Baptism & Membership

What is Baptism?

Water baptism is a celebration! It’s the most exciting thing we can celebrate together as a community. One of the last words from Jesus was for each believer to be baptized as an outward expression of their faith in Him as a symbolic act of entering the new life He offers. This is a memorable moment for those being
baptized as they declare their faith in Jesus. Each testimony in baptism gives evidence that Christ is still changing lives, and that is something worth celebrating!

Please consider being baptized if you have trusted in Christ as your Savior and desire to publicly express your faith.

Are you interested in being baptized?
To learn more about baptism, before you take the plunge, come to a required one-hour, one-time class in the Warehouse (C Building), during one of the times listed below:

Sunday, May 19| 8:45 am + 10:45 am

For kids who would like to be baptized, contact the Calvary Town office at:
town@calvarylife.org or 714-550-2348

When are the next baptisms happening?
Sunday, May 26 during the Memorial One Service at 10:00 am

Want to know more?
If you would like to be baptized at Calvary, please call Tammy Harris at 714-550-2342 or email her at tharris@calvarylife.org

Check out photos from the latest beach baptisms: Photos 2012

Read more about what it means to be baptized - Read the FAQ

What is Church Membership?

Is it another membership card to stick in your wallet? Like a membership to the gym, Costco, or AAA? You don’t get a special parking space or reserved seating, but you do get to experience life the way God intended. God designed His people to live in community. Committing to be a part of a local church body is part of that design.

What does the Bible say about it? The Bible has a lot to say about how God’s people are supposed to live together...

We’re a family: people who are committed to sticking
together through thick and thin (Matthew 12:46-50).
We’re a body: each member is contributing to the function of the
whole, and we are dependent on each other (1 Corinthians 12:12-27).
We’re instructed to respect the authority of the elders (Hebrews 13:17) and exercise church discipline (Matthew 18:15-17).
We’re called to live out the ‘one another’ passages: there are over 60 verses in the New Testament about how we are to treat one another within the family of believers... things like loving one another (John 13:35), serving one another (Galatians 5:13), and forgiving one another (Colossians 3:13).

The Bottom Line____________________
Membership is a way to formally commit to living out the Christian life with a specific group of people... the church. To be a Christian means being committed to a community of other believers and working together to reach our world with the hope that is found only in Jesus. Being committed to a community means we’re committed to one another, committed to sticking out the ups and downs of life with each other, and committed to working together towards the common purpose of reaching our world with the good news of Jesus.

“By this everyone will know that you are
my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:35

What is the membership process?
The membership process is a chance for you to get to know us and what we’re about as a church... and for us to get to know you. To commit to our church and become a member at Calvary, here are four steps to take:

	Receive Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior Admit that you have sinned against God and need His forgiveness once and for all. Believe that Jesus Christ, God’s Son, died for you as payment for your sin and rose from the dead to give you eternal life in heaven. Now, you may receive God’s forgiveness by personally trusting in Jesus alone as your only means of being cleansed from sin. Now, walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).
	Be baptized as a believer You don’t have to be baptized at Calvary. All we ask is that after having placed your trust in Christ for salvation, that you followed the example set in Scripture of publicly confessing your faith through the act of water baptism. We typically have opportunities to be baptized at Calvary in May, August, and November. Learn more here
	Attend all 4 membership classes Called our Core LifeLab 101: How to Connect, this is a four part series designed for you to learn more about Calvary before committing to become a member. We’ll talk about how God designed His church to function, the history and beliefs of Calvary, and will go on a behind-the-scenes tour to learn about the different ministries that take place at our church. This is offered several times throughout the year as a four week or One+Day experience, discover more here
	Be interviewed by an elder This is our chance to get to know you a little bit! You’ll sit down with one of our elders and get to share your story of how you came to know Christ, and have a chance to ask them any questions you have about the church. It’s also a great way to get to know one of the elders here at church! You can get to know all the elders here

Do you have more questions?
Please contact Laura Copeland at 714-550-2398 or lcopeland@calvarylife.orgor Karen Dornbach at 714.550.2307 or kdornbach@calvarylife.org