Beacon Sunday Service: February 2nd, 2025

We do have a guest speaker today, and it is just a great joy for me to introduce him. His name is Pastor James Lee. He is the planting founding and uh lead pastor at Cross Life Bible Church in Irvine, California. Uh he's a graduate of uh UC Berkeley, Gobers, and um a graduate of Master Seminary. Um just a brief uh introduction of Pastor James. Um I first met him just as a very young pastor in like 2009, and it's just been an amazing joy just to watch him shepherd and lead and teach and preach, and he's been gifted with the ability uh really to almost entrance you as he speaks the word of God. And um, I asked him to speak on membership because uh today it's just kind of a historic moment for my chapter of ministry at the beacon, and so he's gonna just hopefully really cause your heart to be excited.

Um Pastor James is been is married to his wife Lucy, um, and he's got three beautiful kids. And our kid our kids actually go to the same school, so I I do bump into him all the time. So it's he's not just a good pastor friend, but he's also a dear brother. And so if you guys can just give him a big round of applause and welcome him up as he speaks. Come on up, Pastor James. He here. Good to see all of you. It definitely is a pleasure to be uh bringing the word of God to all of you. If you will take your Bibles and turn with me to Matthew chapter 25. And let's stand together as we honor the reading of God's word. Matthew chapter 25. Let's read from verse 31 to verse 40. Verse 31 to verse 40.

Matthew chapter 25, verse 31 to verse 40. When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the king will say to those on his right, come, you who are blessed by my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me. I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came to me.

Then the Rajas will answer, answer him, saying, Lord, when do we see you hungry and feed you or thirsty and give you drink? And when did you when do we see you a stranger and welcome you or naked and clothe you? And when do we see you sick or in prison and visit you? And the king will answer them. Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these, my brothers, you did it to me. Join me in time of prayer. God, what a um powerful truth that you give to us uh this morning. Whatever we do unto the least of these, whatever we do unto the people here in the church, um, brothers and sisters in the faith, we do unto you. And I and I pray that that would press upon our hearts. Um that we would know that each believer here, someone that is precious in your eyes, somebody who has been purchased by the blood of the Lamb, someone who has life because of the power of the resurrection.

Help us to see in our ministry to one another the glory of God. Bless us now as we dive into your word. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Maybe seated. Well, it is a joy to be here. Um Pastor Peter's been telling me about you guys, you know, even before uh you know he came on board here. Um, and he kept like talking about how excited he was and how how he was uh so encouraged by all of you. Uh he was talking about how how you were hungry for the word of God. Uh he was talking about your commitment to one another, especially in a season when you were looking for a pastor, looking for a minister, and uh you guys stuck together and you guys were committed and you were committed to the ministry, uh, to the work that God has called you to do.

And so he just kept kept rambling about that. But uh I and I just want to say something about Pastor Peter. He's he's an amazing man. Uh, I'm blessed to call him a dear friend of mine. Um he is definitely one of the hardest working pastors that I know. Uh for sure the most most energetic. I I I can't keep up with this guy. Yeah, he's he's he's bouncing off the wall, doing all over, he's all over the place uh doing the work of the ministry. But because he's he's excited, he's excited to do the work of God. And I know I I feel like you guys are perfect fit for one another, um, laboring together side by side to get the gospel out. Um, and just to I don't know if you guys know this about Pastor Peter, but he's like a genius.

He's memorized the entire like New Testament. Do you guys know that? You memorized the entire New Testament, and I think like the 12 minor prophets. Yeah, no, just 10, whatever, dude. I got so excited when I heard that. This is earlier on in my ministry before I knew him. I was like, wait, but this guy memorized the whole New Testament. So you were like famous before, like I knew you, and then um I was thinking I got so excited, I go, okay, I'm pumped up. So I memorized Romans 8, Romans 1, and Matthew 5. I I did that, and then I forgot it all. I don't know how you keep doing that. But um, so you are blessed with uh with the man of God who loves the word of God, able to minister the word of truth to you guys.

