The Church That Christ Is Building - tbpca.orgtbpca.org/images/public_docs/Class_101_Students_Syllabus.doc · Web view“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on

Discovering Church Membership

Class 101

Rev. Freddy Fritz

Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church (PCA)

Class 101


Class 101

Welcome to Class 101—Discovering Church Membership.The basics for Class 101 are found in Ephesians 2:19 (LB):

“You are a member of God’s very own family. . . and you belong in God’s household with every other Christian.”

Key truths:

A. The Church is a ______

B. God Expects You to Be a ______ of a Family

C. A Christian Without a Church Family is an ______

The goal of Class 101 is the following:

I will commit myself to ______ and to __________________

So, what makes Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church a family? The following things unite us into a local church family:

Our History Our Vision Our Purposes Our Life Phases Our Administration Our Facilities

1


Our Biblical Foundation Our Core Values Our Mission Statement Our Driving Force Our Motto Our Ministry Target Our Strategy Our Doctrinal Distinctives Our Membership Vows

I. Our History

A. The History of Presbyterianism

B. The History of the Presbyterian Church in America

B. The History of the Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church

II. Our Vision

2

Class 101

What is TBPC’s 2020 Vision?”

We envision a church. . . Glorifies ___ Has a “God-sized” ______ Is ____ to the Scriptures, ________ to the Reformed

faith, and ________ to the Great Commission Has a great __________ to both the Great ___________

(Matthew 22:37-40) and the Great __________ (Matthew 28:19-20)

Is _______ and committed to developing healthy rela-tionships with ___ and with ___ _______

Provides an opportunity for every person in New Tampa to ____ the ______

Provides a place for hundreds of people to gather for _______ each week

Welcomes ________ of members Develops believers to spiritual ________ Equips every believer for _________ Empowers every believer to ____ his or her life mission

in God’s kingdom Trains believers for _______ in God’s kingdom Sends out scores of believers on short-term and career

________ projects and ________ Will plant _ daughter churches by ____, and then after

that to plant at least 1 daughter church every other year That has a ________________ through ______ school

that is classical and covenantal Has outstanding __________

III. Our Purposes

Let’s look now at our purposes.

3


A key issue for us is church ______ and not church ______We are committed to growing ______ with a _______ rather

than growing a ______ through ________. This process involves helping people to: (1) ____ Christ, (2) ____ in Christ, (3) _____ Christ, (4) _____ Christ, and (5) _______ Christ.

The primary goal is to produce _________, and not simply produce ______, _______, and _________.

TBPC’s goal is to move people from the _________ to the ____.

4

Class 101

The community is where the purpose of __________ takes place.

The crowd is where the purpose of _______ takes place.The congregation is where the purpose of __________ takes

place.The committed is where the purpose of ____________ takes

place.And the core is where the purpose of _______ takes place.

The following key words summarize the five purposes for TBPC:

_______: Proclaiming God’s Word through __________. _____________: Celebrating God’s presence in _______.__________: Assimilating God’s family into our _________.________: Developing God’s people through ____________.________: Demonstrating God’s love through _______.

All ministries at TBPC are based on these 5 purposes.Let’s examine each of these purposes a little more closely.

A. Mission/Evangelism

The purpose of _______ has to do with __________, which takes place in the community.

In July 2004 TBPC hired ____ _______ as the Assistant to the Pastor for Outreach and Youth.

Here are two ways we prepare our members to reach people in our community:

_________ __________ ________

Here are some of the ways in which we make contact with people in our community:

______ ______

5


________ __________ ________ _______ ______ ______ ________ ________ ______ ________ _____________ _______

B. Magnification/Worship

The purpose of _____________ has to do with _______, which takes place in the crowd.

The crowd consists of all those who attend our Sunday morn-ing worship services.

Presently, the ministries that take place under worship are the following.

_______ ________ _____ ________

C. Membership/Fellowship

The purpose of __________ has to do with __________, which takes place in the congregation.

Several ministry areas take place under the purpose of mem-bership.

______ ____ ______ _____ ________ ______ ________ __________ and ______ ______

D. Maturity/Discipleship

6

Class 101

The purpose of ________ has to do with ____________, which takes place among the committed.

Ministries that take place in maturity are the following. _____ ____ _____ _________ __________ ______ _____ __________ ___ ______ _________ _______ ________ ______

E. Ministry/Service

The purpose of ________ has to do with _______. The core is where the purpose of ministry takes place.

