The Four Members in a Local Church
Over the years of pastoring a local Baptist church I have come to see three groups of members.
Those who come in
Those who leave and
Those who stay
Those who are sent out
New people coming into the local church is a matter of rejoicing and hope
New members are fun to meet. They often bring opportunities perhaps to meet others that they know, maybe someone else will begin to come on their recommendation. There is new energy because, they have joined because they see something in the church that appeals to them. We are reminded through them why this church appeals to us.
People leaving the church is always difficult
Some churches accept it as unavoidable and develop plans to function with the loss. Churches will use people for all they are worth, banking on getting them to get new people in church before they leave. Of course, God does move some, but I think we would be hard pressed to find in the Bible where it was supposed to happen except for ministry purposes. How many people do you know who have moved from one church to another as a matter of ministry. Some people leave because, frankly, they are planted on they stony soil or the thorny soil. They have no depth. Over the years I have seen those who leave for appropriate reasons and God has blessed. I have seen some who leave when they should not have. I do not gloat when I say that many many of them are in spiritual ruin, or else their children are. There are also those who heeded my counsel when I warned them that they should not move. In one instance the man, on his death bed a year or so later, thanked me for encouraging him to stay.
Those who stay are the reason churches, real churches exist
A church is a body, not a business. A body is composed of individual members so joined to one another that neither the body nor the member is healthy without the other. Those who stay likely receive the least amount of attention of the three. Those who come seem to need to be made to feel welcome. Those who leave create a hole that somehow has to be filled. But those who stay - they just stay and make the whole body function.
I learned a bit of this the hard way. After planting a church in Astoria, OR, I stayed over 13 years. At the time I accepted it as a matter of fact that I, as a preacher, could be called to other ministries in other places. I did not reckon the monstrous damage that my leaving would do. It was too late to correct what I had done, but I determined that I did not want to do that sort of damage ever again. I am a part of this body. I have been for over 22 years now. As painful as it is to see unsettled people moving in these unsettling times, by the grace of God I want to stay. I want to remain attached to those who, by the grace of God, also wish to stay in this, the body of Christ God has joined us to.
The fourth group are those who are sent out
As in Acts 13, the Holy Spirit of God does send people from a church to do the work of the Lord. It is worth noting that the Holy Spirit told the leaders of the church before or at least simultaneous to those who were to go. There is nothing like the modern “the Lord is calling me, who are you to question it?” Attitude so prevalent today. Over the years there have been those I knew were called to do a work long before they did. I told one young man almost four years ago that he belonged working alongside his dad. He moved here to marry a young lady in our church. Though her family insisted they had to live here if they were to marry, I knew way back then that would not be the long term solution. There is nothing as good for the work of the church as sending forth laborers when they are sent the scriptural way.
1 John 2:19 (KJV)
They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.