Becoming a member of East Fremantle Baptist Church (EFBC) expresses your desire to devote some of your time, energy and resources to worship and serve the Lord here in East Fremantle.  In becoming a member you are declaring your commitment and demonstrating that you belong to our church.

Members of EFBC are committed to supporting the ministry of the church and the church leadership.  Members are part of the core team who participate in achieving the mission of the church and are dedicated to maintaining the unity and fellowship of the church.

The church family commits to love and support members by:

• Providing regular opportunities to worship and exalt Jesus
• Teaching and encouraging members through the Word of God
• Providing opportunities for members to grow in their faith through serving the Lord
• Mentoring, discipling and training members in their faith
• Pastoral care and support
• Ministry to members and their families

Church members commits to love and support the church by:

• Regularly praying for the church
• Being faithful in attendance and participation at church services and Communion
• Supporting the ministries of the church through regular giving and service
• Sharing in the governance of the church by attending Members’ Meetings (twice per year)
• Seeking to preserve the unity and fellowship of the church
• Maintaining a good testimony toward unbelievers
• Supporting and being accountable to the leadership team

All church members recognise that they are part of the broader body of Christ and as such, any problems are to be dealt with in a Biblically appropriate way (e.g. Mathew 18:15-17).

What does it mean to be “Baptist”?

EFBC is an incorporated member church of Baptist Churches Western Australia (BCWA).  BCWA was formed in 1896, with EFBC being founded on October 30, 1920.

Baptist churches trace their origin back to England in the seventeenth century, to a time when the church was reforming its concept of the separation of church and state.  A group of believers asserted that believer’s baptism should be the only basis on which the church of God is founded.  This group developed out of the English separatist movement and eventually became known as “Baptists”.

As the Baptist group developed, a number of distinctives began to emerge that describe the difference between Baptist churches and other Christian denominations.  Stanley J. Grenz in his book The Baptist Congregation outlines seven basic distinctives of Baptist churches, using an acrostic of the word BAPTIST:

Believer’s baptism	Following the example unanimously expressed in the New Testament, Baptists hold that believers are to be baptised following their confession of faith
Autonomy of the local congregation	Baptists believe that the local congregation of members is competent to seek the will and mind of Christ for its own affairs
Primacy of Scripture	The sole basis of our belief is the Bible, which is uniquely God-inspired, and the final authority on all matters of faith
True believers only in the church	Baptists believe that the body of Christ consists solely of all truly converted believers
Individual competence and believer priesthood	Each member of the church has religious freedom/liberty of conscience and shares in the priestly ministry of the church
Separation of church and state	Separation seeks to prohibit the government from advancing the cause of one religious group over another or the nonreligious
Two ordinances	Baptists believe in the two ordinances/sacraments described in Scripture: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper

What do we believe?  Our statement of faith

We believe that:

• The sole basis of our belief is the Bible, which is uniquely God-inspired, and the final authority on all matters of faith. As the Bible teaches, there is one God, eternally existing in three persons — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
• God created humans to have fellowship with Him, but they defied God by sinfully going their own way. As a result, we need God’s saving grace to end our alienation from Him
• Salvation comes only through God’s saving grace — not human effort — and must be received personally by repentance and faith
• Jesus Christ, who was fully God & fully human, lived a sinless life on earth and voluntarily paid for our sin by dying on the cross as our substitute. This accomplishes salvation for all who receive grace by trusting in Him alone. He rose from the dead and is the only mediator between us and God
• The Holy Spirit draws people to Christ and equips Christians for personal growth and service to the church. The church’s role is to glorify God and serve those in need. At the end, everyone will experience bodily resurrection and the judgment. Those forgiven through Christ will enjoy eternal fellowship with God

What are the “Objects” of EFBC?

The church Objects are the primary goals of the church.  These consist of glorifying God by:

• Promoting and providing opportunities for people to meet regularly for Christian worship, prayer, teaching, encouragement and fellowship
• Proclaiming the good news of the salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ, encouraging people to believe in Him, to become His disciples and to be part of His church
• Enabling and encouraging Christians to use and develop their gifts for the service of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Church and in the community by ministering to the needs of people
• Promoting the spread of the Gospel by engaging in the task of mission, in Australia and overseas. Working with related incorporated entities, including East Fremantle Child Development Centre Inc., to extend the ministry of the Church

Church Constitution/Rules

If you would like to read the full Constitution/Rules, you can access it using the link below:

https://eastfreo.church/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Rules.pdf

Eligibility for membership

In order to be eligible for membership at EFBC, the following requirements must be met.  If you have concerns or questions regarding any of these, please discuss them with one of the church pastors.

1. By meeting the basic age requirements – all members must be 18 years of age or older
2. By profession of faith in Jesus Christ as both your Lord and Saviour, demonstrated through baptism and evidenced through the indwelling Holy Spirit

Note: EFBC practices believer’s baptism by immersion, however, we operate under an “open church membership” policy which allows room for different expressions of baptism.  Please discuss this with a Pastor for more information.

3. By agreement with the Statement of Faith
4. By agreeing to support the Objects of the church and the church Rules/Constitution

How do I become a member?

If you meet the eligibility requirements as described above and you would like to become a member of our church, you will need to apply in writing to the church leadership.  Your application needs to include a nomination form from an existing member of the church which must be signed by both the applicant and the nominating church member.  An application form is provided at the end of the full membership booklet, which you can download using the link below:

https://eastfreo.church/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Membership-Booklet.pdf

Once you have submitted your application to the church, a member of the pastoral team will contact you and discuss your application.  The church Council will then review your application at the next available Council meeting.  If your application is accepted by the church Council, you will be added to the church membership roll and considered a member of the church with full voting rights.

If your circumstances change and the Lord calls you to another church or you would like to rescind your membership, you simply need to send an email to the EFBC Council Chairperson at chairperson@eastfreo.church.

We look forward to you prayerfully considering becoming a member of our church and joining our church community.

May the Lord bless and guide you and you seek his will.