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Christ's Spiritual Body |
Dear Brethren,
We have been given
the inestimable blessing of being a part of God’s true Church. We
have grown accustomed to referring to the Church of God as the
Spiritual Body of Christ. What does that mean? What are we to
understand concerning the body of Jesus Christ?
Jesus came in a physical, flesh and blood body (1John 4:2, Romans
9:5). But, how do we get from Christ having a physical body to the
concept of the Church brethren being the spiritual body of Christ?
How did the name, "Church of God," come to be synonymous with the
spiritual body of Christ?
I suppose most
people think, “I have a body, everybody has a body – Jesus Christ
had a body, too… What significance does it have? The spiritual
significance of the Scriptures is always deeper and broader than the
physical meaning. Let’s not let the subtleties of the Scriptures go
over our heads – we have to put all the higher meanings together.
Jesus dwells in those who have received the Holy Spirit. Jesus
said, "He that eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, dwells in me,
and I in him." (John 6:56) The true Church of God is the body
(group) of true believers that God the Father has called to
the spiritual body of Christ.
We see that the
goal of our existence is to come unto the Father, and to be in His
Kingdom. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no
man comes unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6) But to be
able to come to the Father, we must go through Jesus Christ because
He is the only way, He has the only truth, and He is life.
In other words we
must “Put on Christ.” When Christ lives in us through His Spirit,
we begin to put on His ways, His faith, His attitude, His sacrifice,
His character, His mercy - all of His attributes and characteristics
like forgiveness, and love. [not hate towards others] – we must
become just like Him! Every characteristic of Jesus must be in our
minds – replacing all the sinful and wrong thought patterns which
once defined us. That is “Christ in us – the
hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27) Jesus must replace the "old
man of sin," and be in our hearts and minds for us to have eternal
God-life in the resurrection.
"Hereby know we
that we dwell in [Jesus Christ], and He in
us, because He hath given us of His Spirit." (1John
4:13) "Even the Spirit of truth; which the world cannot
receive, because it seeth it not, neither knoweth it: but ye know
it; for it dwelleth with you, and shall be in you."
(John 14:17) Jesus answered, "If a man love me, he will keep my
words: [that means to begin to do absolutely everything that Jesus
taught] and my Father will love him, and we
[Both the Father and Jesus Christ] will come unto him,
and make our abode with him." (John 14:23)
We are the body of
Christ. Paul explains that though we suffer, Jesus lives in
us. “Always bearing about in the body [we carry
in our body] the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life
also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
For we which live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake,
that the life also of Jesus might
be made manifest in our mortal flesh.”
(2Corinthians 4:10-11) Paul is speaking of Jesus living His life in
us so that His life becomes apparent in the way we live – laying
down our lives for each other and sacrificing for others.
We need to ask
ourselves what the will of God is with regard to Christ's
spiritual body? What will be the result if we fail to
become the unified Christian body that God intends us to be? We are
supposed to be integrated into a common bond of fellowship that
knows no bounds! Paul shows that our very salvation depends on our
caring for one another.
“Is Christ
divided?” Absolutely not! (1Corinthians 1:13) The Scriptures
are clear – Christ’s body is supposed to operate as
an integral whole. Each member of the body of Christ has a
responsibility to live according to the rules of the Kingdom of God
– now – at this time. We are not waiting for Jesus to return and
force us to recognize and love one another. If we are not
now behaving, as Christians should, we will not be in the first
resurrection, nor the Kingdom of God.
It could not be
said more clearly. Paul ties our being in the spiritual body of
Christ with our deep spiritual unity with all Church members.
“As we have many members in one body, and all members have not the
same talents: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and
every one members one of another.” (Romans 12:4-5)
We are to put into
practice the way of life that Jesus taught. As individual members
of His body, we are to live as He lived. We are to follow in the
steps of the Master. Who He is, what He is, and what He has
promised to us is of no consequence, if we do not apply it in our
daily lives. What has happened to the Church of God? We have come
to a time when we claim to be aware of other members of the
spiritual body of Christ, but we will have nothing to do with one
another. We are obligated by God, to extend our realm of fellowship
and service to include all who have the earnest of God's Holy
Spirit.
Jesus Christ has
only one spiritual body with many members. They
possess the Spirit of God and they are scattered all over the face
of the earth. “As the body is one, and hath many members, and
all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so
also is Christ. [Christ has only one body of believers
– that is one Church – the Church of God.] For by one Spirit
are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or
Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to
drink into one Spirit. [That is God's Holy Spirit.] For
the body is not one member, but many
[brethren]… But now hath God set the members every one of them in
the body [the spiritual body of Christ],
as it has pleased Him... But now are they many members, yet
but one body [the ONE spiritual body of
Christ]... Now you are the body of Christ, and
members in particular.” (1Corinthians 12:12-14, 18, 20, 27)
We cannot hate,
despise, neglect, or reject any of the saints, as that behavior will
disqualify us from the Kingdom of God. Those who are only
interested in preparing themselves, while neglecting the spiritual
welfare of their brethren, have fallen for the deception of Cain,
who asked in Genesis 4:9, "Am I my brother's keeper?"
Who is my brother?
Who is a member of the spiritual body of Christ? Jesus said that He
would build or construct His own ‘ekklesia,’
assembly or congregation. Today, we find ourselves in a world of
divisive confusion. There are so many groups, organizations,
individuals and churches that claim to represent Christ’s
spiritual body, but they shun others of the very same
background, beliefs and practices.
Jesus is the head
of His Church. And converted Christians are individuals in His
spiritual body. Paul wrote: "[God the Father] has put all
things under [Jesus’] feet, and gave Him to be the head
over all things to the church, which is His body" [the spiritual
body of Christ] (Ephesians 1:22-23) "He that eats and
drinks [the Lord's Passover] unworthily, eats and drinks
damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep."
(1Corinthians 11:29-30)
Jesus Christ has
only one body – thus, He has only one Church. “There is one
body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your
calling… For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ… From whom
the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that
which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in
the measure of every part, makes increase of the body unto
the edifying of itself in love. (Compare Colossians 2:19)
For we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of
His bones. [An obvious reference to the new covenant
marriage] (Ephesians 4:4, 12, 16, 5:30, Genesis 2:23)
"...You are the
temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in
them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and
they shall be my people." (2Corinthians 6:16)
Again, the Bible
reveals that the one spiritual body of Christ is composed of Church
brethren. "[Christ] is the head of the body,
the Church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the
dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence… Who now
rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind
of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake,
which is the church.” (Colossians 1:18, 24)
Jesus prayed for the unity of
the Church just before He died (John 17). He inspired Paul to send
us these words of 1Corinthians 1:10: “Now I beg of you,
brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak
the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that
ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same
judgment.”
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Sermon:
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"Christ's Spiritual Body"
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