Some notes from a discipleship program for new believers crossed my desk this past week. They were the kind of plain instruction every saved person needs and few seem to receive anymore. The list ran four items long. Read the Bible daily. Pray daily. Join a church that believes and practices what the Bible teaches. Tell others about Jesus Christ.

Each of those four deserves a sermon of its own. This article takes the third.

Paul gave us the order in one sentence.

and this, not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God. 2 Corinthians 8:5 (LSB)

Paul was writing about the Macedonian churches and their generosity. What lands hardest in the verse is what they did before they ever wrote the check. They gave their own selves first to the Lord, then to His servants. The collection followed the surrender. The order matters in every Christian life. First to the Lord. Then to His church. Not the other way around.

The Baptist who came before us preached that order without apology. John the Baptist would not put a man under the water until repentance came first.

So he was saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.” Luke 3:7–8 (LSB)

The only proper candidate for baptism, and for the church, is a person who has believed on Christ and confessed his full allegiance to Him.

They First Gave Themselves to the Lord

Read the text carefully. The Macedonians gave themselves sincerely. They meant it. The gift was no grudging gift, and the Lord has never asked for the grudging kind. He loves a cheerful giver, and the giver He is asking for is you.

Therefore I exhort you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—living, holy, and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Romans 12:1 (LSB)

They gave themselves willingly. Nobody forced these saints into the Lord’s service. They gave because they had been bought with a price and they knew it.

They gave themselves wholly. The Macedonians did not parcel out part of their lives and reserve the rest. Half-hearted Christianity was not what Paul commended. A man who is a Christian on Sunday morning and something else through the week has not yet given himself the way 2 Corinthians 8:5 describes.

And they surrendered themselves. This is where every faithful church member begins. No baptism precedes this surrender. No church membership precedes it. No Lord’s Supper precedes it. The Lord asks for the whole man before He asks for anything else.

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. And the second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:36–40 (LSB)

That is what love for God looks like in the language of Christ Himself. The whole heart, the whole soul, the whole mind. Surrender is not too strong a word for that.

Then They Gave Themselves to the Church

After a person has been given to the Lord, the next thing the New Testament expects is that he follow the Lord in baptism and join one of the Lord’s churches. Pentecost shows us the pattern.

Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men, brothers, what should we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:37–38 (LSB)

The order keeps. The piercing of the heart. The call to repent. The waters of baptism. Then the gathered church. Read on a few verses and watch what came next.

And daily devoting themselves with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:46–47 (LSB)

The Lord did not add them to a movement or a parachurch network. He added them to the assembly that was breaking bread house to house and praising God together. That is His pattern, and it has not changed.

So how does a member give himself to that assembly? You can give your name on the roll. You can give your tithe. You can give your presence. A good member does all three. But the New Testament asks for more. It asks for you.

What That Giving Involves

Four things. Each one bigger than it sounds.

Consistency of character

There is no place for eye-service in the Lord’s church. A man who is a saint on Sunday morning and something else by Sunday night has not yet learned what membership costs.

A husband has no business being a bad-tempered tyrant to his wife at home and a smiling brother in the pew. A wife has no business idling away her days watching television and reading novels while her household is neglected, then standing up to sing on Sunday as if all is well. A businessman has no business cheating his customers and lying on his taxes through the week and taking the Lord’s Supper on Sunday.

Being a child of God who belongs to one of His churches is not a one day a week affair. It is a daily walk. By His grace and by His Spirit we press after consistency in our moral conduct.

Attendance, and giving

Hebrews settled the question of attendance long ago.

not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near. Hebrews 10:25 (LSB)

Sunday morning is the easy part. Any hypocrite can manage Sunday morning. The midweek service tells you more about a man’s heart. Not everyone can be there. Work schedules and distance keep some away. Those who can ought to be.

The same goes for the giving. Some of God’s people are not giving what they should, and the prophet had a name for it.

“Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and contributions. Malachi 3:8 (LSB)

That is a shocking statement to read out of the prophet’s mouth. Robbing God. Malachi did not soften it, and we are not at liberty to either.

Aiding one another

Members of the Lord’s church are bound to look after one another. Paul writes it plainly.

So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith. Galatians 6:10 (LSB)

Spurgeon said it as well as anyone has.

Let your crumbs be given to the sparrows out of doors, but let your brothers and sisters in Christ have the most and best of what you can give. This is the plain duty of every Christian. Charles Spurgeon

Sharing in the work

Not every member can be the pastor. Not every member is going to preach. But every member has been given some way to lend a hand to the work of the church. Be liberal with your money. Be diligent with your hands. If you do not know what you can do, ask. Even in a small church like ours the work outpaces the workers, and there is plenty to share around.

Where Do You Stand?

That question, asked plainly, will sort a lot of things out.

How about you? Have you given yourself to the Lord? Have you also given yourself to His church?

If you do not have a church home, we would love to have you visit us at Sovereign Grace Baptist Church in Brunswick, Georgia. You can find our service times and location at sgbcbrunswick.com/services, or contact us with any questions.