There are a number of things that
enable people to receive.
THERE ARE 5 DIFFERENT THINGS THE CHURCH IS REFERRED TO
1. A building: we are living stones joined to worship in the building
or temple
2. An Army: the bible said “Timothy
endured hardness as a good soldier of Christ”
3. The Bride of the Christ: everyone
should love his wife as Christ loved the church. The husband is a cultivator;
he is working to get the best out of his wife.
4. A Farm: The bible said we are
God’s vineyard. There is no such farmer that farms and does not expect a
harvest.
5. A Body: 1 Cor. 12:12 says: For as the body is one, and hath many
members, and all the members of the body, being many, are one body; so also is
Christ. For in one Spirit were we all
baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were
all made to drink of one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but
many. If the foot shall say, Because I am
not the hand, I am not of the body; it is not therefore not of the body. And if the ear shall say, Because I
am not the eye, I am not of the body; it is not therefore not of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where
were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members each
one of them in the body, even as it pleased him. And if they were all one member,
where were the body? But now they are many members, but
one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, I
have no need of thee: or again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much rather, those members of
the body which seem to be more feeble are necessary: and those parts of the body,
which we think to be less honorable, upon these we bestow more abundant honor;
and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness; whereas our comely parts have
no need: but God tempered the body together, giving more abundant honor to that
part which lacked; that there should be no schism in the
body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffereth, all
the members suffer with it; or one member is honored, all the members
rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and
severally members thereof.
Three men were give talents and the
one that has five multiplied it, the one with three also multiplied his and the
one with one said Jesus you are a hard man and you reap where you did not reap
and so, he hid his talent and God said you wicked servant. It was because of
that attitude that he was given one talent at the first place. There are things
that you have which may not be as great as what others have but you will give
account of them at the end of the day. Those parts in your body that are
lacking you may want to give more attention to them so that they will be seen.
FUNCTIONS OF THE BODY OF CHRIST
God puts his signature in creation. In creation you will
see the character of God. Rom 1:17-20 says: For therein is revealed a righteousness of God from faith
unto faith: as it is written, But the righteous shall live by faith. For the wrath of God is revealed from
heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hinder the truth
in unrighteousness; because that which is known of God is
manifest in them; for God manifested it unto them. For the invisible things of him since
the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things
that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; that they may be
without excuse: If you understand
the anatomy of the body, then you will understand how God functions:
LIMITATIONS OF THE BODY
When you join the body of Christ, there are certain
things you cannot longer do. You are not at liberty anymore. All things are
lawful unto me but not all things are expedient. You will get to a point where
you will begin to ask are these things profitable or not. For instance, there
is a certain way you cannot treat your fellow believer for there are
consequences attached to it. Apostle Paul used the title “The Prisoner of the
Lord” even after he was a great lawyer. God has designed the body that there
are certain ways you act. When you act in a way that does not benefit the body,
it affects you. By being part of the body, there are limitations, one of the
limitations is that you must work in love, is a commandment. You must take care
of your brethren before you take care of outsiders. Gal 6:10 says: So then, as we have opportunity, let us work that which
is good toward all men, and especially toward them that are of the household of
the faith.
THERE IS PROTECTION OF THE BODY
The nose keeps you alive and it
filters certain things that would have entered into your body. Think about the
wax in the ear that stops flies and others from entering into your ears. Think
about the functions of the white blood cells, the veins and others, they are
working for you to be in good shape. In the body of Christ, there is
protection. One of the things we are protected from is satan Eph 1:22-23 the
feet of Christ is a part of the body of Christ. Been a part of Christ puts you
above satan. You cannot isolate yourself from the rest believers; God designed
the church as a corporate body. One medium through which protection is given is
spiritual authority, and another medium is the Holy Spirit. We are not designed
to function as individuals but as a body. Heb 10:25 says: not forsaking our own
assembling together, as the custom of some is, but exhorting one another ; and
so much the more, as ye see the day drawing nigh.
SUPPLY OF THE BODY
the body is designed to receive and
give out. The blood that is pumped in the heart spreads round the parts of the
body. There is a give and take in the body. One part gives and takes. You can
stay in a tree as a branch and decay in the tree if you do not give out. You
must give out and if you are not giving, there will come a time when you will
stop receiving. The Dead Sea is a water body that receives but it doesn’t give.
Nothing grows in it, no marine life, no plant, nothing. Everything God designed
is funnels. Eph 4:16 says: from whom all the body fitly framed and knit
together through that which every joint supplieth, according to the working in due
measure of each several part, maketh the increase of the body unto the building
up of itself in love.
