The Privileges of Membership

Membership has its privileges. Do you remember that slogan? But membership wasn't free. There was a fee associated with it and lots of deep fees if the stipulations of the "contract" were broken. You were a member, not a beneficiary. And there is a distinct difference. Consider the current issue with immigration and deportation, for instance. Social media is rife with videos of folks talking about how they came to this country to make better money; they couldn't give a rip about assimilating into our culture or being of any benefit to the people of this nation. How did this happen? Being a member of our club is a privilege or should be treated as such. It should come with dues as with most other associations. Even your local little league demands a registration fee for your child and parent participation. You might have to spend some time peddling hot dogs and canned sodas at the snack bar or be forced to purchase an indulgence. Surely, entering our country as a citizen should require something more than whipping up a batch of box brownies for the "new uniform" fundraiser!

Well, it does. There's a test --I know that much. And, depending on circumstances, the whole process can be long and emotionally agonizing. Would-be citizens are expected to enter through the proper channels, embrace American language and culture, submit to the laws of the land, and defend Uncle Sam's honor. And, of course, there is the unpleasantry of taxes. But all of that is not without benefit --benefits! Membership does have its privileges! 

Those privileges give membership its value. After all, who would pay to join a league where your child could not play or a country where you weren't given a vote? The cost of membership is offset by the value of the privileges one enjoys. But it's not only the value members realize in those privileges; it's the value leadership ascribes to them as well. What happens when the athletic association, the government, the pastors, the CEO, the parents, the board, those people who make the big decisions in any institution begin handing out privileges right and left with little to no expectation put upon recipients? The tenets of membership, if not held in high regard by the administration, will not be held in high regard by the members. If the leadership of an organization requires nothing of its members, what will happen when the resources of the organization dry up? What will happen when the resources of the organization are no longer meeting members' needs or whims? What will happen when new members arrive looking for resources that have gone unreplenished because there's been created a culture of beneficiaries rather than committed, engaged, dedicated members? What message has leadership communicated about the value of the organization and its resources?

Anyone who knows me knows this is not about little league or politics. This is about the Kingdom of God. Those of us who are members are responsible for its resources: our brothers and sisters, the message of the Gospel, the fruit of the Spirit, the ministry of reconciliation, charity, etc.; valuable resources designated for the glory of God both in sharing and guarding. To hand out privileges and positions like a bank handing out pens is to devalue the resources God has given us. Christ's words to those who encountered Him were rigorous and clear. No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again. (John 3:3) Go, sell your possessions and give to the poor. (Matthew 19:21) Go and sin no more. (John 8:11) There was a necessary response, an obligation stated in very exclusive terms for each person who would be a citizen of the Kingdom of God. The cost and privilege of that citizenship is Christ's blood. I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (John 14:6) But it doesn't end there. The cost and privilege of that citizenship is the life of the would-be citizen as well.  If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. (Matthew 16:24, 25) This is membership, dues and all; not charity. Our lives need to change, and if you're receiving the message that they don't, you're being deceived.

I know I'm long-winded today, but I'm passionate. Let's be members, citizens --let's recruit members, citizens; those who long to assimilate to the culture of God's Kingdom and serve Him with their lives. And let's be honest with them about the cost. For His glory. For the strength and breadth of the Kingdom. For the maturing of the body. And for the inestimable worth of membership's privileges.