CHRISTIAN A & P 101:
CARRYING OUT THE WILL & DIRECTIVES OF THE HEAD
Colossians 1:15-20
1. Over the past three Sundays we have been examining the Apostle Paul’s favorite description of the Church as the Body of Christ and have reflected thus far on three lessons we learn from our human anatomy and physiology and have made the application to our spiritual or Christian anatomy and physiology.
We have examined thus far:
• THE UNITY OR ONENESS OF THE BODY – made up of many, many different members – all unique and performing very different functions from one another – but absolutely vital for the effective functioning of the entire body – and so we are called to accept and welcome and be thankful for the wide diversity within the Body of Christ.
• THE SUPPORT THE MEMBERS GIVE ONE ANOTHER – we saw that our bodies are not just a loose association of parts but are supported by one another and are firmly bonded to one another by joints and ligaments and muscles and other connecting tissues. In a similar way, in the church, we are specifically connected to certain other members and ultimately to all by very firm and committed bonds of the vows and covenant commitments we have made and continue to make to one another – through baptism, confirmation, church membership, every time we share in Holy Communion with one another we affirm that there is One Bread, One Body and that we are partakers together of the One Cup of Blessing.
• THE SHARING OF COMMUNICATION AND NOURISHMENT – we saw last Sunday that the way in which the body feeds and nourishes itself and conveys information throughout the system is by a process of converting that food into nourishment and energy and then passing it on throughout the system and effectively disposing of the waste materials. Every body part plays a vital and essential role in that process so that the entire body gets fed. It is never left up to one or two body parts to do that – thank goodness! A similar process takes place in the communication of information from the brain, down the brain stem and into the central nervous system to send messages back and forth throughout the entire body. Similarly, within the church, every member receives the very best spiritual nourishment and instruction and growth in discipleship as every member also participates in both the receiving and passing on of the spiritual food and instruction within the Body. When a body part only receives feeding and information without passing it on to the members to which it is connected then we have a serious and potentially dangerous blockage that can result in starvation and eventual death of the connected tissues or loss of feeling and paralysis. The spiritual parallels are equally disastrous.
4. THE BODY CARRIES OUT THE WILL AND DIRECTIVES OF THE HEAD
1. Now this morning we turn our attention to the head which houses the brain, the eyes, the ears, nose, and mouth – the primary sources of input of nourishment and information for the body.
• Through the eyes we see both the beauty and majesty of the creation around us as well as the devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. We see the smiles and joy and exuberance on the face of the recipient of good news as well as the disbelief, the despair, and the tears of those who have just lost what they had never anticipated.
• Through the ears we hear and rejoice over the first yell of a newborn child as well as strain to hear the final whisper of a loved one’s goodbye.
• Through the mouth we receive our essential solids and liquids and through the nose the air we need to breath.
• The brain is there as the master control center, providing the directives of where the body goes, what it does, and how it responds and reacts to all the various stimuli the body receives.
2. All of the other body parts are united in their specific places under the head and are able to carry out their unique function because of that relationship to the head. In a healthy body, no body part operates independently or autonomously from the head.
3. Of course, if there is some kind of brain dysfunction or disconnect from the brain then we can have various body parts – arms, legs, facial and other muscles experiencing involuntary spasms, jerks, and twitches.
• I recall with my father’s advancing Parkinson’s disease how it became impossible for him to hold a glass of water or cup of coffee without spilling the entire contents. It used to frustrate him no end because he had always been such a perfectionist – and no longer being able to control the functions of his own body just made him retreat into greater and greater isolation.
4. Now we will never have to be concerned about any brain dysfunction as far as the Head of the Church is concerned – I say this with the utmost reverence, but Jesus will never suffer from Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s and neither will He ever give two or more opposing and contradictory directives to His Body – He will never direct one part of His Body in one direction and another part in completely the opposite.
• And so I would say that when we see that sort of behavior being manifested in the life of the church – members squabbling and bickering and pulling this way and that over various issues, then it is clear evidence that a disconnect has occurred somewhere between the Head and the Body.
• Unfortunately what has been a very customary method of resolving such arguments and disputes has been to resort to the democratic approach – where the majority opinion wins. Now that may be fine and good for government – but it was never intended to be the process for the church.