So uh I'm really excited for you guys, really excited for this church and the work that God is going to do here. Um I asked Pastor Peter, uh, you know, what are some of the topics that might be helpful today? And one of the things we talked about was membership. And I'm really excited that you guys are beginning your membership uh uh classes, and uh, you know, at Cross Life, we do something very similar to what you guys do here. You know, we have uh membership classes, we have an interviewing process, uh, we have uh our members or the people who are taking the class to read some uh articles, read uh some things that would be helpful for their understanding of Christian living, about uh the Christian faith.

Now, when you think about membership, because I remember I thought about this initially uh before too. It's like, well, why why why should we have membership? Uh, because there's nothing in the Bible that kind of gives you a system of, okay, this is what you gotta do, right? You gotta um you know, have uh six weeks, you know, one hour. You gotta you gotta read this article, you gotta read that article, you gotta go through an interviewing process. So we didn't have like um you can't really see that in in the Bible, and and you kind of think, okay, well, well, what does it mean to be a member of the church? Well, fundamentally, to be a member of the church is just to be a Christian, right? Just to be a Christian.

Um, and so why do we have all of these other things in place? And uh the reason for it is because the nature of our culture makes it wise. I think it makes it wise for us to have a membership uh system. Um and this morning I want to talk about the two reasons why we have membership. Two reasons why we have membership um classes, why we have a membership in our in our churches. And the first reason is because of uh fake Christians, and then the second is because of non-committed Christians. Okay, so this is an act of wisdom that um that we like to implement in our churches. So let me talk about the first reason the fake Christians. In a culture like ours, you don't know, man, it's hard to tell whether someone is a real Christian or fake Christian sometimes.

Uh there are a number of people who've grown up in the Christian home, right? You guys know what I'm talking about. You guys, so there's a number of people who grew up in uh church. Um people they think that they're Christians because they they identify with the they they hold to the values that maybe the church holds to, or they think that they're Christian simply because um they went to a retreat or went to a conference, and others, you know, because they got baptized, right? I would I would talk with people and I'll ask them, hey, you know, tell me tell me about your faith. You know, well, you know, how'd you become a Christian? And all they would say is, Well, I got baptized in seventh grade.

And that's what they would say to me. And so they think that they're Christian for all of these reasons, except for the only reason that makes a person a Christian, and that is faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus, a conviction that we are sinners who deserve to be condemned, and that Christ died and shed his blood so that we might be delivered. That's what makes us a Christian. And so they say all of these things except for that, and it's it's crazy. Now, there are a couple of kinds of fakes. There are fakes who know that they're fakes, but pretend to be genuine in order to manipulate people for their own gain and their purposes. Uh, we call these wolves in sheep's clothing.

Matthew chapter 7, verse 15 says, Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. Now, these kinds of fakes, fortunately, um, I don't think they're as numerous because you have to be like a special kind of messed up to think this way, or you want to just use people for your own gain and to do that to fake it. You know, so you gotta be pretty messed up. But there are there are people like that out there, and they come with all kinds of agenda. Some people come because you know they they want money. Um other people come because they want to spread their false teaching. But the the type of people I encounter the most are the ones who usually come because they see the church as a platform where they can be important.

Um they use the church to be admired, they use the church to be influential and powerful, and they say so. They, you know, seek like positions of authority. Maybe even um uh they even want to become a deacon or an elder. And when that happens, it's usually only a matter of time before they implode the church because their ego gets hurt. And instead of laying down their lives for the sheep, they sacrifice the sheep for their own ego. And that's why you hear about a leader splitting churches over something superficial. And the problem was rampant within the nation of Israel as well. Jeremiah chapter 23, verse 1 through 4 says, Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, declares the Lord.

Therefore, thus says the Lord the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who care for my people. You have scattered my flock and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for your evil deeds, declares the Lord. Then I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries that I where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, declares the Lord. So it's happened before. Um again, I haven't I don't meet too many wolves in sheep's clothing, but you know, I do come across them, and so it's something to be mindful of.

