If you’re new to City Harvest Church, you may have witnessed a Membership ceremony during a weekend service recently. Here’s our 101 on what it’s all about.
Last weekend was Membership Weekend at City Harvest Church and a bunch of people went to the front of the stage and were prayed for. These are the newly appointed Ministry and Executive members of the church.
“The reason why we have memberships in our church is that we want our members to feel like they are a part of the church family,” says Serene Koh, CHC’s pastoral administration manager.
Ephesians 2:19 reads, “Now you are no longer strangers to God and foreigners to heaven, but you are members of God’s very own family, citizens of God’s country, and you belong in God’s household with every other Christian.”
Walking with God is a journey; so is one’s growth in a church. When a person receives Christ in CHC, they begin their journey of becoming a mature Christian in this house. The difference between being an attendee and a member is icommitment. The different levels of membership thus signify a person’s level of commitment in CHC.
The Ordinary Membership–this member is committed as a regular attendee in church.
After receiving Christ at CHC, most people join a cell group and start to attend weekend services regularly. To understand the Bible better and to grow in Christ, the new believer also starts attending Bible study lessons. The first of these is the Church Introductory Course, which explains the mission and beliefs of the church. Once he has finished the four lessons, he can apply to become an ordinary member of the church via his cell group leader.
The Ministry Membership–this member is committed to serving regularly in a ministry.
One of the missions of CHC is to release every member into ministry. When a member starts serving regularly in a ministry, he moves up in his level of commitment. His cell group leader or his ministry leader would then recommend him to become a ministry member.
The Executive Membership–this member holds a leadership position in the church. He could be a cell group leader or ministry leader.
After serving as a leader for three years, a member may be recommended for the executive membership. An executive member would have voting rights at the church’s Annual General Meeting.
The membership weekend is a day to acknowledge and celebrate the new members of the church. New MMs and EMs receive their certificates at the stage front and the pastoral staff then lay hands and pray for them. OMs receive their certificate from their cell group leader, and when they stand up as a new OM in church, they will also be prayed for at their seats.
Executive pastor Aries Zulkarnain encourages members who have taken this step to remember that “one of the most important qualities a CHC member should have and display is balance—balance is the key to life. And next to that, they should have the quality of Christlikeness.”
