The Bayfield Post, 1982-05-21, Page 3•
FROM THE
Pastor's Desk
Membership in the Church
by Rev. R. Patrick
The birth of Baptism is required for member-
ship in the Church of Christ just as natural
birth or adoption is required for memtership:
in a family.
But granting the necessity of Baptism for all,
the perfection cr imperfection of our member-
ship in Christ's Church is determined by our
desire tc know and lcve God.
In short, God expects the same na_tur•alhuman
response and desire for friendship, az we
would of other members in our family.
It is they man or woman of faith and love, who
enjoys aore perfect membership in God's family,
the Church. While the man or woman of little
faith and love, is a member cf God's family in
a very limited way.
God could care less what kind of tag we have
placed on each other. Christ wouldn't know
a Protestant from a Catholic if he tripped
over one.
There are only two kinds of people Christ
recognizes, friends and strangers.
Friends are those who are seeking to know
and love Him. Strangers -_e those who don't
care whether He exists or not.
The better the friend, the more perfect is
the membership in Christ's Church.
All these human designated Christian groups,
such as Anglicans, Baptists, Presbyterians,
Lutherans, Catholics, Pentecostals etc. are
all of man's making, not God's and therefore
have no real meaning in his eyes.
What does God care whether 200 million
Christians of one: group join with ;00
million Christians of another group?
God doesn't recognize the validity cf these
^:_n-mp :ae sc-called Christian groups in the
first place.
There is silly one universa.). Church that Christ
recognizes, and the sincere members of that
Church are his friends no matter how they
are tagged by man.
Our closeness to Christ arid his Church is not
determined by what building cr in what deno-
mination we were baptized, it is determined
simply Ly the legree cf our friendship with
him.
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