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Series » Blessings of the Faith

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About

We’re all looking for somewhere to belong—but we won’t find true belonging anywhere in this world outside God’s church. Reformed traditions emphasize church membership because it provides practical, spiritual blessings for our flourishing, yet the extent of those blessings isn’t always evident to us. Here Pastor Jonathan Landry Cruse explains the nature, necessity, benefits, and responsibilities of biblical church membership to revolutionize your understanding of this gift.

Written for the church, the Blessings of the Faith series introduces and celebrates Reformed doctrine and practice—each book features a brief and practical overview of its topic with discussion questions and an extensive Q&A section.

Endorsements

“Displays church membership as covenantally Christ-centered, pastorally beneficial, attractively necessary, spiritually nourishing, and sacrificially minded. . . . Its value to the church will be immense.”

—David Gibson, Minister, Trinity Church, Aberdeen, Scotland

“I can scarcely imagine a better resource to place in the hands of new church members.”

—Neil C. Stewart, Senior Minister, First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, South Carolina

“Biblical, clear, and encouraging. . . . I was stirred by these pages to again praise God for the privilege of belonging to his body.”

—Megan Hill, Author, A Place to Belong: Learning to Love the Local Church

“In an age when life in the church seems optional or even implausible to increasing numbers of professing Christians, Cruse offers a warm invitation to embrace the blessings of church membership, a rich fellowship that, he rightly contends, serves to enhance our walk with God.”

—John R. Muether, Dean of Libraries and Professor of Church History, Reformed Theological Seminary, Orlando

“This highly accessible starter kit is biblically grounded, confessionally informed, and pastorally helpful, showing us that God instructs us to join his church, why that membership blesses us, and how we should practically live it out.”

—Harrison Perkins, Pastor, Oakland Hills Community Church (OPC); Author, Reformed Covenant Theology: A Systematic Introduction

The Author

Jonathan Landry Cruse

Jonathan Landry Cruse (MDiv, Westminster Seminary California) is the pastor of Community Presbyterian Church (OPC) in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where he lives with his wife and three children. He is the author of several books, including What Happens When We Worship and The Character of Christ.

More by Jonathan Landry Cruse