Uh the second group of fakes is a group that we come across more frequently. Uh, they're not like wolves who try to hurt um the church for their own gain, but they're people who pretend to be sheep when they're not. And we call them goats. Okay. Uh Matthew chapter 25, verse 31 to 33. That's what we read together before. And it says here, Matthew chapter 25, verse 31 to 33. When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. You see, from a distance, the sheep and goat might look the same.

But as you get closer, you begin to notice the differences. The differences become obvious. And so the same way with like a fake Christian uh who's grown up in the church and a genuine believer. You know, from a distance, they might look the same. They know this, they know the church culture, they have the same kind of like Christian lingo, uh, they know the right answers to the Bible study uh uh questions, they know the Sunday school stories. But at the end, one will be placed on the left, and the other will be placed on the right. You know, when I was in India a few years ago, it was back in like 2020, uh yeah, 20, 2019 or something. Um I was with you know Pastor Aaron. I don't know if you guys know Pastor Aaron, um, is a good is a mutual friend of ours, and we saw uh a shepherd and he was herding some goats uh out in India, and I turned to Aaron and I said, Hey, that's like you and your flock.

Some pastor joke, but uh I thought it was pretty funny. Uh just clowning on him a little bit. They're wonderful congregation, okay? They're full of sheep, okay? Uh uh. But think about what's turning with me to Matthew chapter seven. Matthew chapter seven. Let's look at this. Matthew chapter seven, verse 21 to 23.

Matthew chapter 7, verse 21 to 23. Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my father who is in heaven. On that day, many will say to me, Lord, Lord, do we not prophesy in your name and cast out demons in your name and do mighty works in your name? And then will I declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. See, these people came to Jesus Christ. They said, look, they said, Lord, Lord. It's like master, master, as if he was in a position of authority over their lives, as if he was their king and Lord. But Jesus, what does he say to them? Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. They come to him saying, 'Hey, I know you,' but Jesus says, I don't know who you are.

And the same way, I, you know, there are going to be people who come to Jesus Christ on that last day. And it's really sad for me to think about this, but they're going to come to him and say, Lord, Lord, did I not go to church in your name? Did I not go to uh get baptized in your name? Did I not go to a retreat in your name and have that emotional experience? Did I not do A, B and C in your name? Did I not volunteer for a wana or VBS in your name? And Jesus will say to them, Away from me, you workers of lawlessness. I never knew you. People can claim all that they want to be believers, but it doesn't mean that they are.

So I was uh for it uh for uh about six months, and I'm trying to help the church and uh meet whatever needs that they had. And I found out as I was there, it was wild. Like I was talking with the praise team, and I was talking to one of the members, and I found out one of the praise team members, they he wasn't even a believer. The drummer wasn't a believer. And I was talking, I go how can you lead the church in the worship of God when you don't even believe in God Himself? Don't you see the hypocrisy there? And um it was surprisingly none of the other church members knew. Um there was a time I spoke at a high school retreat, and I was talking with the uh high school students, and I taught them the gospel, what the gospel was was.

Jesus came and died for the forgiveness of our sins, and none of us can can uh can earn our way to heaven. Like it's a basic gospel message to the to the high school students, and then afterwards, one of the uh Bible study teachers, one of the older, older brothers, older guys came up to me and said, Hey, I didn't know that that was the gospel. And um there was a time at a cafe I frequented. Um, there was a pastor of a very prominent church in the Orange County area. Um he he uh was taking a break from ministry, but you know, if he was a pastor, I just assumed he was a believer, and got talking, talking with him, and he started saying weird, weird things uh that were unbiblical. One of the things that he was saying is that he doesn't believe in heaven and hell.

