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The Body of Christ
Ephesians 1:18-23
Will White, the
owner of Agape Christian Bookstore, and I had the opportunity to spend
some time together last week. They have recently moved to a new location
and in the process they purchased the remaining inventory of Higher
Praise Christian Bookstore.
Will said that there were older books that were out of date and I could
have any that I wanted, so I dove right into the boxes of old books. I
was astonished by the number of church growth books that were written
just a few years ago are already considered out of date. Listen to the
titles of a few of the hottest church growth books from the first part
of this decade that are now considered worthless.
A Step by Step Guide to Church Marketing, George Barna, a respected
pollster and marketing researcher. The secret to growing the church is
marketing savvy.
Baby Boom Believers, Mike Bellah. Sociological studies of the Baby
Boomers have something to contribute to church growth.
The Synergy Church, Michael Mack. Synergy was a really hot buzz word a
few years ago in business circles.
The Coming Church Revolution, Carl George. Fascination with the future
that has been popular since the early 90' s. Futurism applied to church
growth.
My two favorite titles were: SoulTsunamai and AquaChurch, by Leonard
Sweet. At first I thought these would be pretty good books on baptism.
But instead I found some principles of the new economy applied to church
growth, but the new economy has tanked and everyone is returning to the
old one.
Now all of these books have something positive to contribute to a
conversation about being and growing the church. They all refer
generously to Scripture, citing passage after passage to prove their
points. Churches which diligently apply these principles will experience
some growth.
But they all remind me of a saying I’ll give credit to my paw for: when
all you've got is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
In other words, marketing guys think marketing is the secret to church
growth. Sociologists think demographic studies are the answer. Business
leaders think their principles will make churches grow. Tech-geeks think
technology is the answer.
In reality when it comes to church growth we're all a little like the
blind men who encountered an elephant. Do you remember that fable? One
man felt the elephant's trunk and said, "I think the elephant is very
much like a snake." One felt the elephant's leg and said, "No, the
elephant is very much like a tree." Another ran into the side of the
animal and said, "It is clear to me that elephant is very much like a
wall."
If we're going to get an accurate description of the church, we're going
to have to get a larger perspective. So turn in your Bibles with me to
Ephesians 1: 18 - 23.
Paul, the original theologian of the church; uses a metaphor to describe
what the church is like and how it grows. In doing so, he pays the
church the highest compliment it will ever receive. Let's listen
together.
Read Ephesians 1: 18 – 23
There it is, right at the end. The church is the body of Christ, which
is an astonishingly flexible metaphor. In the Bible the church is
compared to a vineyard, to a lamp stand, to a building, and I believe
that all of those are useful metaphors.
But vineyards don't do much for people living in cotton, and tomato
country. Lamp stands might have worked when this church was up the hill
at Scufflegrit, and buildings are nice metaphor but the risk of equating
brick and mortar with a spiritual reality is a little tough.
The image of a body is something we can all relate to. And it helps to
put some of those other approaches to being the church in perspective.
The church is not a product that you can market. Paying for a million
dollar ad during the Super Bowl might be impressive, but it wouldn't be
effective.
Sin isn't limited to any particular group of people, so while
sociological studies are interesting they are not going to be an awful
lot of help.
The church isn't a business, regardless of how it is run, so business
principals will have limited success.
And technology is a useful tool, but the church isn't a website. Just
because you are technologically advanced doesn’t mean that you will see
growth.
The inspired writer says that the church is a body; specifically it is
the body of Christ. And that has two very powerful, very far-reaching
implications. I want to explore those with you this morning.
Here's the first one: Being the body of Christ requires that we maintain
a relentless focus on Christ.
I want you to mentally go to the shelf or the table or the bookcase
where you keep your family albums. There yet? Open one of the albums.
What do you see?
Pictures of loved ones, right? Be more specific. What parts of the body
did the camera focus on when the pictures were taken?
Does your album contain picture after picture of people's hands? Do you
have an album full of foot pictures?
No, we always take shots of the head. Why? Because that's the primary
location for a person's physical identity. We may have struggles with
names but we usually do pretty good at remembering faces.
At Sunset Nursing home I always run into the Randolph’s on my way to see
George. Every time we meet I reintroduce myself to Mr. Randolph. And he
always says “I remember your face but I forgot your name.”
The Bible knows how important faces are.
Psalms 105:4 Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence (or Face)
continually!
2 Corinthians 4:6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”
has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory
of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
The head is important because it is the primary location of identity,
but not just because it's a good place to hang a face. The head is the
seat for all decisions. Have you realized that four out of our five
senses are clustered on the head? Vision, hearing, smell, taste. And
were it not for that marvelous, complex computer we call the brain, it
wouldn't matter how many nerve endings in your fingers were sending the
signal that the iron is too hot to touch. There would be no central
processing system to decode and interpret those messages. So in a way,
touch, too, is centered in the head.
Every movement of the body, from the involuntary blinking of an eye to
an athlete's spectacular diving catch in center field, is first imagined
in the brain. Every word spoken is chosen there. Every emotion we feel
is first fired in the brain.
So when we say that Christ is the head of the church, we are saying that
he is our identity and that he is our authority. Let’s go a little
deeper here for a minute.
The fact that we worship by using the oldest form of music known to
humanity, A Cappella singing, is not the true mark of our identity. It
clearly sets us apart from most other churches, but it isn't who we are.
The fact that we perform baptism by immersion for the remission of sins
is certainly important, but it isn't what identifies us.
The fact that we are autonomous, meaning we have no denominational
headquarters, we are governed by a group of volunteer leaders called
elders, and served by deacons is different from almost every other
religious group out there but once again it is not what identifies us.