Some of the ministries that take place under service are as follows.

______ ___ _______ ________ __________ _____ ________

IV. Our Life Phases

There are 3 broad life phases of TBPC’s ministry: ________ _______ ______

V. Our Administration

The administration of TBPC’s ministry takes place in a num-ber of ways, such as:

_________ ______ and ________ ______ ___________ of ________

VI. Our Facilities

7


_________ _______ _________ ______ _______ __________ ____/__________

VII. Our Biblical Foundation

TBPC’s foundation for ministry is Biblical. All that we do is based on God’s Word.

There are three Biblical texts that are foundational.

A. Matthew 22:37-39 (Great Commandment)

The first text—known as the Great Commandment—is Matthew 22:37-39: “Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

From the Great Commandment we take Loving God With All Your Heart. That’s _______.

And we also take Loving Your Neighbor As Yourself. That’s ________.

B. Matthew 28:19-20 (Great Commission)

The second text—known as the Great Commission—is Matthew 28:19-20: “Therefore go and make disciples of all na-tions, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

From the Great Commission we take Go And Make Disci-ples. That’s __________.

8

Class 101

We also take Baptizing. That’s incorporation into __________.

And we also take Teaching Them To Obey Everything. That’s ____________.

C. Acts 2:42-47

The third text is Acts 2:42-47. This is a description of the Early Church in Jerusalem, and I want you to notice how that early group of believers had the same five purposes.

Acts 2:42-47 says: “42 They devoted themselves to the apos-tles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 Selling their pos-sessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”

From “added to their number daily those who were being saved” we have __________.

From “they devoted themselves to. . . the breaking of bread and to prayer. . . praising God” we have _______.

From “devoted themselves. . . to the fellowship. . . all believ-ers were together. . . they ate together” we have __________.

From “they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching” we have ____________.

From “they gave to anyone as he had need” we have ________.

So we exist for these five purposes. We may say it in differ-ent ways, but the same five purposes are found in all our min-istries:

1. To celebrate God’s presence in _______.

9


2. To demonstrate God’s love through ________.3. To communicate God’s word by __________.4. To incorporate God’s people into __________.5. To educate God’s people through ____________.

Celebrate, Demonstrate, Communicate, Incorporate, Educate.

VIII.Our Core Values

At TBPC, we value the following:

A. We value the __________

Because we value the __________, we will contend for the freedom of man under God, faithfully affirm and preach a biblical theology that answers the questions and issues of the people to whom we minister, and encourage devotion to Christ and His Kingdom.

B. We value the historic ___________ _________

Because we value the historic ___________ _________, we will be guided by the theology that is summarized in those Stan-dards. The Westminster Standards, however, are man-made docu-ments and are subservient to the Scriptures, which are infallible and inerrant.

C. We value ______

Because we value ______, and know it is God’s will for us to do so as a vital aspect of our relationship with him, we will pray continually, taking every opportunity to rejoice in God, humbly re-pent of our sins, seek God’s blessings on our endeavors, and give thanks for his goodness to his people.

10

Class 101

D. We value the _____ ___________

Because we value the _____ ___________, we will guard and strengthen the biblical family, promote the development of personal character and integrity, encourage loving relationships among our members, minister to the divorced, the widowed, and the unwed parent, and with humor and humility consider others’ needs before our own. (Philippians 2:3)

E. We value the _____ __________

Because we value the _____ __________, we will reach out to our community ever mindful of their needs, and through the preaching and teaching of the Word, needs based evangelism, chil-dren’s ministry, and quality Christian education, minister the Grace of God, and bring people to faith in Christ, and membership of His Church.

F. We value ________

Because we value ________, we will train teachers to bring the whole counsel of God to bear on the issues and needs of our church and community, so that we may effectively minister to the whole person, prophetically confront non-Christian thought forms and behavior, and offer answers for life.

G. We value the Ministry of Every ______

Because we value the ministry of every ______, we will sys-tematically teach, train, equip, disciple, and mobilize our members to be effective teachers, trainers, equippers, disciplers, and mobi-lizes of others, under the spiritual authority and loving discipline of the local church.

H. We value Ordered and Inspiring _______

11


Because we value ordered and inspiring _______, we will employ a liturgy and musical style that retains historic continuity with our Reformed roots, while leading worshipers into God’s presence using and blending contemporary and traditional forms.

