Membership
What to Say to Non-Committal Church Attenders
By Jonathan Leeman | 08.21.2014Joe has attended your church for about a year. He says he’s a Christian. But he has not joined. Should you encourage him to join? How? If you don’t think … keep reading…
Book Review: Why We Belong, multiple authors
Review by Matt Felton | 08.18.2014This book was written to demonstrate Christians can maintain their distinctive doctrinal beliefs through denominations while giving real expression to our cross-denominational unity.
Historical Reflections on Baptism and Church Membership
By Aaron Menikoff | 06.18.2014Maybe it simply worth noting that there is a long history, first in England, then in the States, of Baptists addressing the question of whether the unbaptized should be accepted into the … keep reading…
The Logical Fallacy of Centered-set Churches
By Jonathan Leeman | 06.12.2014Everyone puts up boundaries. The inclusivist mindset of our day likes to think it doesn’t, but it does. It just excludes those who hold a little too strongly to something … keep reading…
Why Use an “In-House” Church Membership Directory?
By Deepak Reju | 06.12.2014We have a “in-house” church data base that our staff manages so that we can regularly and often reproduce a church membership directory. While I’m sure there are a lot … keep reading…
Evaluating Prospective Church Members Who Appear Unconverted
By Brian Croft | 06.10.2014How do you evaluate a prospective church member who appears unconverted? A dear pastor friend of mine contacted me recently with what he felt was this exact dilemma. I … keep reading…
J. I. Packer On Why People Leave Churches
By Aaron Menikoff | 06.10.2014I first read Knowing God in 1994. It was a real eye-opener. It was the first book on theology that I had been introduced to, but it was written with the expectation … keep reading…
Membership
9Marks | 05.15.2014What is it? According to the Bible, church membership is a commitment every Christian should make to attend, love, serve, and submit to a local church. Where is it in … keep reading…
Nine Marks of a Prosperity Gospel Church
By D. A. Horton | 9Marks Journal: Prosperity Gospel | 01.15.2014A prosperity gospel church is a purely anti-nine marks church.
A Church and Churches: Independence
By Jonathan Leeman | 9Marks Journal: Church and Churches | 05.10.2013To understand how local churches relate to each other we first need to ask, who holds the keys?
Book Review: Deep & Wide: Creating Churches Unchurched People Love to Attend, by Andy Stanley
Review by Zach Schlegel | 9Marks Journal: Lay Elders: A User’s Guide—Part 2 | 01.03.2013A church that is unclear about “who belongs” in order to attract unbelievers may be “nice,” but they are also unloving.
How “Belonging Before Believing” Redefines the Church
By Michael Lawrence | 9Marks Journal: The Underestimated Doctrine of Conversion | 02.29.2012When we begin to deliberately blur the line, we confuse Christians about what it means to be a follower of Jesus in the first place.
The Corporate Component of Conversion
By Jonathan Leeman | 9Marks Journal: The Underestimated Doctrine of Conversion | 02.29.2012The corporate element of conversion must not come first, lest we lose the whole thing. But it must come.
Resources on Membership
9Marks | 9Marks Journal: Church Membership: Holding the Body Together | 05.01.2011If you’re looking for some more practical resources on church membership, here are a few suggestions.
What Does the Regulative Principle Require of Church Members?
By Terry Johnson | 9Marks Journal: Church Membership: Holding the Body Together | 04.28.2011The regulative principle, properly applied, means that church members are free from the threats of idolatry and weirdness, heresy and tomfoolery.