To be baptized today, at least in America, may be odd to our neighbors or coworkers, but it’s not all that shocking or inflammatory. It really should, shouldn’t it? Culturally speaking, church membership is an even more dramatic statement of our devotion to Christ than baptism. When someone comes up out of the water, the whole church spontaneously claps and cheers.ĭoes a similar sensation rise in us, though, when someone joins the church? Does it bring us to the edge of our seats? There’s a palpable sense of anticipation and celebration in the room. My young children, for instance, already love baptism Sundays at our church and look forward to them.

People who come to saving faith in Jesus generally seem eager to say so in the water. Interestingly, we don’t often put off baptism in the same way (at least in my experience). Looking back, I now realize just how little I knew about the necessity and joy of actually committing myself to a particular people in particular pews under a particular roof. I’m more concerned with the mindset I see in my younger self - a mindset I believe is prevalent today: I’ll wait to join the church until I’ve figured out the rest of my life. While we can talk about whether college students should join a church or not (generally speaking, I think they should), I’m not as concerned with that question. Why didn’t I join a church I loved? Well, in part because I was still in college and assumed membership was something I would consider after I was out of school and had landed a job somewhere. I had found my church, and yet membership never really crossed my mind (except maybe briefly when the church celebrated new members). I wasn’t visiting other churches anymore. I had come to know several of the families and had even spent some time with the lead pastor. The preaching was faithful, and the people were warm and sincere. I had been going to the same church for more than a year.

It certainly applied to me at a particular season in my life. Maybe that question applies to you right now. Why haven’t you joined that church you love?

Solid joys john piper