October 30, 2024
Praying Friends,
If the lights are going to work, a good connection is required in the electrical box. If the engine is going to start, a good connection to the battery is necessary. If the cell phone is going to charge, again, a good connection with the power source is essential.
What is true in all these examples is also true in the human body. If the hand, the foot, or the mouth are going to operate correctly, a good connection with the head is vital.
What is true in the physical is also true in the spiritual. To live in the will of God, move according to His desires, grow in His grace, and mature into His likeness, we will need to be closely connected with our head in heaven, our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul said, “They have lost connection with the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow” (Colossians 2:19 NIV).
The reference to having lost connection with the head is directed at those who were seeking to mislead and beguile the Colossian believers. Their judgmental attitudes, their human requirements, their worldly philosophies, their pressure to conform, and their pride was a clear indication that they were not in fellowship with God.
Warning! Whenever someone tries to enforce their own personal or external demands upon you as necessary for salvation, godliness, or spirituality, be assured they have lost connection with their head. Sometimes intentions are good, but we must never forget our source of growth is found in Christ alone.
So, what does it mean to be in the body of Christ and to be closely connected with Him?
Let’s consider three things:
Firstly, it means you understand that you are a part of something much bigger than yourself.
As believers, we are not isolated islands to ourselves. At the moment of salvation, God placed us in His family, in His Kingdom, and in the body of Christ.
You share the life of God with every other believer on planet earth. How absolutely staggering this truth is! You are linked with them in the biggest movement this world has ever known.
I often remember (as a young teenage believer in a small local church with no other kids my age, and then in a high school with no other known believers) thinking of how small, weak, and insignificant the whole Christian campaign was. I couldn’t have been more wrong. From north to south, east to west, thousands of Christians have membership in the body of Christ.
Secondly, it means that you function with your unique purpose while having respect and appreciation for the input of others.
God has given ability, gift, and talent to every believer, and each one is unique to the person and meant to be a blessing to the whole body. In a physical body, it would be ludicrous to think of the hand operating in conflict with the foot, or the eyes in discord with the ears. Each has a special function and they work together.
In the body of Christ, we have the privilege to work together with others who are found in Christ. There are four listings of the spiritual gifts in the New Testament: 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4, and 1 Peter 4. As you consider these and think about how your heart and desires are directed, God will enable you to be a great blessing to others. As you benefit others, you too will also be the recipient of the gifting of other believers.
Our gifting is not meant to be a competition. It is meant to equip, to build up, and to bring to us all to maturity in Christ (Ephesians 4:11-13).
Lastly, it means you trust the One who supports and holds the body together.
The head is the source. It gives direction and it gives nourishment. It ensures that the body is functioning smoothly and properly. This is what our Lord Jesus Christ does for His body.
While we all have a work to do, and that work can be focused in a particular local church, the actual support and unity of the body is what He does through us. This is why it is so important for each one to be fully surrendered to Him.
As we live in obedience to our head, He will produce growth. May it be so until He returns.
Special thanks to those who are praying for our prodigals and for revival among us.
Love in Christ,
Bryan and Rachel
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