Church membership, accodring to Mark Dever, is a local church's endorsement of a person's salvation. To be clear, church membership does not mean you are saved neither does becoming a member make you saved. What we are saying when we vote on someone to become a member of our church is that based on what they are saying and what we are seeing, we believe this individual is a true believer. 

Membership in the Bible

Nowhere in the Bible is church membership commanded. Implicit perhaps – for example, a list of widows was kept by the church in Ephesus in 1 Timothy 5:9. But a command for keeping a formal list of members or requiring believers to join a church is absent from Scripture. One might even argue that keeping such a list of church members would have been unnecessarily dangerous in a time of widespread Christian persecution, as would be true in some parts of the world today (Ed Roberts, “Church Membership and Contextualization”).

  But when we closely examine what God intends for life together as a church to look like, we believe there are biblical reasons for why a believer should join a local church. That does not mean that what I am about to mention cannot happen in a church without formal membership, but it seems, depending on the size of the church, that not having a formal membership could lead to some problems in the future in relation to voting, church discipline, serving in the church as teachers, deacons, or elders, etc.

Why does First Baptist practice formal church membership?

We believe God’s intention for our local church family is most effectively carried out through formal church membership.

   Church membership enables us to answer to extremely important biblical questions. In fact, it’s hard to see how these questions could be answered without church membership.

  First, church membership helps answer these two questions:

1. Who do church leaders lead?

   Hebrews 13:17 ESV - Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you. does.

Is a pastor to watch over the souls of every person who walks in the door?

    2. Who is in and who is out?

      1 Corinthians 5:12-13 ESV - For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. "Purge the evil person from among you."

    Discipline was practiced by the church at Corinth on those who part of that local church. Church membership helps us answer the question, "Who are those "inside" this local church?

      Another consideration. 2 Corinthians 2:6 voting occurred - Who could vote? Just anyone who showed up and said they were a believer?

Membership Expectations

First, in 1 Corinthians 12 we are instructed to use our spiritual gifts to serve the body of Christ. When a person joing FBC that person saying “I commit to serve, and be served by, this church family.”

Secondly, the aforementioned Scriptures relating to church discipline (1 Corinthians 5 as well as Matthew 18) requre that believers hold one one another accountable to spiritual growth and obedience. So, when a person joins FBC they are also saying “I submit to being held accountable by this church family.”

These expectations cannot be carried out passively. Hebrews 10:24-25 "And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." All believers should be present to participate in the life of the local church. And what are we encouraging one another to do is to persevere in walking with Christ and making disciples in accordance with Matthew 28:19-20.

So how should a member live out these Biblical expectations with the believers they are committing to in our church family?

At FBC we want to make disicples who have a missionary mentality refelecting the urgency of ohn 4:35 ESV - "Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then comes the harvest'? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest." In order to accomplish this end-vision, we recognize there is both a discipleship journey and an evanglism/missions journey that we must travel together as a church family.

Therefore, if one desires to become a member of FBC, they should be willing to commit to grow spiritually with other FBC members not only through weekly corporate worship at FBC but also through commitment to a small group. There are multiple small-group opportuntities to grow spiritually with others at FBC: Sunday School, Men's O-Ring Bible study, Women's Bible studies, Life-on-Life Missional Discipleship groups, and/or one-on-one discipling relationships.

And and then members must go across the street and around the world to make disciples. This means every member should identify and seek to be intentionally involved in making disicples on their local mission field, where they live, work, and play. And they should either be hands-on involved on the international mission field through short-term mission trips, etc. or they should pray itnentionally and give generously so that others might go.

How does one go about becoming a member at FBC? Three steps. 1) Membership Class (offered quarterly), 2) Membership Interview (with the Pastor), 3) Membership Affirmation (a vote by the church family). You can read more about the details of our Membership process here.