Membership is not enough.

Bishop’s Message

I will freely admit that I’ve never had an original idea. I love it when other people give me a model of language to express something I know inside me.  Most recently, I feel a deep sense of appreciation for Timothy Dombek’s exploration of the dichotomy between Membership and Discipleship in the church.

Those of you who attended our 2012 Diocesan Convention in Traverse City last month will remember Timothy Dombek as the keynote speaker. He is the Canon to the Ordinary for the Diocese of Arizona. He also spoke at Stewardship University which was held in Grand Rapids earlier this month.

While we use the word “member” freely in our parishes, Dombek makes the distinction between those who identify themselves as members and those whose primary focus is to be followers of Jesus, i.e. disciples.

Here are some examples of Dombek’s observations:

The Expectations of a Member:

• ·        To give money to others to do ministry
• ·        To pay “dues” to receive services, like a visit from the rector.
• ·        To fill a slot in the church membership.

Members Assume the following:

• ·        The mission field is elsewhere, not here.
• ·        The goal is to get and keep members.

But while the members are focused on the congregation, disciples are focused on following and doing the work of Jesus. Dombek explains that when Jesus is our focal point, “our lives will naturally show forth acts of kindness and generosity and ministry becomes a way of life.”

The Expectations of a Disciple:

• ·        To do the ministry themselves, offer their resources, discern and deploy their own gifts.
• ·        To be transformed through worship and faith.
• ·        To be part of a community.

Disciples assume the following:

• ·        The mission field is at the door of the church.
• ·        There are high expectations of disciples, including diligence.

It brings to mind an image about a swimming pool from a sermon I heard once a long time ago.

“All the noise is at the shallow end.”

I have seen my fair share of church fights, and in my experience, they arise from being in the shallow end of the pool. Those who are in the shallow end have time for shallow things; those who move to the more difficult space of the deep water are busy with the work of swimming, or metaphorically, growing in their relationship with Jesus, carrying out his mission, and being transformed by their relationship to him.

Last Saturday, we confirmed, received and reaffirmed the baptismal vows of 64 new disciples. I said in my sermon to them, “Today you are saying you want to move to the deep end of the pool, where life isn’t so secure, where you can’t feel your feet beneath you. The spirit has called you.”

To have an experience of God in worship is most wonderful. But it does not make you a disciple. You need to go deeper into the water.

We need more disciples in the church. Membership in the church is not enough. The disciples came to Jesus with open minds and a willingness to be transformed, as should we.