Effective Members in the Body of Christ
CHURCH ARTICLE | Josh Welch | Columbus, Ohio
It was about eleven years ago when I stood up after a quick lunch with my wife and youngest infant daughter and felt a sharp pain in my side. It was like nothing I had ever felt before. I reached to pick up my daughter out of her seat to carry her to the car. It hurt to pick her up. I said to my wife, “Something doesn’t feel right.” I went to the doctor and they ran some tests. Later that night I was being carted into surgery to have my appendix removed. I have not really missed that appendix. I assume it had a purpose. Yet, not enough to be missed. However, it certainly made its presence felt when something went wrong with it. How many church members might be described as an appendix? They are there and we suppose they are doing something. You might even hear them stir up a fuss. Yet, truth be told, if they disappeared from the assembly their absence may hardly even be noticed.
Now, some church members may be like the appendix. Others are a lot like the heart. You cannot live without a heart. It pumps blood and gives life to the whole body; it is a vital organ. If it were gone, well, then you would be too. We need it. We value it. We can see the good it does throughout the body. Yet, the heart is only valuable working in conjunction with all the other body parts too. As you consider yourself in the local body of Christ, what kind of member are you? Are you more like the appendix or are you more like the heart? Are you a member without a clear purpose or are you a member who is vital to the work of the local church?
The apostle Paul often used the vivid illustration of the church as a body and Christians as its body parts. To the Romans he wrote, “we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another” (Romans 12:5). To the Corinthians he wrote, “Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually” (1 Corinthians 12:27). To Ephesus he wrote, “And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all” (Ephesians 1:22-23). Consider a few lessons we might learn if we will be effective members within the body of Christ.
Members must work. When any body part is not working, it affects the whole body. A leg is somewhat useless for walking if a person is paralyzed from the waist down and it does not work. A person whose arteries are clogged will soon need a quick fix or a fatality may be on the horizon. When our memories begin to fail and deteriorate it can be ruinous to everyday tasks. Yet, when all of these body parts are working at full capacity, we find ourselves in the prime of our life. It is the same in the body of Christ. When every member is working, we will be better for it. When members quit functioning, the local church starts dying instead of thriving. It does not matter how experienced, talented and gifted a church might be if it does not put those abilities to work. We need to understand this basic fact. No sowing results in no reaping (2 Corinthians 9:6).
The church is not a body part. We are a whole body. No one is so gifted and talented so that they can do everything the church needs by themselves. Even Moses needed to appoint helpers (Exodus 18). Even Jesus needed to put His disciples to work (Luke 10). If they depended upon others to accomplish their purpose, we must not think of ourselves as so high and mighty we can just do it alone. On the other hand, we are not so insignificant that we are unimportant. Every person is significant in the church. We need each other for maximum effectiveness. Paul wrote, “…to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith” (Romans 12:3). Underscore the phrase “each one” in your Bible because it refers to you and your unique work in the body of Christ!
Appreciate the diversity of roles within the body. Paul wrote, “…we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function” (Romans 12:4). As Paul mentions in the Corinthian letter, “the eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you;’ nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you'” (1 Corinthians 12:21). Paul writes this to a church who was sharply divided over spiritual gifts. Some felt their gift or their office was greater than that of others. He squashed that idea. He asks a series of rhetorical questions in 12:29-30 to indicate not all people have the same role, yet that does not mean they are unimportant. He says, “Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?” (1 Corinthians 12:29-30). The obvious answer to each question is “no.” Yet, each member is important in its work. Paul writes to Ephesus, “He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ … from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:11-12, 16). Note not every member has the same function but “every joint” and “every part” needs to be working in a mature body! May we never be tempted to look down upon an individual because they are not able to serve in the same capacity we do or because they have not achieved the same level of maturity we have. The diversity of roles within the church is a sign of its strength, not its weakness. So, celebrate those who have a different function than you do. Appreciate and value the diversity of abilities each individual member brings to the table in the collective church. Admire the handiwork of the body of Christ!
Serve the Lord in the areas where you will be most productive. Paul goes on to write to the Romans, “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them; if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness” (Romans 12:6-8). Not everybody is fit for every role. In fact, plugging people into the wrong roles can be extremely unproductive. A widower may not be able to serve in the area of hospitality the way an empty-nester couple can. A young, married couple with school bills and infants in the home may not have the same means to “give, with liberality” as an older, retired couple with a nice pension and paid-off house. A novice Christian may get overwhelmed when thrown into a role of leadership because his inexperience finds him unprepared to handle the challenges therein. The song service may be very unedifying if led by a person who is tone-deaf. Not everybody fits into every role. Yet, like our own bodies, this is what makes the church beautiful. All of the body parts put into their appropriate spots create a powerful and unified whole. We would not ask a finger to do what the nose does. We would not ask the lungs to do what the brain does. Each body part must do what it does best! One of the biggest mistakes we might make in the local church is forcing someone to fit into a role where they are not gifted, well-suited or passionate. God expects us to do the best with the “talents” He gives us as we serve (cf. Matthew 25:14-30). We have all been blessed with different abilities to different degrees and we must serve in the ways where God can maximize our abilities in His kingdom! So, find out where you are best-suited to serve and fill that role and, as Solomon wrote, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might…” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
19.01.01 | GROW magazine