IX. Our Mission Statement

Taking our purposes together, we now have clarified our Mission Statement. We define the Mission Statement of the Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church as follows:

To bring people to Jesus Christ and __________ in his church family, develop them to Christlike ________, equip them for their ________ in the church and life _______ in the world, in order to _______ God’s name.

X. Our Driving Force

When we think of who we are as a church, with our theology, commitments, and distinctives, we ask ourselves, “What is our unique contribution among the churches of New Tampa?”

Therefore, we would say that our driving force is:To bring people to ________ in ______.

XI. Our Motto

Our motto summarizes everything. The Tampa Bay Presbyte-rian Church is a church where you can find. . .

_______ ___ _____!

XII. Our Ministry Target

When we think of our Ministry Target, we think of Five Cir-cles of Commitment.

12

Class 101

The community is for the __________.The crowd is for the _______ _________.The congregation is for the _______.The committed is for the ________ _______.And the core is for the ____ _________.

See Circles below. . . .

XIII.Our Strategy

What is our strategy for helping people move from the com-munity to the core?

13


We use a Life Development Process. This involves: Knowing Christ: __________ Growing in Christ: ________ Serving Christ: ________ Sharing Christ: ________ Worshipping Christ: _____________

Our Strategy for Life Development Process (growth) in-volves Four Commitments:

1. The __________ Commitment. . . is a commitment to ______ and ___ ______ ______.

14

Class 101

“You are members of God’s very own family. . . and you be-long in God’s household with every other Christian.” Eph. 2:19 (LB)

2. The ________ Commitment. . . is a commitment to the ______ necessary for spiritual

growth.

“Continue to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18

3. The ________ Commitment. . . is a commitment to discovering and using my God-given

gifts and abilities in _______ God and others.

“God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other. . . .” 1 Peter 4:10 (LB)

4. The ________ Commitment. . . is a commitment to ___________ my life mission and to

_______ the Good News with others.

“. . . you will be my witnesses. . . to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

Why do we have these commitments?

Because. . .

We become what we are ____________.

XIV. Our Doctrinal Distinctives

Now it is time to put on our “theological hats.” For some, much in these sections will be entirely new material, perhaps even

15


a bit “mind boggling.” If so, just “hang in there.” Though perhaps confusing at times, it will nevertheless be helpful.

For many of you these sections will answer important ques-tions to help determine if the Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church is “in line” with your beliefs. Bear in mind that these sections are not designed to fully explain our beliefs or to persuade you of their correctness, but rather to let you know what we believe. Any ques-tions that arise will be welcomed either during or after the class session.

A. Our ________ Regarding Our Beliefs

1. We believe in majoring on the ______ and minoring on the ______.

2. We believe that in the essentials there must be _____ and in the non-essentials there must be _______.

3. In order to join the Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church, one must adhere to the __________ of the Christian faith.

B. Our _________ Beliefs

It is important to note that our theological commitments are summarized in the ___________ _________. The Westminster Standards comprises three important documents:

1. The Westminster __________ of _____

2. The Westminster _______ Catechism

16

Class 101

3. The Westminster ______ Catechism

If you want a more in-depth treatment of our theological be-liefs, you will be able to read it in the Westminster Standards.

Now, let me summarize some of our key doctrinal beliefs.

1. We believe in the ___________ and _________ of Scripture.

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, re-buking, correcting and training in righteousness. . .” 2 Timothy 3:16.

“Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scrip-ture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” 2 Peter 1:20-21.

2. We believe in the _______ and ___________ of God.

“In him we were also chosen, having been predestined ac-cording to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will. . .” Ephesians 1:11.

“. . . according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Ephesians 3:11.

“When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. ‘Sovereign Lord,’ they said, ‘you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: “‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather to-gether against the Lord and against his Anointed One.’ Indeed

17


Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.” Acts 4:24-27.

3. We believe God _______ the universe of _______.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1.

“By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.” Hebrews 11:3.

“This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the Lord, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by my-self. . .” Isaiah 44:24.

4. We believe that man was _______ by God.

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our like-ness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’” Genesis 1:26.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17.

5. We believe in the ____ of man.

18

Class 101

“What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin.” Romans 3:9.

“. . . the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.” Romans 8:7-8.

6. We believe in God’s gracious ____ of salvation.

Christ in this covenant is a ________ who represents both God and man. Christ fulfills this role through three key offices:

6.1 a _______ who is God’s spokesman, revealing truth to man;

6.2 a ______ who is mankind’s representative, taking his sins upon himself and offering himself as a sacrifice to satisfy di-vine justice and to reconcile him to God; and

6.3 a ____ who subdues man to himself, ruling and defend-ing him, and conquering all of his enemies.