• In the majority of cases where that approach has been followed you end up having a satisfied majority and a disgruntled minority that eventually breaks away and forms their own separate organization until such time as a heated dispute arises, a vote is taken, and yet another group breaks away to form their own separate organization.
• And our history is replete with the sorry stories of such divisions.
5. I firmly believe that the only way the church was called to function is by consensus. That when we have disagreements over uncertain issues – as we always will – issues where the Scripture has given no specific directive and may not be abundantly clear (like what color to choose for the carpet in the sanctuary, or who gets to use the supplies in the church kitchen, or just how Holy Communion is to be served, etc. – and churches have split over such issues!) that we commit to take no action until the Lord has brought us to one heart and mind on that matter.
• That neither side claim to have the final word and regard their opinion as the sole and ultimate will of God but in humility acknowledge that we do not yet have the “mind of Christ” on the matter and so go back to prayer and study of the Word and rely on the leading of the Holy Spirit to bring us to a place of oneness where we can walk together in agreement and the entire body be engaged to accomplish the will of the Lord as we have understood it. Then His peace and His joy can be experienced by all.
• Should agreement not come, then we could determine together to take no action in that matter for the unity of the Body is of far greater importance than either one of us getting our own agenda passed. It may be that such a course of action is either not God’s will for us – or that the time for it is not yet right and there is more work He wants to do in us first.
6. The closer and more intimately we draw to the Head through adoration, worship, prayer, fellowship, and the study of His Word the more we can expect to experience an increasing clarity and sensitivity in our seeing, our hearing and our compassion.
• Jesus, the head starts to let us see with His eyes and hear with His ears and feel with His heart
• We begin seeing and hearing things we had been oblivious to before and we begin to experience the nudge of the Spirit in the direction of those issues that are on His agenda rather than what have previously just been on our own.
• Doing His will begins to become our highest priority.
• And so we begin to find ourselves praying with increasing fervor and intensity for God’s will to be done in us and through us and His Kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth starting right in our own community and in our own congregation and in our own families and in our own lives.
• His goal – as was clearly stated in the passage Steve read to us – is that ultimately everything in the heavens and on earth will be reconciled to Him and respond without rebellion or resistance but in loving and joyous and blessed obedience to Him.
7. And you see, that goal isn’t one that will just someday suddenly and unexpectedly become a reality. It comes step-by-step and decision by decision and relationship by relationship as we submit our will to the will of the Head.
8. Jesus Himself, as the Head of the Church, modeled this behavior for us as He submitted his own will to that of the Father and said and did only what was pleasing to the Father. That was the sole focus of His life – to keep His eyes fixed on what His Father was doing and keep His ears tuned to what the Father was saying, His heart beating with the passion of the Father, and His will responsive to that of His Father – to be pleasing only to Him.
• And putting His Father’s will first in His life led Him to lay down His life for you and for me – that is what we are going to celebrate in just a moment as we come to partake of the bread and the cup.
9. And Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, calls on us to follow in Christ’s footsteps by submitting ourselves to one another – husbands and wives, parents and children, employers and employees – always looking out for each other’s well-being - never abusive of one another or seeking to domineer one another – considering the needs of one another above our own – asking before we speak or act – will my words or actions serve to build up or break down? Will they enhance and encourage or demoralize and divide?
10. In the responsive psalm we read at the start of the service – Psalm 133 – David describes what the unity of God’s people is like. He compares it to Aaron the high priest being anointed on his head with oil – symbolic of the Holy Spirit – and that oil flows down his head, his beard, onto the collar of his robe and to every part that is under his head.
• God the Father is right now pouring out the blessing of His life, His presence, His peace, and His power on the head of His Son. That blessing flows to every part of the body that is united, firmly jointed, sharing nourishment and communication with the other members, and in mutual submission under the head.
• If you are already in your place of submission to the Head through your mutual submission to the members around you – then rejoice as the oil of God’s blessing and anointing flows over you.
• If you have never yet submitted yourself to Christ or to the members of His Body and you long to do so, then as we sing our next hymn, bow your head and your heart and reach out to take hold of the hand nearest to you. Your place in the Body has been waiting to be filled.
AMEN.
