There Is One Body Series

Alba 3-26-2023

THERE IS ONE BODY

Ephesians 4:1-4a

Warren Wiersbe, in his book “Be Rich” page 103, tells a story of a free-lance missionary who visited a minister asking for financial support. "What group are you associated with?" the minister asked. The man replied, "I belong to the invisible church."

The preacher then asked, "Well, what church are you a member of?" Again he got the answer, "I belong to the invisible church!"

Getting a bit suspicious, the preacher asked, "When does this invisible church meet? Who leads it?" The missionary then became incensed and said, "Well, your church here isn't the true church. I belong to the invisible church!" The minister replied, "Well, here's some invisible money to help you in your invisible church!"

It is obvious from scripture that Jesus Christ is the founder and builder of the New Testament Church. And He calls it His church.

Any church not founded on Jesus Christ is not His Church. Scripture calls the church, the body of Christ.

Ephesians 4:4 proclaims that, “There is ONE body”. Jesus only has ONE body. And in this body the Lord pleads with us through the apostle Paul to be the people we are called to be.

He writes in Ephesians 4:1-4a, “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body...”

There’s only ONE body for Jesus… it is His Church. What is the church? The word church comes from the Greek word “ekklesia ” which literally means “a calling out.” It is a meeting of people who have been “called out” or “summoned together.”

In the New Testament “ ekklesia ” refers to the congregation of God’s people who have been called out or separated from the world into His kingdom. The church is made up of those God has joined together into the body of Christ.

What a blessing it is to be called into the fellowship of the Lord. But I found a web site (Billy Graham Association – Answers) that had the following question:

“I haven't been a Christian very long, and going to church is kind of intimidating to me. In fact, I've almost quit going because I'm afraid I'll stand at the wrong time or won't know what to say when everyone is repeating a prayer. Can I be a Christian without going to church?”

The first answer given was: “It’s possible to be a Christian without going to church—but you will be missing out on an important part of what God wants to do in your life.”

And it added: “Don’t be embarrassed or feel awkward because you haven’t been in church much; you’ll soon become familiar with its ways. And remember: You are now part of the family of God, and no one is going to look down on you if you make an occasional mistake.”

While these answers are good, let's ask the question a little differently. Can a person be saved and not be in the church?

The answer here is this: The Bible teaches that a Christian is one who is saved. And Acts 2:47 says, “the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” The saved are the church. The church is those who are saved. So why would one who is saved not want to be in church?

In addition, Christians are specifically told not to give up meeting together as is the habit of some. Rather, we should encourage

"one another, and so much more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25).

Church involvement is both an encouragement to us and an opportunity to encourage others. Here is another way to ask this question: Why would someone say he loves God and His truth, but not wish to fellowship with God's people?

One of the reasons God wants us in church is because it helps to bolster our faith and makes us accountable to one another. It is also an excellent environment to grow in our capacity to love God and one another, especially for the new Christian.

If a person says, "I believe in God and the Bible and want to be saved, I want to be baptized, but I don't want to go to church," it sounds to me like a man saying to his bride, "I love you, I want to marry you, but I don't want to live with you."

It's saying you want the benefits of marriage, but not the relationship that goes with it. The Christian experience is being able to have a relationship with the Lord as a member of His church.