Church Members Serve and Lead Under Elders and Deacons
a. Church members are Christians who are devoted to their church.
b. They ensure its health and growth by giving their time, talent, and money to the mission of their church.
c. The Bible speaks of this community with multiple metaphors:
Christians are to work together like a family (1 Timothy 3:15; 5:1–2)
Christians are to work together like the parts of a body (Romans 12:4–5; 1 Corinthians 12:16–17)

The early church had a notion of membership that included:
1. A numerical record (Acts 2:37–47)
2. Records of widows (1 Timothy 5:3–16)
3. Elections (Acts 6:1–6)
4. Discipline (Matthew 18:15–20; 1 Corinthians 5; Galatians 6:1)
5. Accountability (Hebrews 13:17)
6. An awareness of who was a church member (Romans 16:1–16)