And then I said, how then what are you saved from? Um it became pretty clear that this man wasn't even a believer. So fakes are all over the place in all with all in all shapes and forms. And even though these people are not looking to devour members of the church, um, they create all kinds of problems. One of the problems that it creates is that it kills the vitality of the church, it kills the vitality of the church. Um, like I was telling you for that short period when I was uh helping that other church for about six months. I was talking with the praise leader, and I said, Hey, what can I do to help you? You're the praise leader. How can I what can I do to help you? He said to me, I wish people would be excited to sing songs of praise.

What a sad thing to say for a praise leader. I said, because I'm in front, I'm like, yeah. I'm praising God, I'm enjoying my time praising the Lord. But I guess he's praying, he's praising, and people are just like this. Just dead. And he was so discouraged. I was talking to the Sunday school teachers at that church, and I asked them, okay, what can I do to help you? Well, what's been some of the challenges? And go so hard ministering to the students. We're pouring into them, praying for them, we're preparing for them, but things are not getting through. And I was talking to them, and I said, Hey, have you considered the possibility that they're not Christian? And their eyes got all big. Because they've never considered that as a possibility.

These students grew up in the church. They know the Sunday school stories. And um, and look, of course, it's gonna be discouraging. Can you imagine watering something that is dead constantly? It's not even a dead plant, it's like a brick. You know, like you know, you till the soil, put the brick in, and you know, like if you constantly do that, man, of course you're gonna get discouraged. Why isn't it not growing? Where are the flowers? Where's the fruit? Nothing's happening here. And so these uh these men and women, they were putting in hours into their small groups, putting hours into the Sunday school lessons, and these were pretty clear unbelievers who are sucking up their their energy, their time, and their resources.

Like they don't need lessons on how to be considerate of the person around. They need a they need the truth to be resurrect from the dead. You know? It's it's like, you know, to give them Bible studies lessons on loving your neighbor. Uh Bible study lessons on what it means to be humble is like feeding a corpse food. You're just wasting the food. They're not intaking anything of it, just in their mouth, you know. And so they're not digesting anything because they need to be resurrected from the dead. When the congregation is saturated with a high level of unbelievers, it's like a leech. It's gonna just suck away at all the nourishment of the body. And it's gonna discourage and frustrate the real members of the church.

Like it's discouraging when people in the church they don't seem to care about the word of God, right? I get discouraged. So now I'm preaching, and one of my students go, you know, I'm like, yeah, that's I know I'm not that boring, you know. Uh uh, but it's it's discouraging when you come in and a majority of the church doesn't care. Majority of the church when they don't care, or you know, it's discouraging when people in the church get drunk and high on Saturday night and then they come to church and worship. That kind of hypocrisy. How many have how many how many people have been driven away from the church because of that? Or it's discouraging when people in the church idolatrously care more about their grades and their careers and their stocks than they do about the word of God, when they than they do about lost souls, about missions, about the glory of God.

They just care about these things more and not see them as a means to make much of God. The major problems of the congregation that's filled with fake Christians is that they kill the vitality of the church. Um it's not to say we don't care about unbelievers, it is to say that a distinction needs to be made between believers and unbelievers, so that we know how to appropriately minister to them. We shepherd the sheep, but we evangelize the goats, right? So that reason why we have membership. Membership is a process by which we examine whether or not you're truly a believer in a culture where nominal and cultural Christianity is so prominent. The reason why we have classes, right? The reason why Pastor Peter has classes is to make sure you know what it means to be a Christian, right?

That you know that we can't do anything to save ourselves, that we are sinners who deserve to be damned for all of eternity. We gotta know that Christ came down into this world to die for our sins, that he perished upon the cross, that he resurrected from the dead, that the Son of God is going to return. He needs to know that you know that, you're taught that, you believe that. And the reason why there's an interviewing process is so that he can see whether or not this has taken root in your heart. It's not something that you just intellectually agree to, but questions like, well, what is the gospel? What is the gospel? Well, questions like, how were you changed? What is your testimony? What was your life before?

