One Body

We live in a world that captures our attention through our senses. Much of this happens between our eyes and the all-pervasive screen in our pockets, or the laptop in our brief case, the desktop in our homes, and the iPad.

In an interview with Ross Douthat from the New York Times, Paul Kingsnorth in his book, Against the Machine:On the Unmaking of Humanity, says that this distraction has rendered the human spiritually impoverished, dealing with a “force” that’s hard to name.

Another book soon to be released by Sam Schuldheisz, entitled Luther and the Lion shows us the importance of Christian catechesis. As Lucy turns the knobs of the wardrobe, Luther turns the knobs of Scripture, opening up the excitement of salvation. Lucy turns the knobs of the wardrobe and walks into a whole new world. Like Mary Poppin’s carpet bag, Lucy discovers that the wardrobe contains extraordinary things.

Martin Luther says these extraordinary things happen to ordinary people. Ordinary water is joined with God’s Word and one becomes clothed with Christ. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Galatians 3:27 By simple water and faith in Jesus one has spiritually been united with Him, taking on His identity and His perfect righteousness as if wearing a spiritual garment.

In the Lord’s Supper Jesus takes the bread and the wine and gives you His body and blood with the full assurance of His grace and forgiveness. This truth about our humanity existed long before screens replaced hymnals and drums and guitars took a place next to the altar, back when altars were where sinners knelt together.

The departure came when Jesus became a product the church offers; pastors become the dispensers of the product. Churches do not build churches and then go about dispensing Christ. It is Jesus Christ whose own body and blood is the church. In Matthew 16:18 Jesus Christ makes this declaration to Peter. “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”

This is one of those verses in the Bible that has been debated over and over. The Roman Catholic perspective is that Peter is the rock, making Peter the visible head and foundation of the invisible church.  Peter’s confession of his faith in Jesus Christ is the rock. You are the  Messiah, the Son of the living God.  Matthew 16:16   

Paul tells us that we are all one body in Christ. You can read his definition of the One Church in 1 Corinthians 12:12-27. Martin Luther saw this clearly in his open letter to The Christian Nobility, which he makes clear in Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12.  Christians are the one visible body of Christ. Luther makes it clear that there is no spiritual class of Christians.  Christ is the head, all are members one of another. Each one uses his/her gifts to the glory of God.. This happens when Pastors preach, parents teach their children, members visit and encourage one another, This only happens when the one  body is not made up of different kinds of Christians. They are all members of one body.

The church is not renewed when one pastor leaves and another comes along. The church is one body of Christ; when the weary are strengthened, the grieving are consoled. 

The church is thus the visible presence of Christ through every member who acts as His physical “body” on earth.

In the Incarnation: God manifested Himself physically in the world through Jesus Christ. The church continues this by making spiritual realities physically observable through its people.

Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:1

While the “invisible church” consists of true believers known only to God, the visible churchis the observable, flesh-and-blood community that meets, worships, and lives out the will of God together.