Responsibilities of a Church Member: Share the Gospel

Share the Gospel

Continuing the series on the responsibilities of a church member, we now turn from our role in preserving the gospel to our sharing the gospel.

The great commission is familiar to us. But, perhaps, we quietly insert something into it.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore [all who are extroverted and smooth in speech] and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." (bracketed text added by me to bad effect)

Do you see what we might quietly add to the great commission? In reality, however, this is not a call to an elite group of Christians. It is not a call only for pastors. It is a call for all of God's people. The promise at the end of these verses is for all Christians, so too is the command that the promise undergirds.  Jesus is with all Christians to the end of the age, and his call to make disciples is the mantle all Christians bear.

As a member of the church, one of your responsibilities is to share the good news and to disciple Christians (more on this aspect in a future post). We are to seek to share the gospel with family members, friends, neighbors, classmates, and others we encounter.  Not every conversation will be about the gospel. And not all gospel conversations will be a full laying out of the gospel. We don't try and force people to listen to us share the gospel, and we don't merely try to get through a checklist of facts. But, we do have the responsibility to share the gospel. 

And we do this not only individually but through the corporate witness of the body of Christ. Our love for one another (which requires us being together and living the Christian life as a body) is a way the world will know that we belong to Jesus. Jesus said in John 13:35 "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” 

For a good book on the topic of evangelism, check out Mack Stiles Marks of the Messenger: knowing, living and speaking the Gospel. 

Responsibilities of a Church Member: Preserve the Gospel

Help Preserve the Gospel  

The gospel message, the good news of God about salvation, is what creates a redeemed people. If we don't have the gospel, then we don't have the people of God, the church. Paul says in Ephesians 3 that the mystery of Christ (the anointed, promised one of God who would save his people from sin) was not fully revealed, at least not in flesh and blood, until the coming of Jesus who is the Christ and creation of one body - Jew and Gentile. So the gospel message is what creates the church. 

Since the gospel is the foundation, the church, made up of its members, is responsible for guarding this central truth against error. In Galatians, Paul rebuked the entire congregation for turning away from the gospel to false teachings (Gal 1:6, 3:1. He didn't just rebuke the leaders. Why? Because we all have a responsibility to cling to and preserve the only good news of God. 

So, I take from this, that each member has a responsibility to guard and cling to the gospel. Personally guarding oneself from false teaching concerning how a person is made right with God. Also, listening to the teaching in the church and being sure it does not "go off the rails" when it comes to the gospel. If it does, there needs to a loving, humble, and bold effort to bring correction. 

"The Extraordinary Life of Helen Roseveare"

I just listened to a podcast about the life of missionary Helen Roseveare (from the Gospel Coalition). She was a single woman who served as a medical missionary in the Congo for much of her life. She was honest about her struggles, sorrows, doubts, and God's faithfulness in it all. I encourage you to listen to this talk on her life (the podcast is about 45 minutes long).

Responsibilities of a Church Member: Affirm Citizens of God's Kingdom

Help Affirm Citizens of God's Kingdom  

In baptism and church membership we are acting like an embassy of Heaven. We are affirming a person's claim to belong to the Kingdom of God (note this is different than placing them in or out of the Kingdom - God alone does that work).  Baptism pictures that a person has been united with Jesus in his death and resurrection. It is a public declaration which is administered by the church. When we gather to observe this ordinance, we are not merely spectators but serving as witnesses and agreeing that we believe the baptismal candidate has a credible profession of faith. Church membership gives visible "borders" to those who belong to Christ. Church means an assembly of people. And when we receive new members we are saying they are part of the assembly of those who are born again, as best as we can tell. We are saying we believe this person has been brought out of the kingdom of darkness and into the Kingdom of the Son of God. 

The same is true in church discipline, but it is the opposite side of the coin. If a member stubbornly sides with their sin over Jesus and refuses to repent, then we are to clearly assert that we can no longer vouch for their being part of God's Kingdom. In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul tells the congregation (not just its leaders) to remove the man persisting in sin. They aren't to disassociate with unbelievers who persist in sin (though they are not to live like the unbelievers). Instead, they are to disassociate with those who claim to be brothers (in the family of God) who are clinging to evil. Why? Because the person who is claiming to belong to God's Kingdom while living in a way that sides with the Kingdom of Satan should not be affirmed as belonging to God's Kingdom. And it is the church members who have this role. 

So, as a member of a church, you are responsible to participate in baptism, receiving members, and removing members. 

Responsibilities of a Church Member: Gather Regularly

I am teaching a couple of the membership matters classes, so I have church membership on the brain. I read an article by Jonathan Leeman at the Gospel Coalition a while back about the job responsibilities of church members. That has inspired this series of posts about the responsibilities of church members. Over the next few posts (I am not sure how many yet), I will list and discuss a few responsibilities of members. I hope it encourages you in fulfilling your God-given role.

Gather with the Church Regularly 
Hebrews 10:24-25 says we are not to forsake (leave behind, neglect) our gathering together. There are times when we can't gather (illness, a season at work that is busier than normal).  But, we are not to intentionally or unintentionally let gathering together fall by the wayside.

In addition, each member has giftings which the Spirit has given for us to use in building up the body. The spiritual gifts are not simply for our own upbuilding, but that of the body (the church). So, the implication is that we must be together to do just that.

Finally, Colossians 3:16 says we are to admonish and encourage one another with hymns and spiritual songs and with the Word of God. So, our singing outloud together and our speaking to one another about the Word of God is a key part of our calling as Christians in a local church. And this requires that we gather together in worship.

The next responsibilities can only be fulfilled if you do this one. As Jonathan Leeman wrote, "Attendance makes everything else possible."