And what is your life like now? How do you live your life? What are your priorities? And he begins to probe at your heart and to see, is the Holy Spirit working in this person's soul? Or is it a corpse masquerading as somebody who is alive? The reason why we have membership is because, again, a culture where nominal Christianity is prominent. It's almost like irresponsible for us to take people's profession of faith at face value. I learned this when I was in, I did missionary work in Taiwan for about a year, and everyone there was more like cultural, like Taoists or Buddhists. They didn't know what they really believed in, but they were cultural Buddhists and Taoists. But they weren't Christian, and so I just shared the gospel.

When I came back to the state, I evangelized again and just reminded of how a number of people, when I'm on campus, our church is next to UCI campus, and so I did a lot of evangelism there. Um but when I would talk with them, a lot of a number of them, I know there's anecdotal, but number of them will say, Yeah, I'm a Christian. But then when I asked them what it means when they got saved or when what it means to be a Christian, they would not even know what the gospel is. And so I would have to take time to show them first that they're not a Christian in order to get them to believe in what makes believe in the gospel that they might become one. So there was an extra step. I have to go backwards in order to move forward.

Like, you know, if we lived in the Middle East, I don't I don't think we would have a membership process. Because you wouldn't fake Christianity out there. You know what I'm saying? Like you don't, like you don't want to die for something you don't really believe in. So out there, you don't need like a membership certificate. Here you go. Membership certificates, like the scars on their back. Like, okay, that's that's good enough. That's that's legit. Uh okay. Um, but we don't live in a culture of persecution, so that there's no real force driving people to examine them, their own hearts uh uh to determine whether this is something that they truly believe in. So we use membership as something that will, as a drive that will hopefully hopefully compel people to think, okay, I need to really think about where I stand between uh before God.

Is this something that I hold to, or do I just believe in this because I grew up with this all my life in church? And so we have membership for the sake of you personally, but also for the sake of the church. Now, the second reason why we have church membership is because of the lack of commitment that exists among so-called Christians. This uh issue really exacerbates the problem of nominal Christianity. It's crazy because among the fake Christians, there are genuine believers who are wandering around from church to church, making it very difficult for me to see whether or not they're genuine believers or not. Uh it gets kind of confusing. Um, there are a number of reasons why a person may not ref uh may not commit to a church, and I'll give you a couple of them.

You know, the first reason why some people refuse to commit to a church is because they want to get the best of all churches. You guys met people like that? They so they go to this church because I like the preaching here. Then they kind of go to this church because this is where they like the music and the praise. Uh they go to another church because this is where their friends are at, or this is where they have responsibilities and they could feel important. Uh they go to this church because they have uh some programs that they're they appreciate. And their heart might be really good because they genuinely think if I get the best of all the churches, then I can end up growing more. Right?

It seems to make sense. It seems logical. Get the best of everything, the best of what every church has to offer, then I'll be able to do well spiritually. The problem with that kind of thinking is that it is primarily driven by self-centered desires. You see that? It's like the person is thinking, what can I get? How can you minister to me? Right? How can the church serve me? The heart behind that kind of non-commitment is a heart that's looking to others to serve you, but that's the exact opposite of what Jesus Christ has told us to do. Matthew chapter 20, verse 26 to 28 says, It shall not be so among you. But whoever will be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as a son of man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Jesus Christ, he didn't come into this world thinking, okay, what can I get from everyone? Get some get some glory from Caesar, get some money from the tax collector, get some power from the centurion. I'm gonna get these people to make me great in this world on this earth to accumulate wealth in this world. He didn't go around using people for himself, rather he gave up his own life for others. He didn't come to be served, but to serve, to lay down his life as a ransom for many. So even though it is critical to find a church where the word of God is preached, where the gospel is proclaimed, where there is accountability. These things obviously are good things. You want you want that. Praise the Lord, you have that here, okay?

