We are the Body of Christ
The human blood clotting system is an amazing thing. It is essentially a complex precisely designed micro biological machine and it activates within seconds of an injury (like a cut or puncture) that damages the lining of a blood vessel. Without this system, any damage to the lining of one or more of our blood vessels would lead to uncontrolled bleeding and death. Despite the fact that this part of our body is small – not visible to the human eye and therefore never observed by the unaided human eye – this imperceptibly small part of our body is essential for the rest of our body to live. If it was removed, we wouldn’t notice it but we would ultimately notice the tragic consequences of its removal. We tend to attach great significance to what is seen and we tend to find our significance in being seen, but the human body is a great example of how every part of a complete system is important and the most indispensable parts are often the ones that garner the least attention. I think this is why Paul loves using the human body as an example of what the church truly is by God’s design. I think this is also why Paul loves to refer to the church as the body of Christ, probably for several reasons, but at least for the reason that a spiritually healthy church functions much like a healthy human body. As human beings, we were created in His image, after His likeness so our bodies are what they are, not by our choice, but by His design. I believe Paul’s main message to the church at Corinth in this Sunday’s passage is that the church – the body of Christ – is what it is, not by our choice, but by His design. So, for any faithful local church, this Sunday’s text is very important to understand. Just as we can abuse our bodies because we fail to understand how to properly take care of and use them according to God’s designed purposes, so too a church can abuse the body of Christ by not caring for it and not using it according to God’s designed purposes.
We invite you to come join us this Sunday morning for our in-person worship service at Leptondale Bible Church in Newburgh, starting at 10:55 AM. For those unable to attend, our service can be viewed live on the church’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/leptondalebiblechurch. This Sunday, we’ll continue a sermon series from 1st Corinthians titled “Written for Our Instruction” with a message from 1st Corinthians 12:12-26 titled “We are the body of Christ.”
God bless!
Pastor Mike