Membership

At Mars Hill, membership happens within the idea of “covenant”. It’s an idea that comes from the Ancient Near East, where covenant was a binding agreement in which covenant members had certain obligations and could expect certain benefits in return. What makes a covenant different from a simple binding agreement is that covenant implies meaningful relationship. For example, God covenanted with Noah, with Abram, with the people of Israel at Mt. Sinai, and eventually brought about a new covenant, available to all through Christ. Through covenant, God continually called people back to the kind of life he intended for them.

In the Scriptures, covenant meant an agreement that lasted for life. At Mars Hill we’re attempting to use this meaningful term while recognizing that membership at a local church is often not for life. This is one reason why we occasionally ask members to renew their Covenant.

Any follower of Christ is invited to become a Covenant Member of the Mars Hill community. In covenanting with us, you both agree to and adopt our Narrative Theology and our shared values, the Directions. Together we covenant to go:

Backward, embracing the roots of our faith.
Forward because the life of faith is a journey.
Inward because we want to be whole people.
Withward because we were made to live in community.
Outward because Jesus calls us to serve the world.
Upward, celebrating God’s redemption of all things.

Interested in covenanting with us? We invite you to join the people of Mars Hill in upholding and embodying Roots, Journey, Wholeness, Community, Serving, and Celebration. Check out our Covenant FAQs, download the application, or visit our Welcome Center on a Sunday to learn more.