Section 1. Requirements for membership.  

Any person who professes repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ, who manifests a life transformed by the power of Christ, who has been baptized upon the profession of his faith, who ex— presses substantial agreement with the doctrines and aims of this church, and who is willing to submit to its government shall be eligible for membership in it. 

Section 2. Types of membership.  

Each member of the church is acknowledged to form a vital part of the body and to have a peculiar function in the life of that body (1 Corinthians 12.14- 27). Practical considerations, however, require that certain distinctions be recognized in the membership of this church. 

Paragraph A. Regular members. All who are received into the membership of the church according to the procedures set forth in Section 3 of this Article, who continue in regular attendance at the stated meetings of the church, and who do not come under the corrective discipline of the church as set forth in Article VI shall be considered regular members in good standing and entitled to all the rights and privileges of membership in the church. 

Paragraph B. Temporary members. Persons who come to live in our area for a limited period of time (e.g., college students, military personnel, persons on special work assignments) may be received into the membership of the church on the same basis and in the same manner as persons who have permanent residence in our geographical area. If such a person is already a member of a church in his place of permanent residence, he need not be re leased from the membership of his “home church” but will be regarded as a temporary member while in our midst, enjoying all the rights and privileges of regular membership. When such a person terminates his period of temporary residence and leaves our area, he will automatically be released to the fellowship of his “home church” and no longer be regarded as a member of this church. 

Paragraph C. Associate members. Regular members who move away from our area and who cannot find another local church with which they can conscientiously unite will, at their request, be retained as associate members of this church. Such persons must maintain regular communication with the church in order to maintain their associate membership in it. Nevertheless, they are urged to seek diligently a church with which they can unite elsewhere. An associate member shall not be allowed to vote in any business meeting of the church. At the discretion of the elders, associate membership may also be granted to invalids, Christian workers, and others whose relation to the church involves an usual circumstances. 

Section 3. Procedures in the reception of new members. 

Paragraph A. A person who desires to become a member of the church may apply to the elders and request to be interviewed by them. During the interview the elders will seek to determine whether that person has a creditable profession of faith in Christ, has been baptized, is in substantial agreement with the doctrines of the church, and intends to give wholehearted support to its ministry and submit to its discipline. 

Paragraph B. If the applicant is or has been a member of another church, special effort will be made to determine the person’s standing in that church and his reasons for leaving. At the discretion of the elders, a letter of inquiry concerning the person’s standing may be sent to that church before his acceptance as a member in this church is determined. 

Paragraph C. If the elders are satisfied that the applicant meets the requirements for membership, they shall announce the same to the congregation at a stated meeting of the church. Time will be allowed for objections or questions to be raised by any member concerning the applicant’s manner of life or doctrine. (Such objections are to be brought to the elders in private.) If no objection is raised which the elders consider to be valid, the person will be publicly received into the membership at a stated celebration of the Lord’s Supper. The elders may postpone the reception of a person into membership until proper investigation can be made concerning objections which in their judgment are sufficiently serious. 

Section 4. Termination of membership. 

Paragraph A. By physical death. When a member of the church is removed from our midst by death, his name shall automatically be removed from the membership roll. 

Paragraph B. By transfer. When it is so requested, the elders may grant to a departing member in good standing a letter of dismissal to the fellowship of another church. No such letter may be given to a member who is at the time under the corrective discipline of this church. The elders may refuse to grant a letter of transfer to any church which is in their judgment disloyal to “the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3) or which does not exercise godly care over its members. 

Paragraph C. By exclusion. If a member habitually absents him self from the stated meetings of the church without showing just cause, or if due to relocation he ceases to maintain a vital contact with the church, he may be excluded from the membership at the discretion of the elders. Also, any member who personally so requests may after due admonition be excluded from the membership. In such cases no congregational approval of the action shall be needed; the elders shall simply announce to the congregation that such a person is no longer a member. If an excluded member applies again for membership, the procedures set forth in Section 3 of this Article will again be followed. 

