WHAT DOES IT MEAN THAT WE ARE "THE BODY OF CHRIST"? Think of all that Jesus did and consider that we are now “His body.”
- 1 Corinthians 12:27.
- Picture in your mind’s eye Jesus walking around Palestine. See Him reaching out with a compassionate hand. See Him walking among the outcasts. See Him eating meals with the hurting. See Him sharing the truth of God.
- We talk sometimes about “being the hands and feet of Christ.” What’s that mean?
- It means that Jesus is no longer here on this earth. You can’t see Him anymore. How are people supposed to see God’s mercy and grace? Through us.
- Just as Jesus was the physical representative of God when He walked this world, so we are to be His Body in the world now.
- People are usually going to see God in us before they see God in the Bible. Why? Because most aren’t going open the Bible, but our lives are before them daily.
- Let me put that idea in a different, more direct way.
A STAGGERING THOUGHT: “I am the living representative of Christ today at [fill in workplace or street].”
- Fill in your workplace (or if you don’t work your street name) in that last blank.
- Think about that: you are the living representative of Christ there. That’s a staggering thing.
- In some cases, you may be the only representative there.
- Are you living up to that? Are you living as the representative of Christ in your world?
THREE ASPECTS OF THIS TRUTH:
- The phrase “body of Christ” appears in each of these verses and each brings out a different aspect of this truth.
- Let’s unpack this idea of being the “body of Christ” so that we have a clearer idea of what’s expected of us.
1. THIS IS NOT THE BACKUP PLAN.
- Ephesians 1:22-23.
- Sometimes the only thing we seem to do regarding the church is apologize.
- Now, believe me, I am fully aware that the church has manifold shortcomings. I know it often pushes people away from God rather toward Him. I know we don’t embody Christ’s teaching as well as we should.
- But there’s another truth that we seem to ignore: this is God’s plan. This is Plan A.
- Jesus didn’t get to the end of His ministry and come to the time of His ascension and God the Father thought, “Oh no, now are what are we going to do?!?! Well, how about if we try to work through the believers?” It wasn’t a last-minute throw-together.
- No, that God would shine into this world through us was the plan all along. That’s why Jesus invested so much time in His disciples. It’s why the Holy Spirit came after the ascension. It’s why the church was formed.
- It’s time for us to quit thinking of the church as something to apologize for and time to start living out what God intended: that we would be living representatives of Christ in a way that brings glory to Christ.
- God’s intent is to make you into a person who can be a great representative of Christ.
- We are to be “the fullness” of Christ (v. 24).
- Note the wording at the beginning of v. 23 that speaks of the authority of Christ.
- That brings out the idea that the church is not be a weak, pathetic husk of a shadow of God, but a powerful, mighty force.
- One of the verses I thought of was John 14:12, where Jesus speaks of us doing “greater things” than He did.
- That verse has always remained somewhat of a mystery to me. I think there’s a truth there that I haven’t fully comprehended yet.
- One thought that comes to mind, though, as we speak about this idea of us being the “body of Christ” is the vision of a billion people around the world living passionately for Christ. Whereas Jesus was one person, albeit a mighty and impressive one, through the church we can have a representative of Christ in a billion places. That’s an amazing thought.
- I don’t think that’s a full explanation of that verse, but it is part of it, I think.
- Note the presence of the phrase “the fullness of Christ.”
2. TO REACH "THE FULLNESS OF CHRIST" THE PASTOR NEEDS TO BE BUSY EQUIPPING AND THE PEOPLE NEED TO BE BUSY SERVING.
- Ephesians 4:11-13.
- The role of the pastor is to teach the truth in order to “build up” the church. Then the church is to step forward to serve.
- The idea of “prepare God’s people for works of service” has to do with knowing the truth so that you can serve well, knowing the truth about Christ and your place in His Kingdom. It speaks in v. 13 about God’s people becoming mature.
- Some people think the way that church should be organized is that “we pay the pastor to do the work.” That’s not effective and it’s not Biblical. The pastor is here to equip.
- I want you to notice that your service is part of the plan.
- This has been implied in what we’ve been talking about with the church being the body of Christ, but let’s be more direct now. You are expected to serve. It’s not an optional activity.
- We’re going to be talking in coming weeks about spiritual gifts that are talked about in 1 Corinthians 12 and how God has gifted you to serve. This morning, though, let’s just focus on the fact that your service is part of the plan.
- If you’re sitting instead of serving, God’s plan is not being done fully. You are part of His plan. You are part of His Body. He’s counting on your service.
- Have pew on stage and start by talking about how for many Christians the high point of their actions for Christ each week is sitting on a pew. “There, I did my duty – I sat through a sermon.” “There, I fulfilled my obligation – I came to church.”
- Note the presence of the phrase “the fullness of Christ.”
3. SACRIFICE AND SUFFERING ARE PART OF THE DEAL.
- Colossians 1:24-25.
- Paul here speaks of the suffering that he underwent for the Colossians. He treats it as a thing to be expected: it’s natural that he would have to suffer for the sake of the body of Christ.
- Some Christians are willing to do something for God as long as it doesn’t require any sacrifice or suffering. The simple fact is that our serving as part of the body of Christ will likely demand sacrifice and suffering sometimes.
- It could look like:
a. The annoyance of loving that difficult person as part of your effort to win them to Christ.
b. The hours put in doing that service to Christ.
c. The difficulty of temporarily holding a job within the church that’s not your forte because no one else is available to do it.
d. Staying in the mix during a contentious time in the church when you’d rather walk away.
e. Giving up some things you enjoy doing but that are not fruitful in order to do more for Christ.
- Note the presence of the phrase “the fullness.”
OUR TASK: The world is not going to see “the fullness of Christ” when God’s people are slouching on their pews.
- Let’s go back to sitting in the pew. Too many Christians believe that they’ve done their duty simply by showing up.
- That’s not true. God expects more from you. The church is the body of Christ and you are part of it.
- We are to be Christ’s representatives to the world. As I said earlier, you are Christ’s representative to your corner of the world.
- As I’ve noted throughout this sermon, it’s an amazing thing that the word “fullness” keeps showing up in these passages about the “body of Christ.” This isn’t to be a second-best option. This is God’s plan to do great things, so get off your pew and serve.
