THE BODY OF CHRIST (PART FOUR)
“Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church.” (1 Corinthians 14:12).
“Let
all things be done unto edifying.” (1 Corinthians 14:26).
In
assembling together, the main goal of the Body of Christ is that all members may
receive strength, encouragement, hope, healing, forgiveness, knowledge, and all
other things that will build them up spiritually and equip them to fight the
good fight of faith. Whether it is 2 or
3 people meeting together, or several thousand, it is a time for the Holy
Spirit, Who is the Life-force of the Body, to flow in and through the various members,
anointing first this one, and then that one with something life-giving, so that
all may be edified. The Apostle Paul
wrote, “Let every one of us please his
neighbour for his good to edification.” (Romans 15:2). Can
you imagine what would be possible, and what God could accomplish, in a group
where every soul came together with the sole desire to bless and build up their
fellow believers as the Holy Spirit guided and empowered them? Anything could happen where each member was taught
and encouraged to be obedient to the still, small voice inside. Someone might preach or teach, another might
prophesy, someone else might sing, offer a prayer, or testify; but all would do
so under the direction of the Holy Spirit.
It is then that the hidden needs are revealed and God - not man - is
glorified in His Church. By contrast, we
see assemblies where only the Pastor is free to minister and everyone else just
listens - and they expect him to be done before noon so they can get home, eat
lunch, and watch sports. If the Pastor
is anointed he may reach a few needs, but it is not possible for him (being but
one member of the Body) to perform every function of every other member of the Body. That would be like my eye trying to do the
job of my hand, foot, leg, and arm. It
is very good at being an eye, but it is not designed to do anything but
that!
Many Christians have found enrichment by meeting in
small groups outside of their established churches. They find that the intimacy and openness that
they find meeting in a home is freeing and encourages people to share and grow. They may still enjoy the broad, corporate
worship of their church on Sunday morning, or they may just transition to Body Ministry
altogether and form solid new connections with others who are likeminded. The thing that God desires is to create a
shift in our thinking. We need to quit
seeing “church” as a building, or as a small group of individuals who assemble
together exclusive of all other believers within a community. The Prophet Isaiah said, “Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is My throne, and the earth is My
footstool: where is the house that ye build unto Me? and where is the place of
My rest? For all those things hath Mine
hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will
I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My
word.” (Isaiah 66:1, 2). The Church
of Jesus Christ is His people. In any
given community, it is all of the true believers who abide within that community. “What?
know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you,
which ye have of God…?” (1 Corinthians 6:19; 3:16).
Our greatest opportunity to influence unbelievers happens
outside the church buildings. It is our
family, our co-workers, our barbers, hairdressers, grocery clerks, and bank
tellers whom we see on a regular basis that make up our harvest field, and our
fishing pond. In an independent poll
that asked Christians what the greatest influence was in their conversion, between
75 – 90% said that it was friends or relatives sharing the gospel with them
that brought them to Christ. The people
who comprise our sphere of influence are the ones who are most impacted by our
Christian witness. They have known us
before conversion, and they see us after.
Our lives become the message that gives credibility to our words. I was converted because of the witness of two
men in my life. One was an old friend
who had been born again and wonderfully transformed; and the other was a young
Christian who I worked with over one summer, carefully listening to his words
and watching his life. What they
demonstrated to me was compelling evidence that God was real and that Jesus
Christ saved sinners.
To some, “church” evokes an image of a building
with a steeple, a sanctuary lined with rows of pews or chairs, and a raised
platform on one end with a pulpit and perhaps musical instruments. To others, however, “church” is nothing more
than the people of God who are part of His Body. In the first instance, there can be hundreds
of thousands, even millions of “churches”; but in the second instance, there
can be only one.
In speaking about the power and authority that His
followers would have when they agree together in prayer, Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered
together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew
18:20). When God’s children meet, Jesus
Himself is present to manifest Himself among them through the power of His Holy
Spirit. “Church” therefore can happen anywhere
and with any number of people. No wonder
the early Church would go from “house to
house” sharing the good news of the Kingdom of Heaven. This is where a lot of the real evangelism
was taking place!
The purpose of coming together should NEVER
be to form a new “church.” We humans
tend to think that because we have a better method, a better doctrine, or a
better formula for worship we can have a better outcome than everyone else. We want to slap a label on it and market it
to all the poor souls who don’t have it.
This is precisely why we have so many divisions among us today. The world doesn’t need another “church.” What the world needs is to see Jesus lifted
up in the lives of His people. What the
world needs is to see men and women (yes, and even children) who are living
what they say they believe in a passionate and dynamic way. When the world ceases to see the divisions,
backbiting, gossip, and slanders among Christians, and begins to see the love
and unity among them, then they will know that Jesus is alive and real. “By
this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to
another.” (John 13:35).
