At each Worship Service or Revival Service here at York Terrace Baptist Church, we have an "Invitation" where one can become a member of this Church.  During the invitation, the person interested in becoming a member should leave the pew where he is seated or standing, move to where the pastor or a counselor is located, and tell that person of your desire to become a member of YTBC.  After briefly talking to the pastor or counselor, he will inform the church of your desire to join YTBC.  Note:  All minors must have parents permission prior to becoming a member of YTBC.

           We receive members in the following 3 ways:

Ø     By Baptism - As a Baptist Church, one of our most important beliefs is that once a person trusts in Jesus as his Savior (click here to discover How to Become A Christian?), he talking with the pastor or counselor.  If so, the pastor or counselor may ask you to briefly tell you about that experience, prior to informing the church of your decision.  If you have never become a Christian, the pastor or counselor will tell you how to become a Christian and lead you in a prayer in which you ask Christ to become your savior.  Then he will inform the church of your decision.  After you are presented to the church as a candidate for baptism, the pastor or counselor will talk with you about the best time for you to be baptized.  We want you to invite your family and friends, so that they can be here to witness your baptism.  If no one else is being baptized on the Sunday you join the church and become a candidate for baptism, the earliest you can be baptized is the following Sunday (simply because the Baptistry has to be prepared and heated).

Ø     By Letter - If you are already a Christian, a member of a Baptist Church, and you were baptized by immersion following your conversion, you can request to have your letter or membership moved to this church.  Then the pastor or counselor will present your decision to the church.  You will be asked to provide the following:  The full name of the church; what type of Baptist Church it is (Southern Baptist, Missionary Baptist, or etc); and if it is not a local Southern Baptist Church, we will need the address of the church. Our Church Clerk will make the request to your former church for you.  Note:  The address can be given later - not necessarily on the day you request membership.

Ø      By Statement – Sometimes a person is a member of a denomination which is not a Baptist, but would like to become a member of this church.  One may inform the pastor or counselor of this during any invitation service, but you will not be presented for church membership until the Pastor has a lengthy discussion with you about your salvation experience, the mode of baptism (immersion or sprinkling), and the meaning baptism has to  church.  The pastor will be looking for the following:

ü        Are you a Christian?  See How to Become A Christian?  If not, he will show you how to become a Christian, and you will be asked to join the church by Baptism.

ü        Were you baptized by Immersion?  Some churches sprinkle and call it baptism.  The Bible, in its original language, had a word for baptism and a different word for sprinkle.  The person who has been sprinkled was not truly baptized.  That person will be asked to join the church by Baptism and then be baptized by immersion.

ü        Is your baptism in order?  Sometimes we find that earlier in one's life, one may have joined a church without truly being a Christian.  Later he realized his mistake and became a Christian, but was never baptized after being saved (Thus, he was not truly baptized, because he was not truly bearing witness of what Jesus had done in his life).  If the baptism is not in the correct order, the person will be asked to join the church by Baptism and then follow in Believer’s Baptism.

ü        Was your baptism a testimony that you had been saved?  Some churches believe that you were not saved until you were baptized and it is in the baptismal waters  confession of sin and belief in Christ as your savior.  Baptism is only a symbolic act (but a very important act) in which one bears witness of his belief in Christ and that his sins have already been washed away by faith in Christ.  The person which believed that Baptism saved him, will be asked to put their faith in Christ – not their baptism (see How to Become A Christian?); and then be asked to join the church by Baptism.

     If the answer to all 4 of these questions is “yes” and you desire to  become a Baptist and follow its teachings and beliefs, then the pastor will present you to the church for membership by Statement.  It is best for the person who wants to join this church by statement to schedule an appointment with the pastor prior to asking for membership during an invitation, so the pastor can lead you in the proper method of joining this church.  And if that method is by Statement, he can inform the church that you indeed do qualify for membership by Statement at the time you formally request membership during an invitation.

  Come Join Us At YTBC!