ON BEING A MEMBER OF THE BODY OF CHRIST: The guillotine or the cloth?

Bradley A Berkemeier [6/12/2009; revised 11/17/2012] I recently heard a message on 97.9 WGNR in which the speaker described the pattern he uses for his sermons, a pattern he learned in Bible school. According to this pattern, a sermon needs to address three questions, and its listeners should be able to answer these three questions by the end of the sermon. The three questions are What?, So What?, and Now What?. Simple, yet satisfying! This is the pattern Im going to follow this morning. I want to talk to all of you about being a member of the body of Christ. And I want to ask you: As a member of the body of Christ, are you a guillotine or a cloth? The first thing you need to know is that you are a member of the body of Christ. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. I Corinthians 12:27 Paul addressed this declaration, along with everything else, in this particular letter. To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ -I Corinthians 1:2. Guess what? Thats youthats methats any of us here who believe in who Jesus Christ really is. You are a member of the body of Christ. As soon as you realize that, youve just answered the first of those three questions I mentioned earlier (What?) You are a member of the body of Christso what? What does that mean? What does it truly mean to exist as a member of the body of Christ? Well, in the same letter I just quoted a little earlier, Paul says it this way: The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one bodywhether Jews or Greeks, slave or freeand we were all given the one Spirit to drink. -I Corinthians 12:12-13 In terms we can all understand, Paul compares the body of Christ to the physical body of a human. The human body has feet, ears, eyes, hands, a nose, a head, arranged just the way God wants them arranged, each having its own form and function in and of itself, but each also having a form and function related to and connected with other partsor membersof the body. We have feet for walking, but not ears. We have ears for hearing, but not feet. Eyes cannot touch, and hands cannot see. If the nose is absent from the body, the head cannot smell in its place, and if the head is absent from the body, the nose cannot act as the location for the central nervous system in its place. (Imagine the decisions your body would be subject to if your nose was the decision maker! Oh, the places you wouldand would notgo!) And altogether, when each part is performing its function properly, the human body is a powerful machine. In the

same way, the body of Christ has as its members, usand all the other Christians around the world. As membersor partswe are each unique in appearance and ability. Yet we are all connected by Christthe head of the bodyas God meant for us to be united in purpose. Again, Paul puts it this way: There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. -I Corinthians 12:4-7 As a member of the body of Christ, contributing your unique gifts, you are to be united with other members of the body of Christ for the common good. And what is that common good? Well, I may be oversimplifying it, but I dont think Im stretching too far to say that it is, quite simply, love. (This is, in fact, the very next topic Paul addresses in his first letter to the Corinthianssee chapter 13.) Love is the common good Paul means here, and hes not the only one in scripture to make this claim. Lets look in the gospel of John, and well find more evidence of Gods command that we be united in Christ, a unity that cannot exist without love. Jesus says this in John 15: I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. This is to my Fathers glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. As the father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Fathers commands and remain in his love. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. -John 15:5,8-10,12 Can you answer that second question now? So what? Being a member of the body of Christ means being united with other members of the body of Christwith Christ as your brainand with love as your unifying purpose, or common good. Do you believe it? Great! But faith without works is dead, so now what? Its not enough to know that you are a member of the body of Christ, to know what that means, and not be moved to action anymore than its enough for you to get in your car expecting to go somewhere, then just start the engine and not shift out of PARK. How do you live in this world (but not of this world) as a member of the body of Christ? Or, to put it another way, what does Christ look like through you? What does love look like through you? (And Im talking about to other members of the body of Christ, as well as those outside the body.) What do others see when they look at you, as a representative of Christ, as an example of love? Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. -I Corinthians 13:4-8a

