Church Membership: Series Overview

Teaching | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

For those of you that are interested in the direction we will be heading for the next two months in our Church Membership series, beginning this Sunday, this post is for you.

Q: What is this series all about?

This series is created to be the first point of connection for those considering Downtown Cornerstone as their church home, for a season or a lifetime. This series will serve as the first round of our ongoing church membership process, which will take place as a class going forward. As you can see, we’ll cover everything from key doctrinal issues to an overview of the vision, mission and values of Downtown Cornerstone. Consider it an “Introduction to Christianity” meets “Downtown Cornerstone 101.”

Q: Who is this series for?

This series is for everyone, whether you’re a seasoned follower of Christ or still considering his claims. However, this series will be required for all who desire to become a member of DCC to ensure you are aligned with our doctrinal and philosophical distinctives. The content over the course of the series is designed to enable you to make a wise, informed and prayerful choice to become part of Jesus’ family here.

Q: What if I have questions along the way?

If you have any questions along the way, feel free to post them here (on the City), speak with your community lead or contact me directly. There are several books that I also recommend, including: Church Membership: How the world knows who represents Jesus, by Jonathan Leeman; Those Who Must Give an Account, ed. Hammett & Merkle; What is a Healthy Church Member, by Thabiti Anyabwile; To Be or Not to Be a Church Member? by Wayne Mack

Series Overview:

07.08.12 Church Membership: What it means to believe, be and belong

During the first week we will introduce the series and provide an overview of church membership. What is it? Is it biblical? Why does it matter? We’ll take time to unpack what it means to believe (i.e. doctrine, theology, and truth), be (i.e. identity in Christ) and belong (i.e. to God and others) as a follower of Jesus. We’ll also discuss the process for becoming a member of Downtown Cornerstone Church and what you can do to get started.

07.15.12 Our Bible

The second week we’ll look at the Bible. What is it? How do we know we can trust it? How did we get it? Why do need it? What do we do with it? What role should it play in our daily lives? This should be a very practical week and serve to boost your confidence in God’s Word. We start with the Bible because it is here that we learn about who God is, what he is like and how we can know him.

07.22.12 Our God

The third week we’ll discuss God. Who is God? What is he like? How many gods are there? How can we know that God exists? Where do we see the trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) in the Bible? What has the church historically believed about God? Understanding God biblically is the starting place for being in relationship with him and his people.

07.29.12 Our Gospel

After discussing our God and our Bible we will move on to explore God’s redemptive plan through the person and work of Jesus Christ (aka the gospel). We’ll look at the gospel from Genesis to Revelation through the lens of Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Consummation. We will also discuss how the gospel applies to both believers and unbelievers, giving shape to our daily lives and decisions.

08.05.12 Our City

The gospel of Jesus Christ is intended to take root in specific local contexts. For us, that’s the city of Seattle. This week we’ll discuss our missional context. Why are we here? Why are cities important? What are the unique challenges and blessings of the city? How do we best take the unchanging truth of the gospel into our ever-changing culture? We’ll also review the history of Christianity in Seattle and our role in Jesus’ continuing story today.

08.12.12 Our Church

As the good news of Jesus Christ goes into the city, sinners are saved, lives are changed and, inevitably, a church is planted. This week we’ll dig into what Jesus’ local church is intended to be and do, including issues related to leadership, structure, governance, discipline, and more. We’ll also discuss the history, vision, mission and values of Downtown Cornerstone.

08.19.12 Our Mission

What then is our mission? Why do we exist? How do we measure success? The Bible is clear that we are saved to be sent across the street, and around the world, with the life-changing news of the gospel of Jesus. But, how do we do that? We’ll also talk about our local and global mission of planting churches in our city and the cities of the world.

08.26.12 Our Discipleship

In light of all this, what does it practically look like to follow Jesus Christ? This week we’ll talk about how our identity in Christ gives shape to our daily lives, including our location (family, homes and neighborhoods), vocation (work, career, finances), recreation (rest, play, leisure), restoration (mercy, justice, brokenness), and multiplication (stewardship, growth, others). We’ll also examine discipleship pathway and what it looks like to go from “lost” to “leader”.

Serve the City | Sat, July 21st

City Life, News, Serve the City

Join us July 21st as we serve the city by cleaning and connecting with the people in downtown Seattle’s avenues and alleyways! This project includes partnering with the Seattle Public Utilities “Adopt-A-Street” and “Clear Alley’s Program.” DCC will pin point which downtown Seattle streets and alleys will be cleaned by our volunteers. Seattle Public Utilities will provides necessary resources like garbage bags, gloves, brooms, etc.