Praise God, you have that. He does a good job. He does a wonderful job preaching God's word. That's why I keep asking him to come and preach at our church. Uh it's a wonderful job. But there's also a heart where you must be thinking, how can I serve? How can I give? And of course, one of the ways you do this practically is by committing yourself to the people you seek to serve. Right? Can you imagine a friend who goes to all of their friends just wanting the best of what they can get from their friends? You appreciate someone like that. I'm gonna go to this person because this person has this to offer me. And then kind of forget about him when he needs something else and goes to another friend to get what's best for him.

Right? And it's not, it's not pleasant. Um, it's not enjoyable yet. Sometimes people can cultivate that kind of heart with respect to the church. Another reason why people think it's okay not to be committed to the church is because they belong to the universal church. The moment you believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ, you're saved and you're brought into the universal church. And some people think that they don't need to be a part of the local community as a result of that. So they just stay home, listen to a sermon, and they fulfill their Christian duties. But the problem with that kind of thinking is that the universal church of God was always meant to be expressed in the local body of believers.

Always.

Let's read Acts chapter 2. Acts chapter 2, verse 41 to 47. Acts 2, 41 to 47.

Acts 2, 41 to 47.

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And all came upon every soul. And many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together. And had all 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. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. They were together. Right? They had all things in common.

The church was a distinct assembly of believers who committed themselves to fellowship, to prayer, to the teaching of the apostles. They lived out the Christian life together. Being a part of the universal church was always expressed in the local body of believers. In fact, being a part of the church body was such an obvious thing. It was actually just assumed in the writings of Scripture. Right? The book of Galatia was written to the churches in the province of Galatia. Right? The book of Romans was a letter written to the church in Rome. The book of Ephesians was a letter written to the church in Ephesus, and so on and so forth. Paul, in writing his instructions to the Christians on how to live the Christian life, just assumed that believers would gather together as believers in the church.

The reason why he assumed that is because you can't fulfill the one another commandments in the Bible unless you're together, right? How can you disciple one another unless you are in the church? Titus 2. How can you carry the burdens of each other, Romans chapter 15, unless you are together? How can you encourage the faint-hearted? Admonish the idol, help the weak who are in the church unless you are there to minister to each other in person. I guess you could text, but that's not as good. Okay. How do you submit to your pastor unless you're part of the church? First Peter chapter 5. How can you participate in communion at the Lord's table together with the rest of the body, proclaiming your unity unless you are part of the church?

1 Corinthians 11. If you're part of the universal church, you were expected to be a part of the local body of Christ. To ignore the commandments, to disciple each other, to serve each other, to help each other, to bear each other's burdens, was to reject the words of the Savior, to reject the words of God, to reject the words of God is to reject God. The purpose of church membership is to exclude the fakes, but it's also to call the non-committed Christians, right? Who may have who may be genuine believers to set themselves apart from the fakes and to live out their union with Christ in the local body. The thing about non-committed Christians is that they are practically indistinguishable from fake nominal Christians.

At least it's very hard for me to discern. How can I tell the difference between a fake Christian and someone who might be genuine believer, but doesn't go out of his way to practically love God's people? Let's look at Matthew chapter uh 25, 35 to 40. Actually, let's read from verse 41 to 46, 41 to 46. We read that first half. I'm gonna read the second half of this together. Then he will say to those on his left, Depart from me, you cursed into the eternal fire. Prepare for the devil and his angel. He's talking about the goats here. If I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink. I was a stranger and you did not welcome me. Naked and he did not clothe me, sick and in prison and he did not visit me.

Then they will all, they also will answer saying, Lord, when do we see you hungry or thirsty or stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not minister to you? Then he will answer them, saying, Truly I say to you, as you did not do it to the one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. This is crazy. And when you notice that Jesus doesn't say, I was hungry because you stole my food, right? I was thirsty because you took my drink, you estranged me, uh, you you stripped me of my clothes, you put me in prison. He doesn't say you did these bad things to me. He says, No, when I was hungry, you did not give me something to eat.

