Churchmanship

01 - Church Membership

April 10, 2016 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

Does local church membership matter? If so, how much exactly? Although the Bible does not contain an explicit command to formally join a local church, the biblical foundation for church membership permeates the New Testament. This biblical basis can be seen most clearly in (1) the example of the early church, (2) the existence of church government, (3) the exercise of church discipline, and (4) the exhortation to mutual edification. In this sermon series on church membership, Pastor Ronald H. Gann explains how living out a commitment to a local church involves many responsibilities, including corporate fellowship, stewardship, and service. Simply put, membership matters!

02 - Church Fellowship

April 17, 2016 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

The Christian life does not end with accepting Jesus as Savior and then isolating yourself on a secluded mountain. As much as the cross reconciled our vertical relationship with God, so it also restored our horizontal relationship with one another. Thus, coming together in fellowship as a sorority of believers is a privilege that we ought not take lightly. It shows the world what a Christian society is and how it operates. In this sermon series on church membership, Pastor Ronald H. Gann explains how living out a commitment to a local church involves many responsibilities, including corporate fellowship, stewardship, and service. Simply put, membership matters!

03 - Church Worship

April 24, 2016 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

Certainly, being an official member of a local church is not mandatory to worship God effectively. But neither is it irrelevant either. In fact, corporate worship—that is, the public proclamation of God’s Word and the singing of songs—is designed by God to be experienced in community and enjoyed among the committed. Formal membership fosters that unlike anything else. In this sermon series on church membership, Pastor Ronald H. Gann explains how living out a commitment to a local church involves many responsibilities, including corporate fellowship, stewardship, and service. Simply put, membership matters!

04 - Church Service

May 1, 2016 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

It has been said that, along with stewardship, servanthood is a key hallmark of a person’s churchmanship. God has granted each Christian certain spiritual gifts by which to bless and serve the local body of believers. Accordingly, being a church participator, rather than merely a Sunday spectator, is both an expectation and a privilege that God ascribes to churchmanship. In this sermon series on church membership, Pastor Ronald H. Gann explains how living out a commitment to a local church involves many responsibilities, including corporate fellowship, stewardship, and service. Simply put, membership matters!

05 - Church Prayer

May 8, 2016 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

Jesus taught about the importance of personal prayer in private (Matt. 6:6). Equally, the early church modeled the importance of group prayer in public (Acts 2:42-; 4:31; 6:3-4). Both are vital to churchmanship. But group prayer in particular knits believers together and encourages the burdened in ways that private prayer cannot. When believers pray corporately, the result is unity. In this sermon series on church membership, Pastor Ronald H. Gann explains how living out a commitment to a local church involves many responsibilities, including corporate fellowship, stewardship, and service. Simply put, membership matters!

06 - Church Stewardship

May 15, 2016 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann

There is a fundamental link between a person's spiritual condition and their attitude toward money and material possessions. How a person spends their money, in other words, often reveals the nature of their commitment to God and their relationship with the local church. But is a person’s spending habits the best way to gauge their spiritual maturity? In this sermon series on church membership, Pastor Ronald H. Gann explains how living out a commitment to a local church involves many responsibilities, including corporate fellowship, stewardship, and service. Simply put, membership matters!

BridgeWay Christian Church

The High Privilege Of Membership