Membership Process

We want people to become members. At the same time, however, we want to convey to people that we take church membership seriously; we want people to understand what we feel being a member of a church is all about. We want people to consider thoughtfully what they are getting themselves into. Because we are after serious commitment, the membership process is designed to foster the requisite reflection to make such a commitment.

Membership Bible Studies

We hold a four-week set of membership Bible studies several times a year. From these studies, prospective members learn or re-learn Biblical teaching directly relevant to church membership. These include: the gospel of Christ, the nature of the church and its necessity for Christian life, the responsibilities and privileges of membership in TRPC, TRPC�s order and values, and Acts Ministries International�s functions and values.

Membership Essay Question

Along with the Bible studies, prospective members are asked to write an essay on their personal spiritual history. This essay touches on significant moments in the process of their becoming Christians, people who were instrumental in that journey, their early understanding of spiritual things, their progress of Christian growth and other related topics.

An Interview with the Pastoral Staff

After you have submitted your essay, the next step is to schedule an interview with the pastoral staff. This is a chance for you and the staff to get to know one another better and discuss in person some of the things you've written. With each person, the staff will probably talk about different things. During the interview, the staff will also want to get a sense of what role you might have at The Remnant once you become a member. It will be helpful, therefore, to reflect on the following questions beforehand:

1. "What do I enjoy doing the most? In what capacity would I like to serve? In what way would I like to get involved?" Possible responses include: "I find myself enjoying myself the most in ministry when I'm . . ."; "I love to pray"; "I love to spend time with homeless people"; "I love college students." This will help us to evaluate and identify your passion.

2. "What types of needs do I see at The Remnant? What do I think The Remnant really needs right now?" We want to understand your view of our church, now that you've been with us for at least half a year. Help us to see how you see our church.

3. "What can I do to help meet these needs?" Once you've identified some needs, consider how you could be involved in addressing them. Possible responses include: "This church can be intimidating for newcomers. I want to be involved in making people feel welcome"; "This church is not as involved in the community as it could be. I would love to be part of a mentorship program for youth in the area."

Induction

The members' induction ceremony serves a similar function as baptism. It is a public declaration of one's commitment to this particular local body of Christ. This is important, and it actually symbolizes the whole membership process. The membership process is all about communicating one's commitment.