Working Together As One Body – Part Ii Series

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Due to the large amount of sermons and topics that appear on this site I feel it is necessary to post this disclaimer on all sermons posted. These sermons are original to the author and the leading of the Holy Spirit. While ideas and illustrations are often gleaned from many sources including those at Sermoncentral.com, any similarities and wording, including sermon titles, that may appear to be the same as any other sermon are purely coincidental. In instances where other minister’s wording is used, due recognition will be given. These sermons are not copyrighted and may be used or preached freely. May God richly bless you as you read these sermons. It is my sincere desire that all who read them may be enriched. All scriptures quoted in these sermons are copied and/or quoted from the Authorized King James Version of the Holy Bible.

Pastor James May

WORKING TOGETHER AS ONE BODY – Part II

(A continuation of teaching concerning the Body of Christ)

By Rev. James May

Last week we took a quick overview look at the Body of Christ as a universal worldwide body of Believers who have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior and who are living for Jesus, and how that inside that body there are all sorts of divisions that are the result of men being used by Satan to make the church ineffective.

Even with all of its schisms and divisions, within the realm of the religious, there is a true church that forms the Body and Bride of Christ. These are the people who love Jesus, who fully trust in him, who have given their lives to him and who allow him to live in their hearts. This body of Believers is held together in common belief by the power of the Holy Spirit. The life that is in them comes from only one source, which is the Holy Spirit.

The Life of the Body of Christ comes from the Spirit of the Lord, the Holy Spirit, or the Holy Ghost for all of these refer to the same person of the Godhead.

Acts 17:28, "For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, for we are also his offspring."

The Head of the Body is the Lord Jesus Christ for it is the head that determines the identity of the body.

Take any picture (find or print a sample) and cover the head with your finger. In most instances the shape of the body can be only be identified as a specific person by those who know them well. Someone who is not so well acquainted will not know whose body it is. But, remove your finger and you will instantly be able to begin the true identification process by the appearance of the face and head. Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, therefore through his identity we are known as the Body, or the Bride of Christ, because his mark is upon us.

Ephesians 5:23, "For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body."

Every other part of the body of Christ falls under his Lordship and direction. God speaks through his Word and leads through his Spirit, to bring the entire body under obedience because the blood of Jesus has cleansed us from sin and set us free from the powers of darkness than held us within its dark grasp if we have accepted the Son of God as our Savior.

Under the Headship or Lordship of Jesus each member of the Body of Christ has a specific calling, duty and task to perform in service to the Lord under the direction of the Holy Spirit and in obedience to the Word of God.

Every member of this body, working together in unity, works to build the Kingdom of God and to bring forth fruit that worthy of our calling in God. All Christians, in every congregation around the world, are a part of this mighty army that is marching on to victory as the universal church, the first entity that we refer to as the Body of Christ.

**Now we will focus our attention to the second entity that is referred to as the Body of Christ**

Inside of and as a part of the universal Body of Christ are local congregations that are also referred to as the local Body of Christ or Body of Believers. This local body is called the Local Church and has been established as a method for training, teaching and working in the local area to build the Kingdom of God in the hearts of men.

Each local church, or body, is designed exactly the same as the whole body, only on a smaller scale where we can relate one to another and work together more closely to get the work done for the Lord.