University Avenue Church of Christ

Become a Member

We receive new members through two avenues of response: baptism and transfer.

We welcome those who want to come to Jesus through their faith expressed by being buried and raised with Jesus in baptism because of that faith. We are happy to help with such responses in baptism to Jesus at any hour of the day.

We also welcome those who are already in Christ who are transferring their memberships from other churches. If one has been baptized as a response of his or her faith in Jesus, God has added that one to the great Body of Christ in the world. We say that anyone who is good enough for God is good enough for us. We have no requirements for membership at University Avenue Church of Christ other than the response of the early Christians who came to Jesus.

We provide a white card in the auditorium pews that allows one to indicate the desire for baptism, for placing membership and for requesting prayers.

Theological Reflections on Becoming a Member

First, we want you to know that we are very glad you are here. You are invited to attend our worship services and Bible classes. We welcome you. Now about becoming a member of the University Avenue Church of Christ: we want you to know that we do not have any requirements for membership beyond the response of faith seen in the New Testament. We urge all to respond in faith to Jesus as the first Christians did in the New Testament church.

As we read Acts and the Letters, we learn that men and women became believers in Christ as they heard the story of God's loving, gracious act in Jesus:

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8)

The first response of faith is to believe in Jesus as the Son of God.

Those who come to believe in Jesus allow the love of God to break through into their hearts and change the direction of their lives. Only the hardest heart is able to look at Jesus on the cross and not desire to receive God's promised forgiveness and to live a better life. Repentance, which is turning one's life from evil toward God, is another response of faith in the life of the believer.

Those who believe in Jesus and choose to turn their lives toward him seek to be born again through him. The apostle Peter taught those who believed in Jesus:

Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38)

The faith that prompts a seeker to repent leads that person to baptism as a continuation of the faithful response to Jesus. Those who are baptized are made a part of Christ:

...For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. (Galations 3:27)

Baptism as practiced in the early church was by immersion into water (Acts 8:39). In this ceremonial burial and resurrection, the believer is buried with Christ in the likeness of his death--and raised with Christ in the likeness of his resurrection (Romans 6:4). Baptism accomplishes what it symbolizes: it marks the end of one life and the beginning of another in the believer.

If you are already a believing and baptized person and want to be a member of the fellowship of Christ here, we welcome you. If you would like to know more about Jesus and your faithful response to him, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . God bless you in your search for meaningful life.