7. We believe God _______ the salvation earned by Christ to us through the Holy Spirit.

This takes place through a five stage process:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his pur-pose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” Ro-mans 8:28-30.

19


7.1 God begins the process by effectively _______ his own to himself convincing him (the sinner) of his sin and misery and persuading and enabling him to receive Christ by faith.

“. . . who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not be-cause of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the be-ginning of time. . .” 2 Timothy 1:9.

7.2 This is followed by _____________, whereby God de-clares man righteous in his sight, based only on the merit of Christ which is imputed to him and received by faith alone.

It is especially noted that justification is by grace alone and through faith alone. This grace and faith will inevitably lead to sanctification—an evidence of justification.

“. . . for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24.

7.3 This is then followed by ________, whereby the be-liever is received into God’s family, making him a joint-heir with Christ.

“. . . because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his suf-ferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” Romans 8:14-17.

20

Class 101

“. . . he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Je-sus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will” Ephesians 1:5.

7.4 Until his death, the believer continues to be __________. This is the daily process of being enabled more and more to die to sin and to live unto righteousness.

“In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” Romans 6:11.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10.

7.5 The final stage is that of _____________, whereby the believer is received at death and his body at the final resurrection.

“Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore en-courage each other with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

21


8 We believe in a doctrine of salvation that emphasizes both the ______________ of man and the ___________ of God.

“As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know. There is no fear of God before their eyes.’” Ro-mans 3:10-18.

“ As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and follow-ing its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature ob-jects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kind-ness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s work-manship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:1-10.

22

Class 101

9. We believe in ________ theology.

“See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand! Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. Not even those who are circumcised obey the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your flesh. May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Neither cir-cumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God.” Galatians 6:11-16.

10. We believe in the doctrine of ________ baptism.

“They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.’” Acts 16:31.

11. We believe in a _____ ________ by God.

“Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For he ‘has put ev-erything under his feet.’ Now when it says that ‘everything’ has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God him-self, who put everything under Christ. When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything un-der him, so that God may be all in all.” 1 Corinthians 15:24-28.

23


“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:11-15.

12. We believe in the priority of the ______.

“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s house-hold, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” Ephesians 2:19-22.

13. We believe the ____________ form of government is the Biblical form of church government.

The three types of church government are:

1. ____________

2. ______________

3. ____________

24

Class 101

The Biblical basis for a Presbyterian form of church govern-ment is:

1. The ______-_______ were chosen by the people.

“Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.” Acts 14:23.

appointed actually means “to elect by a show of hands.”

2. The office of ______ and _____ were identical.

3. There was a _________ of elders in each church.

“From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church.” Acts 20:17.

4. There was the privilege of ______ to the assembly of el-ders and the power of government was exercised by them in their associate capacity (Acts 15:1-16:4).

5. The only ____ of the church is the Lord Jesus Christ.

“And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the begin-ning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.” Colossians 1:18.

The Presbyterian Churches are governed by graded courts. These courts are:

1. ________

2. ____________

25


3. ________ ________

Finally, our Church officers are:

1. ______: ________ and ______

2. _______

XV. Our Membership Vows

In order to become a member at the Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church, a person simply needs a ________ __________ __ _____.

Along with a credible profession of faith is a ___________ __ ______ __ ___ ____ __________ ____. Therefore, we will ex-amine each vow carefully to learn what is involved in each vow.

Membership vows are extremely important. We want every member to understand the importance of the vows that they make. God takes the vows we make very seriously. He says in Numbers 30:2, “When a man makes a vow to the Lord or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said.”

So, in order to help you understand the commitment that you will take if you decide to become member at TBPC, we will ex-plain what is involved in each vow.

1. Membership Vow #1: My Predicament

The first membership vow states:

Do you acknowledge yourself to be a sinner in the sight of God, justly deserving his displeasure, and without hope, except through his sovereign mercy?

Here are a number of points to observe:

26

Class 101

1. You must acknowledge yourself to be a ______ in the sight of God.

a. The Bible is clear that ________ is a sinner (Romans 3:23). However, you must believe that ___ are a sinner.

b. But, what is ___?

c. The Westminster Shorter Catechism, Q. 14: “Sin is any ____ of conformity unto, or _____________ of, the law of God.”

d. Sin is ___ _________ __ to the law of God or ________ the law of God.

e. Our problem with respect to sin is that we have a bad ______, which is the result of a bad _____.

