Church Member

Church Member

We have to realize before we do anything that a church is a body, it's not a building and it's not just some religious organization.  It spiritually represents the body  of Jesus Christ.  Meaning Christ is the head of the church and we(members) are part of that body.  That being said, your part and my part and everyone's part in the church body is vital, important, and needs to be taken seriously.

There are too many people out there that claim to be a "church member" or member of a certain church, but either they never attend churches services, only come on occasion, or are not consistent in their church attendance. But, being a church member is more than just "attending" a church service on sunday mornings or other times.  It actually means you have  a part in the body of Christ and are to use your talents/gifts to serve the Lord through His body(the church) and attending though is very important is just one aspect of it.

I have found that people(christians) really fall into 3 categories when it comes to both their christian faith or church membership:  1) Committed  2)Conditional  3)Could careless.

1. Committed:  This is where we should all strive to be in our christian relationship with God. We should be 100% sold out, faithful, and desiring to grow and mature in that relationship every day.  We are striving to learn more about God, serve Him more, and be a better Christian; We are committed to that relationship and because we are committed we are taking steps and goals to be committed.  We pray/talk to God daily, we develop times in our daily/weekly lives of bible study, reading, devotional times, being in church, and using our resources(time, talents, treasures) to serve God through His local church and yes, we are even committe to being in church and not missing for trivial or silly reasons.    We made a commitment to Christ when we professed His name and surrendered our lives to Him or were bapitzed into Christ and from that day forward we have taken that committment seriously and realize it's a life-time, make an effort, keep my word, be faithful even when I don't feel like it or mess up type of commitment.

2. Conditional: This is those christians/church members who aren't as committed or don't see the need to be that committed to Christ or His church.  We want God's "unconditional" love, grace, forgiveness, etc....but we aren't willing to be as unconditional in our service, time, and faith. We go to church if it's convenient, if we feel like it, if  we don't have something else we want to do, and we carry that attitude into our service, we will commit to doing something for God at church if it doesn't interfere with my hobbies, my kids sports, or my schedule.  We like church unless we want to sleep in, have a headache, or want to go do something. Even when we go out of town or vacation we don't take advantage of finding a local church, we just skip.  We will give money when we feel guilty sometimes, and we'll serve if we want to do our "service" for the year, but most of our commitments to God personally and corporately(through the church) are hit and miss and never consistent, because we aren't totally committed to our personal relationship to God or our part in the body(the church).  You are also same way in your personal studies, prayer time, or any christian service.

3. Could Careless. This the worst type of christian, because you aren't committed and you aren't even hit and miss conditional, you just have given up on your faith. You hardly ever go to church, maybe a christmas or easter with family, you never give anything to God or His church.  You do not tithe or give financially to the kingdom.  You do not ever volunteer or do anything to serve God, and you always put yourself and your wants above others.  You simply do not care about God, His church, or others.  You look at church attendance as an obligation or duty that is optional and you have no real relationship with God, so you do not see the need to be involved, serve the God through His church, or be an active part of his body at all. 

So my question for you today is are you a committed christian? A conditional christian? Or a could careless christian?  What type of church member or member of Christ's body the church are you? Committed? Conditional? Could Careless?  If you are a christian, you should be a member of His body the church and be committed to both your christianity and His church!

Psalm 37:4-6(NIV1984)

⁴ Delight yourself in the Lord
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

⁵ Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him and he will do this:
⁶ He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.