According to John 13:34-35, Christians ought to be marked by committed love for one another. That committed love takes place within committed communities of Christians called churches. We value meaningful membership that comes with certain benefits and obligations. We believe commitment to a particular body is vital for growing healthy Christians and churches.

What Membership Looks Like

Individual Christians
  1. Commit to loving one another in such a way that an on-looking world knows we are followers of Jesus (John 13:34-35)
  2. Love one another in self-giving ways (Eph 5:2)
  3. Submit to pastors/elders joyfully (Heb 13:17)
  4. Live for God (Gal 2:20)
Local churches
  1. Gather collectively around God’s Word each week (Acts 20:7; Heb 10)
  2. Share communion with one another (1 Cor 11)
  3. Display God’s glory as His chief evangelistic instrument (Ephesians 3:7-13)
  4. Provide for pastors who preach and teach vocationally (1 Tim 5:17)
  5. Help individual Christians know if they are spiritually alive (1 John)
  6. Along with individual Christians seek to joyfully submit to specific godly pastors/elders (Heb 13:17)
  7. Hold individual Christians and pastors/elders accountable (Matthew 18 & 1 Cor 5)
Pastors/Elders
  1. Are responsible to their local churches for keeping their teaching and life pure (1 Tim 6:3)
  2. Are responsible for maintaining order in their local church (1 Tim 3)
  3. Are responsible for protecting local churches from false teaching (Titus 1:9)
  4. Watch over the souls of individual Christians in their body as those who must give an account (Heb 13:17)
  5. Pray for their people (Acts 6:4)

How to Become a Member

We currently have a 5-step process.

  1. Attend Sunday Morning services for a while and get to know us.
  2. Attend one of our Connections Classes led by our pastors. These classes happen once a quarter and last 3 hours. You will learn about where Trinity has come from and where we are going because we want you to know us.
  3. Meet with two of our elders for an interview. This isn’t scary like going to the principal's office. We simply want to know our sheep. We'll ask you how you became a Christian and to explain the gospel in about 60 seconds. Then we'll clarify the responsibilities and privileges of membership and you can ask any questions you might have. (This usually takes about 45 minutes.)
  4. Get baptized. If you have been baptized based on your confession of faith, praise God! If you haven’t been baptized, you will write out your testimony of how you came to faith and email it to the church office. Once that’s done, you will set a date for your baptism and invite friends and family to join us for that day. We will have you read your testimony publically before your baptism. (If that scares you, we can have a pastor read it for you.)
  5. Congregational Vote. At the next Pulse Meeting (our family meetings), one of the elders will read a brief version of your testimony and recommend you for membership to the congregation who will have the responsibility of voting you in.