Who can be a member of the Church Body

Verses: Psalms 15 : 1 - 5

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

This is a very touchy subject for many people.  Different religious groups have come up with their own idea of who can be connected with a church.  There are many groups that have limited the group to such a small number that it seems impossible for anyone to be a member.

I know that there is a very basic group of people that are welcome into the Church of God.  Jesus didn't stop anyone from hearing the good news.  All were welcome to hear the gospel.  Jesus was willing to allow anyone that had a desire to connect with the gospel to come and hear.

Yet, there is another thing to look at who actually makes up the body of the Church.  Jesus made it obvious that anyone that accepted him as Savior was part of the body of Christ.  The one thing that they needed was to ask forgiveness of their sins and they would be a part of the body of the Church.

If you look at this chapter you can see that there are certain expectations for those that are part of the Church body.  First they must be found blameless in the eyes of God.  Since all have done wrong and sinned there is only one way to be blameless and that is to be covered by the blood of Jesus.  Therefor those that want to be members of Jesus must ask for forgiveness of their sins.  God will grant this anyone who acknowledges that they need the sacrifice of Jesus to forgive their sins.

Secondly, the members of the church of God must be honest and speak the truth of God.  In sense, the Church must teach of the love of God.  They must share the never ending love of God to all people.  To speak that God doesn't love all are you not limiting those that can be members of the body of Christ.  Is this not a judgment which limits the people that God wants to love.  We have to make sure that we always share God's love through our actions and our words.

Third, the Church must show goodness to their neighbors and strangers.  Through our actions we can show people God's love.  We can provide those in the community food, clothing and shelter.  They can show openness of the Church and encourage the community to come.  We can reach out to the less fortunate and show the love that Jesus showed those that were marginalized in his time.  We can offer prayer and support to the ill.  We can bring comfort to those that are hurting or dealing with loss of a loved one.

The most important part is that they live the life following the example of Jesus.  We should be honest and fair to those around them.  We need to practice not harming any person.  People must desire to accept all people at the table of the Savior.  Opening our arms and lives to those in need.  We should lift up prayers for the things that we need.  People should praise God for all the things that will and have happened.  Lastly, asking God for forgiveness and to use you to help others found the saving grace you have found.

Prayer:

Dear God we love you.  We praise you for accepting us as we are.  We honor you for sacrificing yourself for us.  We thank you for teaching us how to truly live.  We ask that you help us use the example you have given.  Help us never stop people from coming to learn about your story.  Help us to accept people into the Church Body that accept you no matter who they are.  In the name of the Risen Savior we pray.  Amen

Questions:

Have you accepted Jesus in your life?  Are you reaching out to the world to share the news about God? Are you following the example Jesus taught?  Is there anything that you need to do differently to show your love to God?