WHEN: 8:00a – 12:00p on the third Saturday in July (7.21.12), Download this flyer to share with your neighbors and friends!

WHO: You and your friends, family, coworkers, neighbors. This serving opportunity will be a great bridge to build in Seattle and will help us give people a taste of the love, grace and mercy Jesus freely offers them.

WHERE: We will meet up in the parking lot on the northwest corner of 7th Ave & Lenora in front of “Piranha”. Parking in that Impark lot is only $5 for up to 10 hours, so we recommend parking there.

HOW: We are aiming for 65+ volunteers! We will break into 8 teams of 8 or so people. Each team will be assigned specific streets and alleys to “own” by way of cleaning and caring for people within the vicinity. We’ll proceed block by block through the City Center until each street and alley is served or we run out of resources.

MISSION: Our goal is to love the city to life by way of service and care for people. Our primary function is to serve the city and as we do that we will be mindful that we are Jesus’ ambassadors, making much of him in how we serve, and ultimately, why we serve.

More details to come. If you’d like to join us please email .

Is Church Membership Biblical?

Teaching | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

In an effort to adequately prepare you for our next series, Church Membership: What it means to believe, be and belong, I will be writing a handful of posts to address frequently asked questions regarding church membership and related issues. Whether you’re a follower of Jesus or still considering his claims, this should be a helpful series.

Q: Is Church Membership Biblical?

In our individualistic and consumeristic culture church membership is often misunderstood and, at times, avoided altogether. This is unfortunate as becoming a member of a local Jesus-loving, Bible-believing, gospel-centered church is a vital part of the Christian life. While it is true that the term church membership is nowhere to be found in the New Testament, it is inferred and assumed throughout. (see also: “trinity”) Membership is not only biblical, but vital to the overall health of every local church. Therefore it is important for every follower of Christ to have a biblical, rather than cultural, understanding of what it means to be covenantally committed to a specific grouping of God’s people in a specific local context. You might ask, “Is it necessary for Christians to make a formal commitment to their local church?” The answer, in short, is “yes”. Let me show you why.

Ten biblical evidences for church membership:

#1 The church is formed through a common allegiance to Jesus Christ.

2 Cor 4:5 “For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord…”
Acts 17:3 “Explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise…”
John 20:31 “These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God…”
Rom 10:9 “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved…”
1 Cor 15:3 “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures… (Eph 1:7; 1 Pet 1:3-12; 1 Cor 12:3)

The church is the people of God redeemed by the person and work of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. We start here because this is where the church starts. The church isn’t merely an optional club, non-profit or voluntary society that we select as a matter of personal preference. Jesus died to forgive the sins of everyone, everywhere, who trust and follow him. He then brings those who have responded to his call together, within a given local context, and calls them his people, his church, to live underneath his gracious and sovereign reign. God’s goal in history is not merely to form a club, but to create a new humanity. That alone does not prove church membership is biblical, but it does demonstrate God’s aim to create a new people. Let’s look at the issue more closely.

#2 The first Christians corporately identify themselves as churches.

Acts 8:1 “There arose on that day a great persecution against the church…”
Acts 11:22 “The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem…”
Acts 11:26 “For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people…”
Acts 12:1 “Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church…”
Acts 12:5 “Earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church…”
Acts 14:27 “And when they arrived and gathered the church together…”
Acts 15:3 “So, being sent on their way by the church…”
Acts 15:4 “They were welcomed by the church…

The Bible uses the word church to describe the way in which the early Christians lived and were organized. There are no examples of Christians in the Bible that lived separate from the local church. From the beginning, we see that the local church is primary to God’s purposes.

#3 The first Christians were “added” to the church.

Acts 2:41 “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.”
Acts 2:47 “And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”

Here we see that when someone expressed faith in Christ, they are added to the newly forming church. These new Christians didn’t merely become isolated Jesus-followers, they were added to a people. To become a follower of God was to be added to the people of God. Church membership represents being “added” to a particular local church.

#4 An intentional record was kept.

Acts 1:15 “a group numbering about a hundred and twenty.”
Acts 2:41 “there were added that day about three thousand souls.”
Acts 4:4 “the number of the men came to about five thousand.”

