1. Membership is extended to those who have been born again, having confessed Jesus Christ to be their personal Savior and Lord and who have followed Him in baptism by immersion at the hands of this church.
2. Membership is also extended to those who desire to transfer membership from another Baptist church, having already received believer’s baptism.  Such transfers will be confirmed by written notice to the church from which membership is being transferred.
3. Persons who have once been a member of a Baptist church and having already received believer’s baptism, but due to unusual circumstances cannot receive confirmation of prior membership, may be received into First Baptist Athens membership upon a statement satisfactory to the church.
4. Person’s who have given evidence of their Christian experience and who followed up with believer’s baptism at the hands of a church other than Baptist, may also be received upon their satisfactory statement of those experiences.
5. Person’s who have given evidence of their Christian experience in a church other than Baptist, but never having received believer’s baptism may be received into membership by submitting to believer’s baptism at the hands of this church.

Believer’s baptism, as defined by this church, is constituted by two things:  proper mode and proper meaning.  The mode is immersion in water and emersion from water, a burial and resurrection.  The meaning is symbolic of death, burial, and resurrection.  If the mode is changed, the meaning is lost.  If the meaning is changed, the mode loses its significance.  Therefore, this church does not accept as believer’s baptism any baptism performed by a church which teaches a different meaning or uses a different mode.