The Church is the Body of Christ

by Laura Springer, Th.M., Ph.D.

Relevant Scripture: 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; Ephesians 1:15-23; Ephesians 4:1-24

Have you ever been on the threshold, between where you were and where you may be going? When you're at a threshold, it helps to know who God intends you to be.

TFB is at a threshold. This year, Academy has been exploring who God intends his church to be. We have seen that God intends us to be a sanctuary, a family, a people, and a kingdom of priests. This month, we look at the church as Christ's body, in all her unity and diversity.

Unity. The church is one body under one Head, Jesus Christ. We grow in unity by centering our decisions on Jesus and carrying out our work for his glory. Unity is nourished by the shared content of what we believe and teach in pulpit, classroom, patio, and life. It is nourished as we grow in love for God and one another. It is nourished as we hold ourselves and one another accountable to our shared values.

Diversity. The church is many members, each working toward the maturity of the body according to the diverse supply of the Spirit. Diversity is nourished as we respect difference while we fulfill our callings and support the callings of others. It is nourished as we share insights from our earthly communities and endeavors while recognizing and honoring the resulting cultural mosaic. It is nourished as we serve alongside one another in the Spirit, growing the whole body toward Christlikeness.

Unity and diversity. Unity without diversity becomes uniformity; diversity without unity becomes division. We need both unity and diversity. We achieve a critical balance by aligning our various functions, cultures, and perspectives to the one Head, Jesus Christ. We achieve it by valuing difference while worshiping Christ alone. We achieve it by loving God, loving people, and teaching others to do the same, and doing so in ways that are crafted and personalized by our callings and capacities. Together we can work to make TFB a community in which individuals are honored for who they are, a church where we all belong to one another in Christ.

We are on the threshold, and it is a place to be traveled through not taken up as a dwelling. We are in a place of transformation. As each member of Jesus' body at TFB works alongside the others, using their various callings and capacities for the growth of the whole, we will become the church Jesus intends us to be.