Paragraph D. By excommunication. According to the teaching of Holy Scripture a congregation must cut off from its fellowship and visible membership any person who teaches or insists on holding false and heretical doctrine, who blatantly and persistently conducts himself in a manner inconsistent with his Christian profession, or who persists in disturbing the unity or peace of the church ( Matthew 18.15 ff.; 1 Corinthians 5.1 ff.). The procedure to be followed in such excommunication is set forth in Section 2 of Article VI of this Constitution. 

Section 5. Conduct required of members. 

Paragraph A. All regular and temporary members agree to attend all the stated meetings of the church unless providentially hindered (by illness, accident, unusual working conditions, and other such circumstances). The stated meetings of the church are all the services on the Lord’s Day (the Bible school, morning and evening worship, and the Lord’s Supper), the midweek prayer service, the business meetings of the congregation, and any special meetings which the elders shall occasionally deem it necessary to call. 

Paragraph B. The church expects its members to make use of the various other means of grace which are available to them, such as the regular daily reading of the Bible, regular private and family prayer, and a proper reverence for observance of the Lord’s Day. 

Paragraph C. Since it is clearly taught in Scripture that Christians should support financially the work of the Lord by systematic and proportionate giving made through the local church 

Malachi 3:8—10; 1 Corinthians 16:1—2; 2 Corinthians chapters 8—9 ), all the members of thi8 church are expected to conform to this rule of Scripture. The tithe (10 percent of one’s income) is not imposed on the people of God as a tax but is strongly urged upon each member as an expression of worship and the biblical norm for basic giving, to which should be added gifts and offerings according to one’s ability and the willingness of his heart (2 Corinthians 8:1-5; Exodus 36:2—7). 

Paragraph D. The church expects its members to obey the teachings of the Scriptures in respect to family life and government. As the God-appointed head of the family, the husband must rule over the household with gentleness and love but also with wisdom and firmness (Ephesians 5:25 ff.; 1 Timothy 3:4-5). The wife must be in subjection to her husband in all things according to the rule of Scripture (Ephesians 5:22-24; 1 Peter 3:1). The husband with the wife must “nurture their children in the chastening and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:2), by setting a godly example before them, by instructing them consistently in the Scriptures, and by wise and firm discipline, including corporal punishment when it is needed (Proverbs 13:24, 22:15 & 29:15; Hebrews 12:7). 

Paragraph E. Inasmuch as the church is represented in Scripture as a body having many members, each of the members having its particular function and yet having a concern for the health and protection of the whole (1 Corinthians 12:12—27; Ephesians 4:4, 11-16), this church expects that each of its members will strive for the good of the entire body. The members must actively seek to cultivate acquaintance with one another so that they may be better able to pray for one another; love, comfort, and encourage one another; and help one another materially as necessity may require. They must refrain from speaking ill of one another and must keep in strict confidence all matters of private concern to the church and not discuss them with persons outside of this fellowship. 

Paragraph F. It is the duty of every Christian individually and as a member of a local church to labor for the extension of the kingdom of God both at home and to the ends of the earth. Therefore, every member of this church is expected prayerfully to recognize and to seize every opportunity to bear witness to his faith in Christ both by consistent Christian conduct and by the testimony of his lips. 

Paragraph G. Each member of the church is required to render in his daily life loyal obedience to all the moral precepts established in the Word of God (Romans 8:3-4). If God has not condemned or forbidden a practice in His Word, a Christian is at liberty to participate in it. The exercise of Christian liberty, however, must at all times be governed by an earnest desire to walk in the fear of God and to glorify Him in all things (1 Peter 1:17; 1 Corinthians 10:31), a loving regard for the consciences of weaker brethren ( 1 Corinthians 8:9 ; Romans 15:1—3 ), a compassion for the lost (1 Corinthians 9:19-22), and a zealous regard for the health of one’s own soul (Romans 13:14; 1 Peter 2:16) 

Paragraph H. All who come into the membership of this church are expected to recognize and submit to the authority of the overseers of the church (1 Corinthians 16:15-16; 1 Thessalonians 5: 12—13, Hebrews 13: 17).