Pastor's Notes

Sarah and the kids started down to her parents on Wednesday. They will be coming home this Wednesday. While they are down in North Carolina, Sarah's grandmothers are both flying in from Ohio to see the family. I have been working on things around the church and also on my class work. I have not gotten as much done as I would like, so I will be pushing myself a little harder the rest of this week. I also like to try and clean the house while Sarah is away, and I have not started on that process yet.

Should you be a member of a local church? If so, which church and why? The Bible does not command church membership, but implies that there was some form of method of someone being a member of the church. This is evidenced from the removal of the individual from the church in 1 Corinthians, the selecting of the deacons from within the church, and the letters written to the churches at Corinth, etc. In Acts, a person was declared to be part of the church upon their salvation testimony and their baptism.

In our ministry, we believe in both a universal and local church. An individual who is saved is a member of the Universal/Invisible Church. Our membership as a local church consists of those who covenant together having believed in Jesus Christ for eternal life, been baptized by water, and agree with the doctrinal statement of the church. In order to maintain a consistency in teaching, all Sunday School teachers are required to be members of the church. All of the officers of the church are required to be members.

Does this mean that those who are not members cannot be involved in the ministry? No, but there is a limitation. Your involvement is consistent with the work of any believer who associates with a church. If you know Jesus Christ as Savior, have been baptized by immersion, and are in agreement with our church covenant, articles of faith and constitution, we encourage you to consider becoming a member

-Pastor Stephen Racite