Wow! What a wonderfully comprehensivemaybe not exhaustivebut certainly comprehensive definition of love. This is what love isor is notbut what does it look like in action? There is plenty of help answering that question to be found throughout the scriptures. The Psalms and the Proverbs are rich in texts about loving. The gospels are wrought with the commands of Christ about how to love. And Pauls letters are filled with imperatives on how to live a Christ-centered, loving life. And these days, I often hearas Im sure you do, tooone of two arguments about why the Bible is not useful for Christians in this regard. I hear them from Christians looking for an excuse for their sins, and I hear them from non-Christians looking for an excuse for their Christ-less lives. What are the arguments? 1. The Bible is no longer relevant, and 2. There are just too many rules in the Bible. Lets extinguish both those arguments pretty quickly here and now. A few years ago, I was challenged by my Sunday school teacher to study Pauls letters to find imperatives (do this, do that, dont do this, dont do that). I want to read to you just the imperatives from II Corinthians, and, as Im reading, I want you to listen and see how many imperatives you hear that are no longer relevant to us as Christians. By my count, Paul gives 25 imperatives in II Corinthians: (Ive been using I Corinthians thus far, but I used II instead of I here because there are 68 imperatives in Imore than I need to prove my point here!) -Do not be uninformed about Pauls hardships as he spread the gospel. -Understand fully that we can boast of each other in the Lord. -Share joy. -Forgive, comfort, and reaffirm your love for the sinner. -Be reconciled to God. -Do not receive Gods grace in vain. -Open wide your hearts. -Do not be yoked with unbelievers. -Purify yourself. -Make room in your heart (for Pauls message/Gods Word). -Know about Gods grace. -Excel in the grace of giving. -Finish work. -Show church representatives proof of your love and reason for pride. -Sow generously. -Give what you have decided in your heart to give. -Consider that we belong to Christ. -Let him who boasts boast in the Lord. -Forgive. -Examine yourself. -Test yourself. -Aim for perfection. -Listen. -Be of one mind. -Live in peace. Does any of this sound irrelevant to you? Its still as true and relevant today as it was then! Now, there are a lot of rules in the Bible, if you just look at the rules. If you listed them, there would be a lot! This is true. But remember to keep the rules in context. Its the Word of God,

and within the Word, He gives us rulescommandsimperatives as boundaries and guides for our use in our daily walk as Christians. He does this in just the same way our parents give us rulescommandsimperatives as boundaries and guides for our use in growing as human beings. Do parents give children lots of rules? Yes (hopefully!). Is there a point? Yes (hopefully!). The point is that their children grow into responsible adults. Does God give his children lots of rules? Yes! Is there a point? Yes! He wants us to grow from infant believers into mature and fruitful Christians. Now, having extinguished those two empty arguments, you should now understand that the Bible is still relevant, and that all the rules, commands, and imperatives given in the Word of God serve as excellent guidelines to help us learn how to live as members of the body of Christ. I like to boil it all down to this picture of what I look like as a representative of Christ. Am I a guillotine of judgment or a cloth of cleansing? Am I a guillotine of judgment? Do I immediately put everyone I meet on the chopping block, keep them there until they make a mistake, then promptly pass judgment and cut them off from my company forever after theyve erred? Judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in the darkness and will expose the motives of mens hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. -I Corinthians 4:5 Or am I a cloth of cleansing? Do I blanket everyone I meet with the love of God, so that when they make a mistake, Im there to help them repent and be cleansed and reconciled to God? Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. -I Corinthians 6:9,11 Remember, the guillotine involves bloodshedunnecessary bloodshed. The blood that needed to be shed to justify and sanctify ALL of us has already been shedby Christ on the cross. People can easily be turned away from God by the guillotine of judgment, but people can easily be drawn nearer to Christ by the cloth of cleansing. As members of the body of Christ, we are commanded to love each other, and we are called, not to be judgmental guillotines, but heralds of the cleansing power of Christ. Id like to end with a quote from a football coach whos been pretty successful in life, a fellow by the name of Lou Holtz. I found this quote of his a few years back, and Im pretty sure he wasnt talking about being a member of the body of Christ, but I believe youll find that it fits well here: The answers to these questions will determine your success or failure. 1) Can people trust me to do what is right? 2) Am I committed to doing my best? 3) Do I care about other people and show it? If the answers to these questions are yes, there is no way you can fail. -Lou Holtz

Our invitation hymn is Theyll Know We Are Christians By Our Love; its #429 in your hymnal. While youre looking it up, I want to read for you a passage from another one of Pauls letters; this is from Philippians 2: If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to deatheven death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. -Philippians 2:1-11 As Christians, were called to honor the timeless, eternal glory of Jesus Christ. And this means honoring the Christ who was, and is, and is to come. And I think that we usually have no problem honoring the Christ who was and the Christ who is to come. As we just read, the Christ who was humbled himself and became obedient to deatheven death on a cross. And He did that for our eternal salvation. And the Christ who is to come is returning to ensure that every tongue confess that [He] is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. He is the only way to that eternal dwelling with the Father that awaits all who know Him and believe in Him. I do think, though, that we tend to forget, or neglect, the Christ who is. The first part of the passage above tells us what it means to personify the presence of Christ. (Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus) The glory of Christ has roots in the past and will reach fulfillment in the future, but it also exists here and now. My call to you this morning is to remember what Christ has done and look forward with excitement to what He will do, but celebrate His presence here with us now. Your decision can be a glorious part of that celebration! If you are already a card-carrying member of the body of Christ, just in need of confession or re-dedication, come! If you are here to claim your membership in the body of Christ for the first time by accepting Christ as your Savior, come! As we stand and sing Theyll Know We Are Christians By Our Love.