Church membership makes the Gospel visible in the life of the church. It expresses how Christ has saved us and brought us into the community of God’s people. The essence of membership is a commitment to loving one another in tangible ways which display the unity and diversity of the body of Christ.

There are many commands which are not possible to obey without being committed to a local church, such as communion and baptism. Jesus said “whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:21). The local church becomes the place where we put into practice the fruit of the Spirit within real relationships. This is why we need the church in order to grow as Christians. Through discipling one another in the local church, we gain assurance of our own salvation. We disciple one another by helping one another grow in Christ through teaching, encouraging and correcting. Membership also defines who the shepherds in the church are accountable for and who can be depended upon to fulfil our mission as the church.

At GraceCity, our membership process includes attending a Membership Class to help you understand our distinctives and the commitments involved. It also requires meeting with an elder, and baptism as a believer. Our Membership class consists of three two-hour sessions that explain what we believe as a church, why it is important to be a member of a local church, and what we plan to do as the local church. The content of these sessions can be found in our “Membership Booklet”. Attendance at all three sessions is necessary, before meeting individually with an elder to hear your story of how you came to faith and learning how we can work together for God’s glory within the city. You will then be introduced to the church. 

Keep checking our website for details of our next membership class. In the meantime, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us at: kei@gracecitynagoya.jp

Members’ Covenant →

Having been brought by God’s grace to repent from sin, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be baptised into Christ, and desiring to live our new life in Christ, we joyfully and solemnly enter into this covenant with one another as one body in Christ.

  1. We will not neglect to gather regularly for corporate worship, or to pray for ourselves and others (Hebrews 10:25; Colossians 4:2).
  2. We will rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep, bearing each other’s burdens with tenderness and compassion (Romans 12:15).
  3. We will be devoted to one another in brotherly love; to watch over, pray for, patiently bear with, forgive, encourage, and admonish one another with love, humility and gentleness (Romans 12:10; Luke 17:3; Colossians 3:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; 1 Peter 1:22).
  4. We will serve others with the spiritual gifts that God has blessed us with, for the edification of the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:15-16; Romans 12:3-8).
  5. We will endeavour to raise the children and youth under our care in the training and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4).
  6. We will seek the salvation of our family and friends by sharing Christ with them, and seek the welfare of the city by living lives that are consistent with the Gospel (Acts 13:47; 1 Peter 2:12; Colossians 3:17).
  7. We will strive to pursue personal holiness in our lives and grow in Christ-likeness with the help of the Holy Spirit, by submitting to the authority of Scripture (Titus 2:12; 1 Peter 1:14).
  8. We will contribute cheerfully, generously and regularly to the church in order to support the ministry of the Word, the relief of the poor within our midst, and the spread of the Gospel to all nations (Matthew 28:19; Luke 12:33; 2 Corinthians 9:7).
  9. We will work together in unity to make Spirit-filled disciples through biblically faithful ministries within the church—ministries which sustain the church’s worship, ordinances, discipline, and doctrines (Ephesians 4:3; 2 Timothy 4:2; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; 1 Timothy 3:15; Acts 2:38; 1 Corinthians 11:26; Matthew 18:17; 1 Corinthians 5:13).
  10. When moving from this church, we will endeavor to join another Gospel-preaching church where we can carry out the spirit of this covenant and the principles of God’s Word.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen.