[Transcript of a midweek message published by Horley Baptist Church on YouTube[1], 03/Sep/2025]
Membership Matters 5: Discern Together – shaping the future as a family.
We’ve come to the final part of our membership series. So far, we’ve looked at growing, serving, and giving. Now, we turn to something distinctly Baptist and deeply powerful, discerning together. Because here, every member matters.
In Baptist churches, the highest human authority is not the minister or a board. It is the gathered church. When we meet as members, we’re not just voting on business. We’re listening to the Holy Spirit together. Acts chapter 15 is a great example. The early church faced a big decision. They prayed, debated, listened, and eventually said, “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us”.
That’s the goal of our members’ meetings, too. When you become a member, you’re invited into that shared process of prayerful decision making. Together, we discern things like the vision, direction of the church, budgets, and how we steward resources, appointing leaders, welcoming new members, responding to opportunities or challenges. It’s not about arguing for your way, is about seeking God’s way. And we do it better when we’re all engaged.
See, this is one of the great privileges of being part of a Baptist church. Your voice matters. Your prayers matter. You’re not just here to attend. You’re here to help shape the future of our church family. So when we meet, come prayerfully. Come humbly. Come ready to listen to God and to each other.
So that’s it. Five short messages, one big invitation to belong, to grow, to serve, to give, and to help discern. If you’re ready to explore membership, we’d love to chat. And as we walk this journey together, remember this is God’s church, and together we get to be part of what he is building.
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[1] YouTube link: Membership Matters 5: Discern Together
Bible references:
Acts 15:28
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Contributed by Martin Shorey; © Martin Shorey