When I was thirsty, you did not give me something to drink. When I was naked, you did not clothe me. The sins that Jesus Christ accuses them of are sins of omission. Things that they didn't do when they should have done it. Now, how can you know whether your brother is hungry? Your sister is thirsty. When you're frightened is naked, when they're estranged, if you're completely disconnected from the body. Just by simply being present, you're able to see the needs of the people around you. When you see the needs of the people around you, you meet those needs, not simply to minister to that person directly, but in order to honor and glorify God. And so when there's somebody who says, I'm a Christian, but is not engaged in the local body of believers, it's so hard for me to tell whether this person is genuinely a believer or a fake Christian, because it's indiscerable to me.

The call to membership is a call to people who profess their Christian faith to step up from the weird pseudo half in, half out involvement in the church, and to step out from the morass of fake and non-fruit bearing Christianity and to make a commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ, to make a commitment to his body. Why is it important? Again, to make a distinction, to make a distinction between the fake and the genuine followers of Jesus Christ, so that we might be able to know how to minister to them appropriately. Like as a pastor, you know, Pastor Peter here, how would he know that he's responsible for you as a pastor to you? How does he know that he is responsible? He has the pastoral responsibility towards you specifically as a member of his congregation, as a member of the fold that God has entrusted to him.

Hebrews chapter 13, verse 7 says, 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. He has to give an account to God for your souls. So he needs to know which people he is responsible for before he comes before the Lord on that day. So help him help you. Right? Help him help you. Not only that, but also when it comes down to church discipline. Take your Bible someone with me to Matthew chapter 18. Verse 15 to 20, Matthew chapter 18, verse 15 to 20. If your brother sins against you, go tell him his fault between you and him alone.

If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. If he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a gentile and a tax collector. Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again, I say to you, if two or two of you agree on earth about anything, they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them. So here, our Lord Jesus Christ lays down just the steps for church discipline, assuming that there is accountability within the local body of believers.

But who do we hold accountable? Who are you responsible for disciplining out of the church if they live in continual unrepentant and egregious sin. It's uh the membership is makes that very clear. If someone comes into the church and I see them doing something ridiculous, I'm not just going to excommunicate them, right? There's a time where I get to know them. They profess to be a believer and they understand this is they're going to be held accountable to this if they make a commitment to this local church. Isn't that practically what membership is about? Right. There are certain expectations and communal responsibilities that Christians have to each other and to their leaders and the leaders to the congregation.

Expectations and responsibilities that cannot be fulfilled unless there is a personal expression of faith and a clear congregational commitment. So what this means personally is that if you're a believer, take membership class.

Take the membership class.

You're called to hold yourself accountable to one another. All things, you know, which is very difficult to do if you're not a member of the church. So though, the only reason why you shouldn't be pursuing membership is because you're thinking about being a member somewhere else, or because you know you're you're not a Christian, and you're thinking about Christianity. Um, you're visiting, maybe. But if you're a believer, uh step up, make that commitment to live out your Christian life in the community of God's people. Strengthen that unity. You guys got a lot of work to do here in LA. You got a lot of work to do. So stay strong, be committed to one another and work hard, run hard, strive hard after the things of God.

Get the gospel out here. Okay. Let's pray. Father, thank you for our time together to be in the Word. Um, and just to study what church commitment is about, uh, to be wise and to understand that things are not so rosy. Um, that there are wolves in sheep's clothing, and unfortunately, there are many goats among those who profess Christianity, among those who profess Christ. And I pray for Beacon that you would guard them from uh wolves. You will guard them from the life-sucking activities of uh goats. Um help the people here be committed to one another, uh, to understand that they're held accountable both to uh their pastor and also to one another. And Lord, I pray that as you strengthen the unity in this church, that you use them and mobilize them uh as a powerful unit in being of light in this dark place.

God, you know that the gospel needs to go out, that people need the message of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I pray that by your grace, um, that message will be proclaimed by beacon. May they be a light here. God, we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.