Neither is the fact that we observe communion every week, we fund our
ministries exclusively through free-will offerings, we are theologically
conservative, and biblically fundamental. You see none of these reasons
make us the church of Christ.
In fact, if all those things were true about us, and we did not maintain
a relentless focus on Jesus, we would not be the Church of Christ. We
would be the church of A Cappella singing or the church of immersion or
the church of whatever takes the place of our true source of identity.
That's why I prefer the church growth books that call us to focus on
Christ. If we do everything all the other books tell us to do and
through savvy marketing, careful demographic studies, and brilliantly
applied business strategies, grow a huge, shiny church, yet fail to
maintain our focus on Christ, it won’t matter. Because we won't be the
body of Christ any more. We'll be a grotesque religious monstrosity.
There is a second implication to this idea that the church is the body
of Christ. We maintain a relentless focus on Christ and relationships
are everything.
1 Corinthians 12:25 says that there may be no division in the body, but
that the members may have the same care for one another.
Romans 12:5 says so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and
individually members one of another.
Ephesians 4:16 says: from whom the whole body, joined and held together
by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working
properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
Builds itself up in love. You belong to each other. We should be
concerned about each other. When we remember that the church is the body
of Christ we realize that relationships are everything.
If the church were merely a business we'd have partnerships. If it were
merely an army we'd have duties. If it we were modeled on some
new-fangled technological paradigm, we'd have functions. If the church
was just one more marketing strategy we'd hold positions.
But the church is a body, so we have relationships.
Scattered all through the New Testament there are commandments and
teachings about how we relate to each other. And to be honest I don’t do
as well as I should, and some of you could say that with me.
So for the next several weeks we're going to take a refresher course and
explore some of these passages. They all have one thing -- one phrase --
in common. "One another." They are called the one another passages.
Remember them. When we are told to:
Romans 16: 16 -- Greet one another.
1 Thessalonians 5: 11 -- Encourage one another
Galatians 6:1 - 2 -- Bear one another's burdens
Romans 15: 1 - 7 -- Accept one another
Colossians 3: 15 - 17 -- Admonish (confront) one another
James 5: 13 - 18 -- Confess to one another
James 5: 13 - 18 -- Pray for one another
John 13:34 -- Love one another
That's just the tip of the iceberg; there are dozens of one another
passages.
As we close today I want to say two things about relationships.
First, in regard to church growth; Marketing strategies and business
models and technological paradigms all have something to offer.
The church is an organization. But it is more than that. We are a body.
An organism. God hasn't called us into an abstraction or a theory or a
paradigm. He has called us into a community. There is nothing we can do
that will be more effective than to love each other.
Yes there are churches all around us that are growing by leaps and
bounds, but just because it is working for one church or in one area
doesn’t mean it will work for every church.
If we are truly interested in being the Body of Christ we must fully
commit to the body. And because we are part of the body of Christ our
marriages will last. Our families will function in healthy ways. Our
conflicts will be resolved. Our friendships will be deeper. Our
commitments will be truer.
Secondly, I believe that real church growth can occur if we follow the
Biblical Model.
Quickly I want to read to you some models of Church growth:
Acts 2:41-47 So those who received his word were baptized, and there
were added that day about three thousand souls. And they devoted
themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of
bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders
and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed
were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their
possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any
had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking
bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous
hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord
added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
Acts 4:32-35 Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart
and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him
was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the
apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord
Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person
among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and
brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet,
and it was distributed to each as any had need.
I believe that the precedent that our first century brethren set for us
is the real key to church health, and Body Growth. It is a principal
that can be demonstrated by this toy that I recently found.
Look at this ball. I don't know what you call it but I picked it up at
the toy store and I thought it was pretty cool. You can do all kinds of
things with it. In a very powerful way this toy represents the church.
I'm going to hold my left hand completely still and pull with my right.
Did you see what happened? Even though I only moved one part of the
ball, every other part changed.
That’s the principal. We need to understand that we are all affected by
the things that affect the other parts of this body. Or as Paul writes
in Romans 12:15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who
weep.
We are told that is one part of this church suffers we will all suffer
with it, If one part rejoices we will all rejoice with it. That’s the
Biblical Model.
Church that’s what we have been called to do today. Laugh with the Body
when they’re happy; share tears when they’re down. That is why we take
time out of our worship every week, to offer this invitation.
But we have been conditioned to use this time as a time to confess the
most gross and public sins in our lives. It has only become acceptable
to come forward if you have murdered someone, committed adultery, gotten
pregnant, or been put in jail. And that’s a far cry from what God
inspired the Apostle to write, Laugh with the Body when they’re happy;
share tears when they’re down.
While we were working in Atlanta we actually served a small congregation
on the outskirts of the suburbs. We began to keep a record of the
Baptisms, placing of membership, and responses that occurred and we
noticed something very strange. In 2002 we averaged one response for
every five services. But what we also found is that 70% of those people
did not go to church with us.
You see we all have a God given desire to Laugh with the Body when
they’re happy; share tears when they’re down, but we have made the
invitation something to be ashamed of. So when the desire to have
someone share the load with you gets strong enough it is easier to go to
the church down the road, down the way and offload some of your burden
than it is to share it with the Body you are a part of. That way there
is less gossip, less snickering, less questions to be answered.
I pray that New Hope is not that type of Church. I hope that we fully
understand what is fixing to happen. I dream for a day that we will all
feel enough to laugh with the Body when they’re happy; share tears when
they’re down.
That’s the opportunity afforded to you right now. What in your life is
bringing you joy, do you feel free enough to share that with the Body
today? What in your life is causing you pain, do you feel free enough to
share that with the body today?
What is your need as we stand and sing.
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