Becoming a Member of the Lord's Church

by Dave Brown

Consider the universal church as we discussed it on Page 1, and ponder this question: is one saved by being a member of the Lord’s church? or, is one a member of the Lord’s church by virtue of being saved?  Consider that the church universal is often called “the body of Christ,” e.g., Col. 1:24: “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body (which is the church) in filling up that which is lacking in Christ's afflictions.”  So when we get “into Christ” we are, by biblical definition, in His church.

But in Rom. 6:3f, Paul talked about the rebirth that Jesus had commanded as essential to salvation in John 3:5f.  Paul asked rhetorically: “Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?  Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”  This rebirth, accomplished at the point of baptism, not only saves us but also puts us into our Lord’s body, his church.  You cannot have one without the other.  All who are saved are at that point added to the Lord’s church.    So, the church does not save, but when the Lord saves, He adds you to His church.

But this still leaves us with the responsibility of associating ourselves with a legitimate local church.  This task is greatly simplified if our search is constrained to only those who have obeyed the gospel plan of salvation.  If they are teaching the whole truth from God’s word, and if they are indeed practicing it by not going beyond that which is written (2 John 9), then they have the same attitude as those who have been saved according to God’s plan.  The burden of proof is on them to demonstrate to you that all that they practice and preach is not from men but is based on the revealed will of God.  Since this revelation can only be found in the bible, it is quite simple to validate.

We expect some to still be quite skeptical of this approach.  Having grown up with the denominational model, this should surely seem strange.  But let me assure you that there are groups of Christians all over the world who are practicing religion with no guide other than the bible.  And they are united by that alone.