Body of Christ, Part 1: April 7
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Take a look at this picture that is on the cover of
the bulletin.
First of all we recall what God says in I
Corinthians 12: 27
27 Now
you are the body of Christ, and each
one of you is a part of it.
Jesus is the Head of the Church. He is the source
of life, the source of direction and the source of
strength. There is just one body – and he created,
died for it and leads it.
We are part of the body. Again God says in I Corinthians 12: 4-7:
4 There
are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are different kinds of
service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but the same God works
all of them in all men. 7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the
common good.
So, each one of you is a part of the body. You have your own place, your own role in the body
of Christ. Before we explore that further, I am going to give you about two minutes. On the
blanks provided for you, I want you to put down the top three roles you play in the body of
Christ. Each of us has a part. Write down the top three roles you personally have in the church.
In other words, what are the top three things God wants you to do.
My Role in the Body of Christ
#1; _____________________________
#2: ______________________________
#3: ______________________________
If you are reading this sermon, do not look ahead. Fill in these blanks first.
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Ok, let’s do a little study on this topic. First and foremost, we have to remember what it means
that Jesus is the Head of the Church. As I mentioned: He is the source of life, source of
direction and source of strength.
Jesus is the Head of the Church
Source of Life
The life of the church – our life – derives from Jesus alone. We turn to the book of Ephesians
and hear Paul speak of the power of God. That power was shown in the resurrection of Jesus.
After raising Jesus from the dead, we hear this:
Ephesians 1: 22
God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over
everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in
every way.
22 And
He fills us in every way. He fills us as our Savior which we hear later in Ephesians…
Ephesians 5: 23
Christ is the head of the church, the body, of which he is the Savior.
The “title” Savior speaks to all the work that Jesus did for us. The word “Savior” implies there
was a loss or something is in danger. We were lost. We were alienated from God, not part of the
body and spiritually dead. But, by the sacrifice of Jesus, our Savior, we have been rescued.
This is what we saw once again these past 6-7 weeks. We followed our Savior, the Head of the
Church, as he knelt at that rock in the Garden of Gethsemane and prayed as the sins of the world
began to be laid on him. We watched as he was deserted, betrayed, denied, mocked, abused, and
sentenced unjustly. With sadness, we watched as he was lead out to Calvary and there crucified
on the cross. But at the end, what did we hear him declare: “It is finished!” He paid it all. He
rescued us and then he died. But, it did not end there. In Colossians, we read ….
Colossians 1: 18
he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from
among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.
18 And
He, who was the first to rise from dead – the first and only one who could break the bonds of
death, has now become our head. From him we have life – spiritual life – to live the freedom of
his grace and forgiveness. So, let us pray that this Savior—his mind, his word — fills our hearts
every day.
#467
“May the Mind of Christ my Savior”
May the mind of Christ my Savior Live in me from day to day,
By his love and pow'r inspiring All I do or say.
May the Word of God dwell richly In my heart from hour to hour,
So that all may see I triumph Only through his pow'r.
2
As the mind of Christ lives us, Jesus is also our…..
Source of Strength
Continuing to speak to the Body of Christ in the book of Ephesians, we see our strength comes
from the head. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians had spoken of people who are so easily swayed by
false doctrine and false thinking. But not us….
Ephesians 4: 15-16
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is
the Head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every
supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
From Jesus, our Head, we receive the strength to follow him. He further explains this in….
Philippians 2: 12-13
12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence,
but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and
trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good
purpose.
When he speaks of working our salvation, he is not talking about earning salvation. No Jesus
has done all that. He is speaking of how we grow in our faith. Even as we grow, it is God who
works in us – his love and mercy gives us the strength to be the body of Christ. So, again, let us
pray that God’s word — and along with that his peace and love — would fill us….
#467
“May the Mind of Christ my Savior”
May the peace of God my Father Rule my life in ev'rything,
That I may be calm to comfort Sick and sorrowing.
May the love of Jesus fill me As the waters fill the sea,
Him exalting, self abasing - This is victory!
With the love of Jesus filling us, he also gives us our ….
Source of Direction
As Paul continues to talk about Jesus as the Head of the Church in Colossians, he speaks about
men who turn away from the truth. They are following teachings and lives different than what
God intended. Of such a person, Paul says:
Colossians 2: 19
19 He has 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.
He has lost connection. To lose connection with Christ is to lose both life and direction. But
this passage reminds us that those who are in the body, are supported and held together and – yes
– we grow. Growing implies direction. We grow up in Jesus. He leads us along the paths that
are best for us.
3
Since we are part of the body, we need Jesus to be our source of life, strength and direction. Let
us pray that Jesus will help us with this as we sing:
#467
“May the Mind of Christ my Savior”
May I run the race before me, Strong and brave to face the foe,
Looking only unto Jesus As I onward go.
May his spirit live within me As I seek the lost to win,
And may they forget the channel, Seeing only him.
As the mind of Christ, our Savior, gives us life, strength and direction, we then grow in our
understanding of our role in the Body of Christ. Now, we come back to those three roles that
you listed. Let’s see what God has to say.
My Role in the Body of Christ
What is your role in the body of Christ? This week, we are going to look at the top three and
continue this topic next week. First of all, we turn to…..
