Dear Pali Pres,
Last Sunday was a special day in the life of our church! We not only came together in a spirit of fellowship and joy for our Fall Kickoff, but we also welcomed seven new members into our Pali Pres family.
If you were with us in church—or watching via livestream—you know that the reception of new members into a Presbyterian church involves a special worship liturgy. I have included a portion of that liturgy here in my blog as a reminder to us all of what it means to be members of the church:
You come to us as members of the one holy catholic church, into which you were baptized, and by which you have been nurtured. We are one with each other, sisters and brothers in the family of God. We rejoice in the gifts you bring to us. As you join with us in the worship and service of this congregation, it is fitting that together we reaffirm the covenant into which we were baptized, claiming again the promises of God which are ours in our baptism. Hear these words from Holy Scripture: “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of the One who called you out of darkness into God’s marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9)
Membership in Pacific Palisades Presbyterian Church (or any Presbyterian church) is rooted first in our identity as God’s people. It is through our baptisms that we are first brought into the family of God. It is only through this original membership that we can then be received as members of a particular church.
Our new members, like all our members, are given gifts for serving the church. To put it another way, we have been given an original identity as a member of God’s family (through our baptism), then called to a specific church where we can live out the fruits of that identity in community with others who are doing the same.
This is a beautiful design for our life together as God’s people. Whether we remember our actual baptisms or not, we are still called to remember our first identity—our first membership—is into God’s kingdom. With that foundation in place, we then live fully into our calling through the individual church. And it is all a gift from God!
Grace and peace,
Pastor Matt