How to Become a Member of Dry Creek Bible Church

Biblically, all Christians are members of the universal body of Christ.  The universal body of Christ is simply all true believers in the various churches in all parts of the world.  Membership within a local fellowship of believers is simply an administrative means that local churches use to identify those people who are committed to contributing to the success of that particular body. DCBC is no exception to this approach. 

The Bible requires all Christians to be engaged in true Christian fellowship and to be committed to the church's mission of making disciples of all nations. It is important to recognize that obedience in this area is not optional.  The Bible is clear that, although salvation is personal it is by no means private, involvement in a local church is clearly taught in the Bible.  A beliver has both a personal and a corporate relationship with the Lord and the foundation of any Bible believing church is the quality of  the peoples relationship with the Lord along both these dimensions.  However, for various reasons, not all Christians have fully aligned themselves with this Lordship issue.  It is a matter of common sense that Biblical churches empower those people properly aligned to be the ones that have control and direction of the local church. This is the purpose of membership.  Therefore DCBC administratively extends the privileges of teaching, leading and voting only to members.  Membership eligibility follows reasonable demonstration of such a relationship with Christ and dedication to his people.
 
The nature of membership is found in the Covenant of the Constitution of DCBC.  This is an excellent distillation of the Bibles requirement for Christians to be involved in Biblical fellowship, corporate worship, service and support.  Several points are worth emphasizing

Commitment to Love

Biblical love will manifest itself in loving others.  This would include a deliberate commitment to unity as well as developing relationships within DCBC.  A positive attitude towards others, a stepping forward to help in times of  need, consistency in fellowship, and intentional outreach towards others all are key indicators a persons commitment of love.

Commitment to Discipleship

The core mission of the church is to make disciples.  It is therefore essential that all members be disciples.  The foundation of discipleship is an individuals decision to be teachable and to adopt a lifestyle of biblical learning.  Commitment to personal growth and the growth in others is the hallmark of a disciple of Christ.  This is evidenced by a life of obedience, integrity, spiritual fruit and Biblical character.

Commitment to Service

Everybody has been gifted by God to edify the body in one or more ways.  It is essential for the function of the church that all members contribute to its function in some identifiable manner be it large or small.  All members should strive to discover their role and to serve accordingly.  Likewise everyone should encourage, depend upon and thank others for their service as well, thus cultivating a culture of every member involvment.

Commitment to Support

The Bible is clear that money is a direct competitor for our hearts.  The Bible very clearly emphasizes the stewardship approach towards finances rather than the consumer mentality. Lordship over our financial resources is essential for spiritual growth. Regular and generous financial support of the local church (10%) and sacrificial giving towards others is consistantly practiced by mature Christians

Everyone who has attended DCBC for 12 months or more should seriously consider membership and should sign up for membership classes when announced.  After the membership class, which primarily address doctrinal issues, bylaws etc, each candidate is given an opportunity to share details of their conversion and walk with God to a panel of Elders.  The Elders will also confirm agreement with the doctrinal position of DCBC.  Elders will then recommend the candidate to the congregation and after two weeks (if no one has reasonable objections) they are publicly received into membership.  Attendees that can not agree with the doctrinal position or vision of DCBC should seek a different church.