Hebrews 10: 24-25
22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our
hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with
pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is
faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good
deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us
encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
This is one of my favorite passages in the New Testament concerning the teaching of the church.
It begins with this….let us draw near to God. This is worship!
#1; __Worship __
Drawing near to God and giving all glory to him. Brothers and Sisters—God’s number one role
for us in the body of Christ is to worship him—to look up to him and acknowledge that all we
are and all we do, we give glory to him. We seek our life, our strength, our direction in him. It is
in worship that we give ourselves to our Head who has loved us with this everlasting love.
Surely, with the hymnist, when we understand what Jesus has done for us, when we realize over
the past 6-7 weeks even more his love, do we also not want to sing:
#469: “Take My Life And Let It Be”
Take my life and let it be Consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days; Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
Take my hands and let them move At the impulse of thy love.
Take my feet and let them be Swift and beautiful for thee.
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Now, look a little more closely at these words. First says: Let us hold unswervingly….. Let us
hold tight to our faith in Jesus. We do this as we worship. Then he says: Let us consider how
we may spur one another….. Let us not give up meeting together…. let us encourage one
another.
So, here are the next two roles —#2: __Worship Together_____________
#3: __Encourage Each Other_________
Right here—right now. What you are doing right now is where it begins. Remember that we
heard of the man who was disconnected from the Head—from Jesus? That happens when God’s
children are not here—in his house. It is here that we receive the heavenly food—the Gospel in
the Word and Sacrament. It is here that we receive life, strength and direction for the head, that
is Jesus.
Brothers and Sisters—and remember that is what you are — part of the body—the family of
believers, this is your role—to worship — to worship together and so encourage one another.
As a pastor, there are times I see people wandering. And sometimes, I feel like a man in the
water trying to grab onto a boat. But when a boat is not connected to dock, as one grabs for it, it
seems to glide away. When people are not connected to Jesus, there is wandering that takes
place. So, we need to stay connected to Jesus and this happens as we “draw near” to Jesus — as
we worship our Head. This happens right here, right now—in this place.
So, now, we come back to what you have written on those lines. Is this what you had? I would
suspect that many of you might have had certain tasks or duties that you perform. That is OK
and we will get to that in a moment. But, above all, remember, these are three roles:
1. To Worship
2. To Worship Together
3. And to Encourage Each Other.
Brothers and Sisters, we all have had times in our physical body, when something is hurt or
injured. A broken arm, for example, affects the whole part. So, if you do not fulfill your role,
you are hurting the whole body. I say that to you, not to fill you with guilt, but rather to remind
you of how valuable and precious you are in God’s sight. He died to make you part of his
body—your own special part and take up your own particular role.
Knowing this, we ask our Savior to take our voice, our love, yes our whole lives and use it for
His eternal purpose.
#469: “Take My Life And Let It Be”
Take my voice and let me sing Always, only for my King.
Take my lips and let them be Filled with messages from thee.
Take my love, my Lord, I pour At thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be Ever, only, all for thee.
5
Once you and I grow in these primary roles of worship and encouraging each other, there are
other roles for us. Starting next week, we are going to look at some of those roles:
What other roles does Jesus have for you in his Body?
We are going to look at roles like…
Teaching
Care giving….Encouraging…..Prayer…..Leadership…
Whatever God places before us, we perform our roles with the encouragement that Peter offers:
I Peter 4: 10-11
one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully
administering God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one
speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God
provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the
glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
10 Each
Brothers and Sisters, pardon me for a few moments to apply these thoughts to some of the issues
before us. In your mailbox is the packet of information concerning our Voter’s Meeting & Open
Forum. These are the items before us:
Election of Officers
Why do we do this? As a group of Christians, we have decided upon a certain structure to our
church so that we may accomplish the mission God has given us. The thing to remember is that
God has given us all the talent and abilities we need. They are in you. In electing certain
officers, we are simply acknowledging and using the different talents God has given us.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Approval of Treasurer’s Reports
Adoption of Constitution Changes
Adoption of Church Budget.
Adoption of Learning Center Budget.
Before us are our annual budgets. Now, I have some personal opinions about our budgets and I
have shared them with the council. You may have personal opinions about our budget and I
encourage you to share them next week. But, right here is not time for personal opinions. What
we do declare is that a budget is simply a guide — a plan that we submit to God as we seek to
use the financial gifts that our Lord has given us. Again, just like with all the other talents and
abilities, we have everything we need in this church to carry out the mission that God gives us.
All of our financial abilities are in you.
6.
Discussion of “Concept for Potential Joint Ministry of Tomahawk and Enterprise”
Our last item we will discuss is the concept for potential ministry with our sister church in
Enterprise. Again, there can be room for a difference of opinion. But the bottom line is this:
whatever we do, we do because we are part of the Body of Christ. We see another part of the
body struggling and so we ask, “What can we do to help?” In other words, “Lord, whether it is
my money or gifts, my mind or my will, let it serve you!”
Take my silver and my gold; Not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use Ev'ry pow'r as thou shalt choose.
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Take my will and make it thine; It shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart - it is thine own; It shall be thy royal throne.
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