In the fourteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians, Paul
presents some very helpful guidelines for how to meet and worship God. The bulk of the chapter deals with the matter
of speaking in unknown tongues. Some of
you may be unfamiliar, or even uneasy, with this subject; but it was a very
common spiritual gift in Paul’s day.
Among other things, it was a way in which the Holy Spirit could
intercede through our spirit at times when we were at a loss to know how to
pray. Tongues were also a sign of
something supernatural to unbelievers (1 Corinthians 14:22). God used this gift on the Day of Pentecost
when the Apostles and other disciples were assembled in the temple and the Holy
Spirit descended upon them from God (Acts 2:1-4). Believers very often received the gift of
tongues when they were baptized in water or had hands laid on them by the
Apostles (Acts 10:44-46; 19:6).
Paul did not have a problem with the practice of
speaking in tongues. He said, “I thank my God, I speak with tongues more
than ye all…” (1 Corinthians 14:18).
What Paul objected to were believers who spoke in tongues in the
assembly without being able to interpret the words that were spoken. Where there is no meaning given to the words,
there is no edification or benefit to the church. Paul said that he who speaks in an unknown
tongue is edifying himself only (v. 4). It would be better to reserve this for one’s
private prayer time unless he has the gift of interpretation, or there is one
present in the assembly who does. Paul’s
conclusion was, “…in the church I had
rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach
others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue.” (1 Corinthians
14:19).
Paul teaches that prophecy is much more valuable in
the assembly than the gift of tongues unless there is interpretation. In that case, it is on an equal footing with
prophecy because the church is edified. The
“Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the
Bible” defines prophecy as “speaking
forth by divine inspiration.” By
this definition prophecy may include anointed preaching, teaching, praise, exhortation,
prayer, or singing. The effect of such
divinely inspired utterance is that the secrets of people’s hearts are revealed and God is glorified (vs. 24, 25).
In verse 26 Paul asks the simple question, “How is it then, brethren?” He has stated what should not be taking place when we
gather together for worship, and now he is prepared to tell us what should be. Just what is
normal practice in the assemblies of God?
He answers his own question immediately by writing, “When ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine,
hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto
edifying.” (v. 26). Every one of you
has an opportunity to be used of God to edify the body at large. Of course, in a very large assembly it would
be impractical for every person to share even a little, although they would
have the freedom to do so. It is then
that the members of the body must learn to be sensitive to the prompting of the
Spirit to know when, and if, they should speak.
Once during a four day camp meeting I waited a couple of days to share a
message that I knew the Lord had put on my heart. I would have shared it
earlier, but there were so many others speaking that I could not find the
opportunity. When I finally did get an
opening, it was just the right moment for it to come out and God got the glory. Paul says, “Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.” (v.
29). Here he offers a rule of thumb - let
two or three speak - not a hard, fast commandment. The intent is that if ten would speak it
would be too much to digest, but if only one speaks it may not be enough to
reach every need. Keep in mind also that
besides what is openly shared in a meeting, there is also a lot going on under
the surface. Different ones are praying
that the speakers speak as the oracles of God, and that their words would reach
the hearts of those that they are intended to touch. Some are interceding silently for those who
are present and unsaved or struggling in their walk. When we consider the Body of Christ, we often
think only of the outward members like the arms and legs, but we forget about
the essential inward members that are not seen, but are critical to the
function of the Body like the heart, the lungs, and the other organs.
“If any thing be revealed to
another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace. For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all
may learn, and all may be comforted. And
the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not the author of confusion, but
of peace, as in all churches of the saints.” (1 Corinthians 14:30-33).
What Paul is teaching here is that we need to be very courteous to one
another when we minister by the Spirit to one another. One person should not monopolize all of the
time during a meeting. One should say
what the Lord has put on his heart and then hold his peace so that someone else
who has a word may speak also. Learning
to be sensitive to the Spirit takes some discernment; and we don’t perfect it
all at once. It comes by loving,
respecting, and honoring one another in the Lord. If one brother is sharing an inspired word,
it would be insensitive for another brother to interrupt him and launch into
another word or teaching. God will not
interrupt Himself! Doing this may indeed
quench the moving of the Spirit in the meeting.
