The Process of Membership

1. Baptism makes a Christian

The Church began at Pentecost with the command to "repent and be baptized" (Acts 2:38). There is a "sacramental union" between the "sign and thing signified" (WCF 27.2) such that baptism is itself called the "water of rebirth" (Titus 3:5) and the "washing away of sins" (Acts 22:16, see HC 73). It should not be delayed, the Ethiopian eunuch was baptized immediately after hearing the gospel and asking for it (Acts 8:36). The classical statement of the faith to be understood and recited by the recipient of baptism is the Apostles' Creed.

Infant children of believing parents are also proper subjects for baptism based on the promise of God to them (Acts 2:39). They are "included in the covenant and belong to the people of God" (HC 74) just like the circumcised boys of Old Testament Israel. Regeneration is ordinarily, but not necessarily, tied to the moment of baptism (WCF 28.5, 6).

2. Confirmation makes a member

Confirmation is "the renewal of the baptismal covenant" (EC 122). It is meant for those who have reached "years of discretion" (BCP) but not exclusively for young men and women. It is the visible step where a Christian's faith is deemed sufficient for the Lord's Supper. Many evangelicals call this a "profession of faith." (Baptist churches ordinarily require this discretion before baptism.)

3. Membership means communion (and discipline)

Local church membership entails the rights of the Lord's Table and subjection to the Keys of the Kingdom. A communicant must "discern the body" (1 Cor. 11:29) and examine themselves (HC 81; WCF 29.7), requiring a capacity of discretion. This spiritual maturity is intrinsically linked to church discipline, which guards the Table from the unrepentant (HC 85; WCF 30.3).

While the Keys are committed to church elders who make the judicial decisions (WCF 30.2), the entire congregation is active in the execution of discipline. Paul commands the "assembled" church to purge the unrepentant by withdrawing fellowship (1 Cor. 5:5, 11). The elders pronounce the sentence, but the communicant members must follow through.

Therefore, baptized children are Christians and covenant members, but not active, communicant members in the local church. They are disciplined by their fathers (Eph. 6:4) and cannot take the Supper. They lack the maturity to either be subject to formal church discipline or to bear the burden of enforcing it upon others. Table access and church discipline are inseparable. The category of "junior member" or "non-communicant member" only adds confusion and ought to be avoided.