Church Membership II: Spiritually Alive Members

Recently our church passed a motion to buy a security system for the church with cameras and monitors. In the last week a security camera caught a burglar down the road at a local Stop n Go that led to their arrest. Security has become something that we all see and use everyday. We create and purchase all sorts of devices to protect the entrance to our homes and cars. If you are like me you have created at least one or perhaps multiple electronic passwords for your bank and computer accounts. Airport terminals are crawling with an enhanced level of security that flat out annoys most Americans (that is until something happens and then we all complain and ask questions about where is the security on that?). Even in something as simple as my high school FFA (Future Farmers of America - didn't really end up there - but I can weld a belt buckle) access was restricted (until going through a process) so that the reputation of the organization was not compromised by unqualified members.
Yet with all the time, money, and concern that we show for security in almost every other aspect of our lives, it surprises me how careless many Christians and leaders in the church have become about the spiritual security of the local church. Mark Dever says it this way, "The health of any local church hangs in large part to whether its members are SPIRITUALLY ALIVE" (The Deliberate Church, Crossway 2005). Conversely a church with dead members will have diseases spreading of the decomposing souls that make up that fellowship.

I believe it is a good thing for church leaders to examine and make sure those that are coming into membership are SPIRITUALLY ALIVE. Dever in The Deliberate Church goes on to make sure these signs accompany new members which leads to a healthy church

• The password of the Gospel is required - members have repented of sin and turned to Jesus who has made them alive.
  
• The key of sound doctrine given priority - members understand church doctrine
• Verifying signs that point to the pursuit of holiness and loving others more than themselves