2. The consequence of sin is __________ from God.

a. The immediate result of sin is ______ __________ with God.

b. The ultimate result is _______ __________ from God.

c. Our predicament is that we are sinners _________ from God and under the _______ of _____ because of our sin.

3. A sinner justly deserves the ___________ of God.

a. God is ____ and cannot look on ___ (Isaiah 6:3; Habakkuk 1:13).

b. God hates ___ because he is ____.

27


c. God must punish ___ because he is also ____ (Romans 3:23).

4. A sinner is without ____ except through God’s sovereign _____.

a. God has made a provision to deal with ___ in the person of Jesus Christ.

b. God in his sovereign mercy has declared that we must re-spond to Jesus Christ: “___________.”

2. Membership Vow #2: My Profession

The second membership vow states:

Do you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and Savior of sinners, and do you receive and trust him alone for salvation as he is offered in the Gospel?

Observe the following points:

1. Jesus is the ___ of God.

a. The first issue deals with ___ Jesus is.

b. Jesus is ___, the ___.

c. Jesus is the ______ person of the Trinity.

2. Jesus is the ______ of sinners.

a. The second issue deals with ____ Jesus did.

b. Jesus came to ____ sinners. (Luke 19:10).

28

Class 101

c. From God’s perspective, Jesus provided __________, ______________, ____________, and ____________.

d. From our perspective, Jesus provided _________ and ___________.

3. Salvation is received by _________ and ________ in Jesus alone for salvation as he is offered in the Gospel.

a. We must _______ the living Lord Jesus into our lives.

b. We must transfer our _____ from ourselves to Jesus alone for the gift of salvation.

3. Membership Vow #3: My Promise

The third membership vow states:

Do you now resolve and promise, in humble reliance upon the grace of the Holy Spirit, that you will endeavor to live as be-comes the followers of Christ?

Consider the following:

1. You must believe that Jesus gave his ____ for you.

2. You must give your ____ to Jesus by trusting what he has done for you.

3. You must give your ____ to Jesus by promising to live a life free from __________ ___. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

29


4. Membership Vow #4: My Participation

The fourth membership vow states:

Do you promise to support the Church in its worship and work to the best of your ability?

Note the following points:

1. A promise to support the Church is another way of saying that all Christians are called to a life of ___________ and _______.

2. This vow is a promise to support the Church. What is the ______?

3. This vow is a promise to support the Church in it _______. What is meant by “_______”?

4. This vow is a promise to support the Church in its ____. What is meant by “____”?

5. The following are some of the commitments which support the church’s worship and work:

a. Faithful __________.

b. _________ and ___ of spiritual gifts.

c. Regular ______ on behalf of TBPC’s health and growth.

d. _______ with unbelievers.

e. ________ the unchurched to attend church with you.

30

Class 101

f. Warmly _________ those who attend.

g. Regular _________ giving.

5. Membership Vow #5: My Position

The fifth membership vow states:

Do you submit yourself to the government and discipline of the Church, and promise to strive for its purity and peace?

Note the following points:

1. You must first be willing to ______ yourself to Christ.

2. You must be willing to submit to his _________ in his church.

3. You must be willing to further the ______ of the church.

4. You must be willing to further the _____ of the church.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have now completed Class 101 for Membership.

What’s next?First, if you would like to become a member of the Tampa

Bay Presbyterian Church, please fill out the Membership Applica-tion form.

Once you have completed the Membership Application form, please sign it and give it to me. I will then help you complete the membership application process. This includes the following:

31


1. I will meet with you and prepare you for your member-ship _________ with the Session.

2. You will meet with the _______ and be interviewed for membership.

3. If you are currently a member at another church, please let me know (on your Membership Application form) so that I can request a ________ of membership.

4. Once the Session receives you as a member of the Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church I will schedule a Sun-day worship service to _________ you to the congrega-tion.

5. Also, once the _______ receives you as a member, you will be assigned to a ___________ _____.

And second, I would like to encourage you to attend _____ ___ ___ ________. This is a class that will help you understand what is necessary for your spiritual growth.

Thanks so much for attending Class 101 for Membership!

32

Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church (PCA)19911 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.

Tampa, FL 33647Office: (813) 973- 2484

Fax: (813) 973-4673Email: [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Documents

The Church That Christ Is Building - tbpca.orgtbpca.org/images/public_docs/Class_101_Students_Syllabus.doc · Web view“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on