The Value of the Church + Church Membership

A few months ago, I taught about the importance of church and the value of church membership. If you missed that sermon, you can watch it right here. In that message, I talked about the way we would do membership in our church, built on the belief that the local church is more important than may of us may realize.

In Matthew 16, Jesus told Peter that He would build His church. Jesus didn’t say he would build a non-profit organization, or a worship band, or a publishing company, or a social ministry…He set out to build the church. And in the book of Acts, we watch that happen. Jesus so closely identified with the church that when Saul was persecuting Christians, Jesus said said he was persecuting Him. The book of Ephesians describes Jesus as the head of the church as us as the members of the body.

In the Old Testament, God’s glory was displayed through the Tabernacle and later the temple. In the New Testament, it was displayed through the person and work of Jesus Christ. The book of Ephesians tells us that God’s glory is now on display in the local church!

In other words, church is important. Church participation is important. The church living and being on mission is important. And church membership is important.

I know that church membership can be confusing, but at it’s core, it’s about identifying with God’s people and being a visible part of God’s mission. That’s why membership is important at Oak Leaf Church.

If you have previously attended a partnership event but haven’t gone through the new membership process, I want to invite you to do that. You can start the entire process online. There are a series of videos and a few things to read, as well as a membership application. After you fill that out, one of our pastors will get in tough with you. The final step is a covenant, which formalizes what already should be happening.

If you’ve got any questions, leave me a comment or get it touch with Jody. We are excited and honored to be on mission for God in Cartersville and Canton, and we believe that God has a unique and divine purpose for our church.