Just because a person has something anointed to say is not an indication
that it is alright to walk on someone else who also has something anointed to
say. This is confusion, and God is not
the author of confusion. The spirits of
the prophets are subject to the prophets. This means that the Spirit of God is
not going to grab you, shake you like a rag doll, and cause you to blurt out
some divine pronouncement. The Holy
Spirit will speak to your spirit, and then it is up to you to look for the
right moment to share what He has placed on your heart. Scripture says that your gift will make room
for you and even bring you before great men (Proverbs 18:16). “Having
then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether
prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, let us wait on our
ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on
exhortation...” (Romans 12:6-8). Waiting
on our ministering is a valuable lesson for every child of God to learn. Paul’s final words in this chapter are, “Let all things be done decently and in
order.” (v. 40).
It is essential that in
any regular assembly of believers there be leadership. As was already stated before, there should
ideally be a plurality of elders in any group whose job it is to take the
oversight of the flock. These should
never lord it over the other sheep, but quietly set an example of godliness for
the believers to follow. They should
always be willing to teach others and to be gentle in their approach to all
men. They need to be solidly grounded in
the Word of God so that they will have an answer for the questions and
situations that arise. They should also
fulfill the qualifications of elders as spelled out in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus
1. Just as a shepherd watches over the
sheep placed in his charge, the elders should be watchful over God’s flock,
looking out for wolves and other dangers.
He should be able to lead them to pastures where they may feed and
streams where they may drink. God’s
shepherds must be willing to abide with the sheep as well, becoming one with
them, so that they will learn to trust him at all times.
I would like to say
something regarding the ministry of women.
Paul makes some bold statements about women being silent in the churches
toward the end of 1 Corinthians 14. What
I believe on the subject is based, not by commandment of the Lord, but by
personal observation and with consideration for our “present distress”.
I believe that God anoints
and uses the women in His Body just as surely as He uses men. Paul writes in Galatians 3:26-28, “…there is neither male nor female: for ye
are all one in Christ Jesus.” There
are only two areas where there appears to be a hard exception to that
statement. The one is where a woman
would usurp the authority of a man, “But
I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be
in silence.” (1 Timothy 2:12). Just
as God has set the man to be the head of his family (1 Corinthians 11:3), he
has also set man to be leaders of the church.
I know that this may rankle many a lady who has witnessed the abdication
of men from their God-given roles. Where
they have left a vacuum, the women have stepped in to fill it. I fully understand this from a practical
standpoint, but it is still contrary to God’s perfect plan, and is therefore
not the ultimate solution. As men get
more serious with God, He will rebuke and chasten them so as to bring them into
line with His plan.
I think for this present
dispensation, we must look to the story of Barak and Deborah in the fourth
chapter of Judges for light. Deborah was
a prophetess and a mother of Israel who spoke the word of the Lord to Barak
concerning the king of Canaan and his army.
Barak was reluctant to go to battle unless Deborah would go with
him. She agreed to do this, but said
that Barak would lose the honor of the victory in the end, and a woman would be
the one to slay the enemy captain.
Similarly, I see that there is many a Deborah and mother of Israel today
who is standing in the gap and being mightily used of God. Women are the heart of the Church. They are often the exhorters, the
intercessors, the helpers, and the discerners of the Body. While the disciples were bickering about who
would be greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, it was a woman who slipped in and
quietly poured precious ointment on the feet of Jesus to anoint Him before His
passion. It was a woman who had the
faith to believe that just a touch from the hem of Jesus’ garment would heal
her completely. It was also a Gentile
woman who begged for just a few crumbs from the Master’s table and caused the
Lord to break His own rule.
The second area that I see
where women (and men, too) should take care is speaking needlessly in the
meetings. It is not necessary for us to
speak just to fill a time of silence.
Sometimes we just need to let the meeting “breathe” a little so that God
can speak to individuals who may have something important to share but are a
little timid. Perhaps God is dealing
with someone to confess their faults so that they may be released in the
Spirit. We need to know when to be
silent just as much as we need to know when to speak up.
If you have never
considered it before, I think that you will find it liberating to realize that
you are the Church, the Body of Christ on earth, and the temple of the Holy
Spirit. It may feel like letting go of
the side of the pool the first time you decide to meet together with a few
other believers outside the “security” of the church building, but the Lord will
be right there to guide and instruct you.
Take baby steps and see how it feels.
Invite another Christian couple to dinner and share what the Lord is
doing in your life. Those who are alive
in Christ will be willing and anxious to talk about the Lord. Let it be spontaneous, not packaged, or
planned. Open the Word and share
something the Lord has spoken to you. The
Lord will fill your heart with joy as you learn to hear His voice and follow
His leading.
“The LORD hath done great things for us;
whereof we are glad.” (Psalms 126:3).
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