10 teaches us that being a member of a local church in a meaningful way means: (1) affirming the truth together with other believers; (2) gathering together regularly with other believers; and (3) committing to know one another in the local church.
1. Affirm the truth together
Believers are to “hold fast the confession of our hope” (Heb 10:23a). Christians are a confessional people. Throughout church history, believers have summarised their doctrinal beliefs in creeds and confessions. Since the gospel has brought us together, we are to confess our common faith by speaking God’s truth to one another. So, if you are a member of Grace Baptist Church, this means affirming the Statement of Faith and Members’ Covenant. These two documents are a key part of our church life: the former summarises what we believe, while the latter expresses our shared commitment to live out God’s truth in community with one another. Doctrine and life go hand in hand. By affirming the truth together, we declare that we are holding fast the confession of our hope in the gospel.
2. Gather together
Believers are “not to neglect meeting together” (Heb 10:25a). Assembling as a church is not always easy, comfortable or convenient. But we do so because God calls us to, for our spiritual good. We are not meant to run the race of the Christian life alone. Rather, we regularly meet with one another because we need ongoing mutual encouragement. Meeting with our brothers- and sisters-in-Christ enables us to meaningfully do life together, giving us opportunities to share in one another’s joys and sorrows.
Therefore, I encourage us to be present when the church gathers for our weekly corporate worship services, monthly prayer meetings, and quarterly members’ meetings. Make these three whole-church gatherings a priority. After all, the church, by definition, is an assembly of God’s people. It is a vital part of our identity as the people of God. Through our regular rhythm of gathering, we come together to praise God, hear his word, pray, and partner in the work of the gospel. So, let us draw near to God together with one heart in Christ (Heb 10:22).
3. Know one another
The writer to the Hebrews exhorts us to “consider how to stir up one another to love and good works” (Heb 10:24). To “consider” implies intentionality and thoughtfulness. If we are to effectively spur one another on to do good, then we must deepen our knowledge and understanding of one another. In this way, we can share more than general platitudes. We would be better able to speak a timely, encouraging word “as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear” (Eph 4:29b).
Thus, meaningful church membership entails investing time and effort to get to know other members in the body of Christ, especially those who are different from us. We seek to know and be known, so that our relationships with one another go beyond the superficial. Then, we can better bear one another’s burdens, as we share our anxieties, struggles, fears and temptations.
So, affirm the truth together. Gather together. Know one another. This, in a nutshell, is what meaningful church membership looks like. May God help us to love and serve one another as fellow members of the one body of Christ!