First Steps at MCC
The First Steps course provides an overview of who we are, what we believe, and what it means to be connected at Markle Church of Christ.
SESSION ONE: JESUS
Jesus is the beginning and end of our faith. He is the reason we exist as a church. In this session we focus on the story of Jesus, what we believe about who He is, and how we live when we’re following Him.
1.1 - STARTING WITH JESUS
Jesus is the starting point for everything we believe and everything we do. It is essential to our faith to know who Jesus is and what He did.
1.2 - KNOWING JESUS
We believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, our Lord and Savior—and we can see Him in God’s whole plan throughout history.
1.3 - FOLLOWING JESUS
We want to follow after Jesus completely—obeying what He said, making disciples, and trusting that His Spirit will be with us as we go.
SESSION TWO: THE BIBLE
The Bible is the clearest expression of who God is, who Jesus is, and who we are as His people. These videos spell out the significance of the Bible, the history of the Bible, and how we can get to know God’s Word better.
2.1 - UNDERSTANDING THE BIBLE
We believe the Bible is the Word of God, the story of God, and the plan of God. That’s why we want to learn what the Bible says and live it out.
2.2 - TRUSTING THE BIBLE
The Bible is unique, complete, and is God’s Word for us—and we can trust what it says.
2.3 - READING THE BIBLE
Saturating yourself with Scripture is one of the best ways to grow in your relationship with Jesus. We want to read it consistently, intentionally, and with humility.
SESSION THREE: THE CHURCH
Faith in Jesus is best lived out in the context of community—the church. In this session we focus on who we are at MCC and how we can participate in the ways God works through His Church.
3.1 - GIVING BACK TO GOD
Since Jesus has freely given us His extravagant grace, we freely give our time, talent, and treasure back to Him through the local church.
3.2 - LIVING ON MISSION
Being a part of MCC means being a part of the mission of Jesus to reach the world. We want to serve, grow, and be on mission together.
3.3 - UNITING IN FOCUS
Learn about why there are so many different kinds of churches, how MCC is unique, and what brings us together as the body of Christ.
Ready to place your membership at MCC?
We’re excited that you have invested in learning more about who we are through First Steps. Once you have reviewed all of the content on this page, including our Statement of Faith and membership requirements, please click the button below to fill out the completion form and begin the process of becoming a member. We will follow up with you soon. While filling out this form does not automatically make you a member of the Markle Church of Christ, it is a next step toward membership. Thank you for your interest in being part of the MCC family!
Requirements for Membership:
Believe in Christ as your Lord and Savior. (John 3:16)
Confess your faith. (Romans 10:9)
Repent of your sins. (Acts 3:19)
Be baptized by immersion. (Acts 2:38)
Agree with and abide by our Statement of Faith.
Complete the First Steps course.
Meet with a member of MCC leadership.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why is church membership important? What does the Bible say about it? Church membership is not only important to us at MCC for practical reasons—making sure we have accurate contact information and knowing who you are so we can pastor you better—it is also very important to us for Biblical reasons. The Bible refers to the church as a "body" (1 Corinthians 12:12-27) and says that the "body" is made up of many individual parts, each of which has a unique function to fulfill and contribution to make to the mission of that particular "body," or church. We believe in church membership because it helps us identify ourselves as a unified "body" that needs each person in order to function at our highest capacity. The Bible also talks about the importance of being part of a community that can help meet each other's needs (Acts 2:42-47) and the importance of submitting ourselves to the leaders of a church (Hebrews 13:17), which both happen best through the commitment and accountability of church membership. While the Bible does not specifically command people to become members of a church, we believe that having a membership and committing to it is the best way to cultivate the kind of community the Bible describes the church to be.
I have been baptized before. Do I need to be re-baptized in order to commit to membership? If you have been immersed--whether it was at Markle Church of Christ or another church--and you accepted Jesus as the Lord and Savior of your life, there’s no need for you to be baptized again.