In other words, the early church is counting heads and keeping records of those who demonstrated faith in Jesus Christ – likely for purposes of planning and care (cf Acts 6). There is biblical evidence that the early church kept a list of widows (1 Tim 5:9). If there were lists of widows it is very reasonable to conclude there were also lists of those who belonged to the church. Viewed in this light, church membership is counting yourself among those that belong to God’s people, in Christ, in a local context.

#5 Common commitment and mutual dependance.

Acts 2:42-47 “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayers…and all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people.”

From the beginning, those in the church were committed to and mutually dependent on one another. It is evident that the church was not just a random collection of isolated individuals who happened to gather once or twice a week. Church membership is demonstrating your common commitment to and mutual dependence on other followers of Christ in the context of a local church.

#6 Pastors/leaders are responsible for specific sheep.

1 Peter 5:2 “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you…not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.”
Acts 20:28 “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.”

This tells us that the pastors/leaders knew who they were responsible for (i.e. “the flock”). It is for this “flock” that pastors will have to give an account before Jesus Christ (Heb 13:17). In order to give an account, the pastors must know who they are accountable for. Clearly, this cannot mean that pastors/leaders are responsible for everyone, but only those who are part of their “flock”. Church membership allows the pastors to know who they are ultimately responsible for.

#7 Christians are responsible to follow specific pastors/leaders.

Heb 13:17 “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.”
1 Tim 5:17 “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor…”

Just as the pastors and leaders must know who they are responsible for, the church must know who they are to follow, emulate and show honor to. By becoming a member of a local church you are placing yourself under the watch and care of specific leaders who have been given the task of shepherding your soul. Without becoming a member of a local church it is impossible to actually obey these verses. Church membership is the act of committing to a specific flock that is graciously governed by qualified leaders.

#8 Church discipline infers church membership.

1 Cor 5:13 “God judges those outside. ‘Purge the evil person from among you..’”
Titus 3:10 “As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him…”
1 John 2:19 “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued to be with us. But the went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”
Mat 18:15-20 “If your brother sins against you…if he refuses to listen, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.”

In each case above, an individual is living in stubborn, unrepentant sin and thus removed from among God’s people. The question this raises is, “How can someone be removed from the church who has not first belonged to it?” Answer: They can’t. You can’t put someone out of the church if they have never officially been in the church. These passages, therefore, infer church membership.

#9 The Apostle Paul planted churches not isolated Christians.

Acts 14:23 “Appointed elders in every church…”
Acts 15:41 “He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches…”
Acts 16:5 “So the churches were strengthened in the faith…”

Throughout the book of Acts the Apostle Paul’s aim was to plant churches, not merely convert isolated, independent individuals. We see this not only during his three missionary journeys, but also in his epistles which comprise the bulk of our New Testament – written to churches (Romans, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Corinthians, Thessalonians, etc).

#10 Biblical metaphors for the church.

The Bible uses a host of metaphors to explain the relationship of Jesus to his people, and Jesus’ people to Jesus. There are four primary metaphors:

Citizens (see also: people of God)
Eph 2:19 “You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens…”
Phil 3:20 “But our citizenship is in heaven…”

Body
1 Cor 12:12 “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body…For the body does not consist of one member but of many…As it is, there are many parts, yet one body…now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.”
(see also Col 1:24; Eph 1:23; 4:12; 5:30)

Temple
2 Cor 6:16 “We are the temple of the living God…”
Eph 2:22 “In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”
1 Peter 2:5 “You yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house…”

Family
Eph 2:19 “You are no longer strangers and aliens, but…members of the household of God.”
Gal 6:10 “Let us do good to everyone…especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
Heb 3:6 “Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son…we are his house…”

Each of these metaphors is intended to highlight that our relationship to Jesus is not merely individual, but corporately interconnected and mutually dependent. Look at them again. These couldn’t merely be used to describe the universal church, as its impossible to be “family” or part of the same “body” with people you’re not in direct proximity to. Nor could these metaphors be used to describe a loose collection of isolated individuals that happen to gather once a week. God chose these particular metaphors to describe a brand new people that are vitally and organically committed to one another by nature of their faith in Jesus Christ. Church membership represents the commitment to live out our corporate identity in Christ (citizens, body, temple, family).

Parking Warning This Sunday (6/24)!

