What Should We Do about Members Who Won't Attend?

Church Questions

by Alex Duke

Helping Leaders to Develop Meaningful Church Membership Many new believers have questions about what it means to live as a Christian in the context of a local church, and pastors are looking for resources to pass along to their congregations to help them think biblically about the Christian life. Created in partnership with 9Marks, Church Questions is a series that seeks to provide ordinary Christians with sound and accessible biblical teaching by answering common questions Christians have about church life. Each booklet offers biblical answers and practical applications with the goal of nurturing healthy church practice and commitment. In this concise booklet, Alex Duke explains the importance of meaningful membership and discusses what church members should do about fellow members who don’t regularly attend. Duke highlights the benefits of church membership―discipleship, accountability, and fellowship―and offers advice on how all Christians can encourage faithful church membership in their congregations.

Genres: Christian, Church, Ecclesiology

64 pages, Paperback

Published October 19, 2021

Reviews

[Jeremy Mueller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this little booklet as I was thinking about how to care for members of my own church who haven't been coming around, and I can truthfully say it provides a helpful starting point for those conversations! Alex spends about half of the booklet discussing what the Bible says about membership before giving any counsel about what to actually do with those who won't attend. In my experience, I know many members who still want to be faithful Christians but church attendance just feels like an add-on they don't need. The Scripture passages that Alex draws out leave us with no other choice but to confront the reality that in God's economy, there is no such thing as a church-less Christian. I pray the Lord uses the counsel from Scripture captured in this book to equip pastors and church members in bringing back wandering sheep to join the other ninety-nine again. Also, this book preserves the personality of the author (witty, sharpy, relatable), which I appreciate :)

[Cameron Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last few lines of this booklet are haunting:

“All your friends are going to die too. And when they do, if they’re not Christians, they’re going to hear some gut, wrenching words, perhaps, for the first time, perhaps to their utter surprise: ‘depart from me, for I never knew you.’ Oh, in that moment, how they wish someone would have warn them.”

Church discipline isn’t easy. It certainly isn’t enjoyable. But it is necessary for the shepherd to leave the 99 for the one sheep. Our Savior did it for us.

[Jessica Champlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brief and helpful.

[Joel Rasmussen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good.
Heavily scripture based this book very carefully lays out; what it is to be a member, the consequences of this, and therefore what are we to do about members who stop attending.

[Anete Ābola · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was hard to read, because it seems that the author wants to use catchy phrases and stylish (teenage slang?) language to make his points. The points were good, though.

[Josh John · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book develops a sound argument for “meaningful membership” from the Bible passages that speak of the church. Subsequently, the author shows that if meaningful membership is in fact a clear principle of the Scriptures, then lovingly disciplining non-attenders is an act of love by the church, not one of indifference or passivity to biblical admonition.

The tone of the message in this book is one of love and caring for the “sheep who is wandering.”

While I appreciate the message of the book, I had a difficult time with some of the authors verbiage and even jokes. They seemed a bit out of place for the somber and serious subject matter in the book. I’m not against having fun or inserting a bit of humor, but I thought the nature in which it is done for this short book was a bit tedious. Other than that minor criticism, it was worth my few minutes in reading it. I was helped.

[Mike Conroy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent little book. Expresses a well rounded, Biblical, and throughly illustrated vision of a local church. Helpful wisdom drawn from the the Word how elders can lead their churches to love and care for non-attending members for th3 glory of Christ!

[Jonathan Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good booklet. Addresses what a church is and why it matters. Then gets into what to do about members not attending. Highly recommended for pastors and elders.

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise, helpful, challenging. Every Christian should read this.

[Bert Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alex Duke lays out the beauty and urgency of biblical church membership. This book is helpful for pastors, helpful for all Christens who want to pull back those who wander from the flock and helpful for those who are drifting away church and, inevitably, from the Chief Shepherd.
Under-shepherds take note: “There’s never a moment when an elder can say about a church member: Oh, he’s not my responsibility anymore. Why? Because our Lord charges them with paying careful attention to all the flock—whether they’re there or not, whether they want to be cared for or not.”

— What Should We Do about Members Who Won't Attend? (Church Questions) by Alex Duke

[Erica Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent and thorough book!

[Tim Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear and concise. Alex Duke is a great communicator.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent book for your own edification, not just to answer the question. But also a good answer to the question!

[Cole Shiflet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brief assessment of church discipline and cleaning up membership rolls.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

A question that every church faces and that can’t be ignored for the health of the church and the good of souls.

[Joel Gilbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a brief, informative, and convicting read!

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A concise and well-written appeal to treat church attendance as a necessary part of meaningful membership.

[James Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sobering book. Good exhortations.