It is never a good idea to settle scriptural discussions or differences by popular vote.  Very often, it happens that those who are wrong or are being led by something other than the scriptures might be in the majority.  If someone comes to your church group and desires to be a part of that fellowship, we need to look to the scriptures to determine whether or not that person can be accepted into the fellowship.

First of all, we need to be aware that there is only ONE church, and that is the church that the Lord Jesus Christ built.  The Lord spoke to the Apostle Peter in Matthew 16:18, “…upon this rock I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”  How does one join this church that the Lord Jesus built?  He is added to this church the moment he accepts the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior.  We read in Acts 2:47, “…And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (NKJV).  As believers, we are all ONE BODY and are joined to every believer.  Romans 12:5 says, “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.”

While there is only ONE church, there are MANY representations of that church.  In the Bible, most of the churches we read about represent all the believers in a particular city, like what we read in 1 Corinthians 1:1-2, “Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, Unto THE CHURCH OF GOD WHICH IS AT CORINTH, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours.”  Is this person who desires to be part of your fellowship a part of the church of God, the body of Christ by faith in Christ Jesus?  That would be the first and most important thing to consider.

To welcome someone into this circle of fellowship, you should be convinced that you are all walking in the truth of God’s Word.  We are asked in Amos 3:3, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”  Before we can truly fellowship together, we need to know that we are indeed walking together in the truth of God’s Word.  It would be good to ask this person about some of the doctrines that he holds to be true. Are you all in agreement on the truth of the eternal Sonship of Christ, on the eternal security of the believer, on moral principles taught in the scriptures, etc.?

If you find that you are all in agreement with this person, then there would be no reason to refuse to allow him to be a part of this fellowship.  This should not be determined by a majority vote, but by the whole church group being convinced that this person is indeed a believer and is walking in the truth of God’s Word.  Things such as financial status, education, place in society, etc., should not even be considered.  It has no bearing on the acceptance of this person. 

If someone has a real concern about receiving this person, then he should be given an opportunity to express his concerns so that all the group can hear and determine from the scriptures if this concern is real and if it should be considered in determining this person’s place.  Popularity has no place here!  It is a serious thing to reject one of the Lord’s people, so we need to be sure from the Bible before refusing someone.

If this person is new to Christ or simply has little knowledge of the scriptures, then you should be led by Romans 14:1 which says, “Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.”  We should not reject someone because of their ignorance of the Bible.  Take him in and teach him!  (CC)  (646.6)