City Life, News

Parking warning! The Pride Parade is set to begin this Sunday, June 24th at 11am. Please note that 4th Avenue will be closed all the way from Union to Denny, but should be avoided beginning at Cherry (see map below). Free street parking will be very difficult to find as Westlake Park will be the staging area of the parade. If you are planning to join us for our Sunday gathering, we recommend arriving early to help set-up, enjoying breakfast in downtown, or parking in Pioneer Square then taking the free bus tunnel over to Pacific Place. Please spread the word!

For more info about our Sunday gatherings, go here.

Sneak Peek: Our Next Series

News, Teaching | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

I have some exciting news for you!

We are quickly coming to the end of our ten month series in the book of Acts. Starting Sunday, July 8th, we will begin a brand new series (tentatively) titled, Church Membership: What it means to believe, be and belong, that will run for eight consecutive weeks. The content of this series will serve as the primary content of our ongoing membership process. I am genuinely excited to see what God is going to do in, through and among us in this next season.

What Jesus’ Local Church is NOT

Unfortunately, there tends to be much miscommunication, misinformation, and misunderstanding when it comes to church membership. To become a member of a church is not the same as becoming a member of Costco, AAA or a country club. The church is not a club, nor a voluntary association, nor a customer service provider, nor an optional exercise for “really committed Christians”, nor merely a friendly group of religious people that tend to be free most Sunday mornings.

What Jesus’ Local Church IS

Rather, Jesus’ church begins with this simple fact: Jesus Christ is Lord of Lords, King of Kings, Savior and Redeemer. He died to forgive the sins of everyone, everywhere, who trust and follow him. He then brings those who have responded to his call together, within a given local context, and calls them his people, his church, to live underneath his gracious and sovereign reign.

In this way, the local church functions as an outpost of the kingdom of God that serves to affirm our faith in Christ and give shape and direction to our Christian lives.

The Bible uses a host of metaphors to explain the relationship of Jesus to his people, and Jesus’ people to Jesus. For example, the church is called a “flock”, “household”, “body”, “branches”, “living temple” and more. Each of these metaphors is intended to highlight that our relationship to Jesus is not merely individual, but corporate.

In other words, we are saved, in Christ, to be a people. When you choose Jesus, you choose Jesus’ people too. If we’re to love what Jesus loves, we must love the church, which he loved to the point of death on a cross. If we’re to be committed to what Jesus is committed to, we must be committed to the church – not merely in an abstract I’m-part-of-the-invisible-universal-church-sense – but in the sense that I belong to a real, flesh-and-blood, imperfect, local community of fellow believers.

Therefore, we demonstrate our common allegiance to Jesus and his people by becoming covenant members of a local church, thus church membership.

You Might Have Some Questions…

I hope you do! That’s why we’re going to take eight weeks to walk through what it means for a Christian to believe, be and belong to a local expression of Jesus’ people. So, I encourage you to pray and prepare as we go into this new season together as a newly forming church. I’m going to invite everyone who calls Downtown Cornerstone Church their primary church family to commit and covenant together. If you’re not yet a follower of Jesus, this series is for you too. It should help you gain clarity around what Christians actually believe and what it means to follow Jesus.

FIVE steps to becoming a member of Downtown Cornerstone Church.

In order for you to be adequately prepared, I wanted to get the five steps to becoming a member in your “hands” so that you can begin to pray, process and prepare accordingly:

So, all that said, we’ll be rolling out more information in the coming weeks. If you have any questions in the meantime, feel free to email us. Together, let’s ask Jesus to do what only He can, as we move into this exciting new season of life together.

Summer BBQ & Baptisms | Thursday, August 16th

Baptism, Event, News

You’re invited to join us on Thursday, August 16th @ 6:00pm for our second annual summer BBQ & Baptism celebration. We’ll gather on the west side of the new South Lake Union Park (see map below).

When we repent of our sin, trust in Jesus Christ for our salvation, we should be baptized (Mat 28:18-20; Acts 2:38). In baptism we identity with Jesus in his death (being immersed under water) and his resurrection to new life (being brought out of the water) for the forgiveness of sin (Rom 6:1-10; Col 2:12). Learn more about baptism here.

If you would like to be baptized with us in August, please fill out this form or email us with any questions you might have.

LOCATION: South Lake Union Park

PARKING: There is ample street parking on either side of the park that is free after 6 pm. Also, consider taking the South Lake Union Trolley which runs from 5th & Olive to the park.

FOOD: Bring your own meat to grill. Side dishes, beverages and desserts to be provided by Cornerstone Communities. Condiments and paper products will also be provided.