Most of the time we do not consciously think about how our bodies work—well, that is until something that we take for granted suddenly stops working the way it should—all of a sudden the ways of a healthy body fascinate us. Many of you may have seen the exhibit that was travelling around in the past few years that portrayed all the miniscule functions of our bones, muscles, organs, and skin. Everyone who saw it was blown away by the detail and exquisite genius of how all the ‘parts’ work together to form a perfect whole. Paul, in his writings to the baby Christians in Ephesus and Corinth, is calling them to understand that the body of Christ—the church—works in the same mysterious way as a human body—each part carrying its own load, yet depending on the other parts to function.
Much of the time when we think about growing in Christ, or spiritual formation, we think individually. We ask ourselves if we are becoming the person that God wants us to be. It is good for us to evaluate our own spiritual growth and to provide opportunities for others to grow spiritually, but Paul is calling us to look at the spiritual growth of entire congregations or churches. John Ortberg, Pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian contrasts membership in a church with membership in a fitness center. He says, “If I’m a member of a gym, it may not matter much to me what kind of shape other people are in. I’m interested in my fitness. I don’t have a strong investment in the fitness of other people. In fact, I don’t mind a little flab in the bodies working out around me. It makes me feel better by comparison. I use the fitness center to get my body in shape. The fitness center is a tool for individuals. “ But, he continues, “The church is not a spiritual fitness center. The church is not a tool. The church is a body. It is the body. It is Christ’s body.”
It has always interested me to note that Jesus ministered in community. He was not a hermit, bequeathing an occasional visitation with a pilgrim every now and then. Jesus lived in the very midst of the community to whom he ministered. We don’t have much record of where He slept or how he and His disciples were fed. His friends, his family, his followers were all present with him except on those rare occasions when he withdrew to spend some precious time alone with God. Jesus shows us firsthand that He is indeed present “when two or three are gathered” in His name and it has been so from the time he first called James and John and turned those fishers of fish into fishers of people. And so community began in the crowds who surrounded Jesus as He taught and continued into the
churches” of the first century.
churches” of the first century.
Our scripture passages are taken from two of Paul’s letters—one to the Ephesians, and one to the Corinthians. We do not find Paul exhorting individuals to go off and study and become highly learned individuals to lead the church. No, what we find is Paul exhorting the churches to work it out among themselves, to recognize that when one part of the community suffers we all suffer, and when one is lifted up we are all lifted up. He uses the same metaphor of the Body, the same Body that Jesus refers to in His celebration of what we now know of as communion the night before He submitted His earthly body to great pain and torture. As He raises the bread, he says—this is my body, given for you. Paul and the other early Christian writers continue this “Body-talk” and utilize the metaphor of the church as “the body of Christ” in both mystical and pragmatic ways.
If we, then, continue with the same metaphor, what does it reveal about the blessing we enjoy of being the “body” of Christ here in this place and in this time? Let’s start with breathing—we have just finished celebrating the gift of the Holy Spirit often referred to as the Breath of Life or of God. But how do we know if the Spirit is breathing in our congregation. It is not, as some would suspect dependent on the mood or feeling of our worship services. No, the presence of the Holy Spirit is a particular expression of the Body of Christ is seen in the fruit of the Spirit. Does gentleness and love abound?
John Orteg says this about the energy that comes into a congregation when the Spirit is breathing: “With vitality comes the willingness to try to walk, even if it means falling. How strong is the impulse for new ventures in our church?” How willing are people to take ministry risks? To trust? To forgive? Do we celebrate first steps and fall-downs and getting back up...?”
Circulation is almost as vital as breathing. In fact, without the blood moving the oxygen that you are breathing in, into the tiniest crevices of your body, breathing would not be beneficial at all. When blood fails to circulate properly usually because of a blockage of some sort, the oxygen of the Spirit is stifled and energy ceases to exist in the community.
Muscles are what holds our bones together and makes a body able to work. Muscles do the work of the body. Therefore, muscles are about serving. Great muscle tone is the same indicator of good health in a physical body as willingness to serve others is an indicator of spiritual health in a communal body. Muscles surround the bones and give them the ability to stand or sit tall. Without muscles, we are simply a ‘pile of bones’. Our bones give us the ability to act, to build, to reach, to hold. When we are the body, we will hold, we will touch, we will carry. Just as is true in our physical health, muscles and bones must work together to share what we have experienced and even what we long to experience. We all know that working apart, we cannot lift that beam, a team of 20 people working together lifts it almost effortlessly.
Two senses emerge as especially important—vision and hearing…This metaphor is obvious—do we know where we are going as the Body of Christ? We see who God is, we see what great gifts God has given us and how wonderful God is to us. Vision, different from mission, must precede any planning in the Body of Christ. To begin walking without the vision of God’s goodness and greatness is much like tying a blindfold around your head and trying to navigate through a forest full of brush and undergrowth. Having a mission without experiencing the vision, is a recipe for the emphasis to move from the reign of God’s justice to focus on programs and people, numbers and buildings. When our eyes stay focused on God, and our steps will follow. Not far behind is the importance of hearing—together we hear as a body, and we translate for each other what we hear God saying.
There is a wonderful little book, called Listening Hearts . It was written in the context of the Christian Vocation Project. It is intended for those who think that God might be calling them to work in the church, either as lay or ordained ministers. These four authors, themselves demonstrating the power and energy that comes from working as a group in Jesus’ name, say this about the value of seeking God’s will within an active faith community: “Something happens to us when we consult one another in Christian community. In sharing our thoughts with others, surprising insights often emerge—opening our eyes to what we have not seen and our ears to what we have not heard. This can transform and liberate us beyond our own narrow expectations…Although God calls each of us personally, as individuals we see only partially. Individual perception, reasoning, and understanding are always limited…Because God often reveals part of the picture to one person and another part to another person, it is prudent to consult one another…”
Indeed, Christ calls us together to be His body. Paul reminds us when he reminds the Ephesians: “In Christ the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in our God; in Christ you are being built into this temple, to become a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” As we are being built into this temple, let us welcome and celebrate all the hands, and eyes, and ears, and hearts—all different in experience and perspective—all similar in purpose. Today, we thank God for the blessing of being the Body of Christ. Amen and amen.76
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