TAKE YOUR PLACE IN THE BODY OF CHRIST!

TAKE YOUR PLACE IN THE BODY OF CHRIST!

 

We read in the Bible that those that have received Jesus as their Savior they are the children of God and we belong to the Body of Christ. Christ is the Head on the body. We read in John 15 that Jesus is the true vine, we are the branches and God is the vinedresser. The branches cannot bear fruits by itself. We need to be rooted in Christ and without Him, we cannot bear any fruits.

I do like that the Body of Christ is compared to our physical body. We can read a lot about this I 1.Corinthians 12. In verse 12 we read that the body is one, but has many members. All the members make one body even if they are many. It is the same with the Body of Christ. We are all baptized to be one body. It doesn’t make any difference if we are Jews, Greeks, slaves or free. We all received one Spirit to drink of. None of the members can say that they are not important or deny the fact that they belong on the Body. Think about a hand with four fingers. I think that you agree with me that there is something is missing for the hand to be complete. A hand should have five fingers and the different fingers belong together. They are somehow dependent on each other. You can live with only one kidney, but you cannot live without a heart nor a brain. We read in Ephesians 2:20 that we are built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets and Jesus Christ Himself is the cornerstone. In Him the whole building being fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord. Jesus is the head on the Body and the cornerstone of a building. A building is made by many, many different stones. If some stones are missing, the building is most likely less stable. If a building doesn’t have a solid foundation, it might fall apart I there is an earthquake. Here it is said that it should build on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. How many churches are built on this foundation? I know of a church that was built on an apostle, but not on both.

When the temple was supposed to be built in the Old Testament, God gave very detailed order about the material and what colors there should be and who the workers should be.

                                                                                                   God is accurate, creative and a very good builder.

When God created animals, birds, fishes and plants, He made them with a great variety. They have different colors, different looks and they have different languages and abilities, but we are all created in God’s image as man and woman. (Genesis1:27) Just think if everybody should become teachers or doctors, we would become very limited. No, God has created us very differently with different abilities both in the secular world and in the Body of Crist. You can sometimes see that already when a child is very small. What are they playing with and what do they want o be? Some children follow the profession of their parents while others say that they do not want to do the same as their parents.

As Christians we often talk about having a calling. What did God call me to do? I talk to many people wondering what they are called to do. They want to follow the will of God, but they do not know His will. I often ask them then what they want to do since I do not believe that God will ask them to do something they do not want to do. The Bible says that we should recognize the voice of the Sheperd. Why do we not always know the will of God? We might have many reasons for that. Maybe the person is anxious and can’t be still enough to hear the voice of God. Others are surrounded with a lot of different impulses and cannot differentiate what comes from God. If you are running around as a Martha it might be difficult to hear the voice of the Lord. Are you expecting God to come to you in a special way? He might come in a way that we do not expect. Do we understand that it is the Lord then?

Some people are called to work within the kingdom of God. Others are called to work in the secular world and to be a witness there. In India I met quite a few pastors that should not have been a pastor, but they thought that this was a nice way of earning money since they were without a work. I believe that God should call a person to become a pastor, evangelist, Bible teacher, apostle and prophet. I do not believe that we should appoint ourselves. There are many other jobs as well within a church. Some are at home, but others are sent out as missionaries to other places and countries. I am on pension, but work fully for God voluntarily. I am counselling many. I have also been many places to preach. Some people admire those standing on a pulpit more than those working in the kitchen. God doesn’t think like that. A world-known evangelist said that the person leading him to be saved would get the same reward as himself even if he had almost a million in his congregation. They both obeyed their calling with great fruits as a result.

We Christians should be light and salt in the world and we therefore need to choose occupations in the secular world. A Christian teacher might influence a child for the eternity. I have heard such stories. Christian nurses might lead dying people home to Heaven. Christian doctors might save people’s lives. We Christians are needed everywhere in the society and we are supposed to spread a sweet fragrance wherever we go.

There are unfortunately some empty places in the Body of Christ because of the fact that people haven’t found their place.

SEEK THE LORD AND FIND YOUR PLACE!

Mother Else