Reflect Diversity
Reproduce Spiritually
Respond Cheerfully
Our second reality is Real Christians. There is nothing worse than expecting the real thing only to find you have invested in a cheap imitation. In a church of real people, there will never be flawless performance by every member. Praise God we are not performing! The body of Christ is eclectic and; if healthy, full of various individuals from a diverse backgrounds and various maturity of spiritual growth.
The body of Christ is a living organism not an organization. Therefore the health of Christ’s body is reflected in its members. We believe that the manure of our former life, whether self righteousness or lasciviousness is a key component to the future of our spiritual growth. Once the bands of sin are broke by the blood of Christ, the believer is then free to contrast the blackness of their former life with the bright glow that radiates from their new life in Christ. Every Christian who chooses to walk in the Spirit is a beautiful glowing billboard for the freedom and power of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
We believe there are three things that are apparent in our body if we are trusting Christ to change us from the inside out. The first will body of Christ will reflect diversity. My last article delved into the particulars of that subject, but I believe with all my heart that the healthiest body is a diverse one. This is clearly seen in the context of 1 Corinthians 12:14-27. God has challenged his children to cross boundaries since the birth of the church. Initially Jewish believers had to learn to reach out to gentile believers, Gentile believers had to cross racial and ethnic barriers to reach out to people beyond their comfort zone. Whether cultural or physical, God healthy believers will intuitively reach out to people other than themselves. While this is not a natural response, it is a supernatural response of believers who understand the heart of their Lord.
We who constitute the body of Christ have a responsibility to walk across the foyer and greet a guest who we do not know and who may not even come from the same racial, ethnic or social background that you we come from. It brings my heart joy on Sunday mornings when I see the diverse mix of people that God is adding to his body to accomplish his mission.
Secondly a healthy body will reproduce spiritually. It is one thing to make babies, and it’s an entirely different thing to raise them. While I believe one of the most obvious evidences of biblical discipleship is intuitive evangelism, we must not be content only with salvation. You may ask, what is more important than leading someone to Christ? Nothing is more important for the soul that is saved, but as believers we must care for the fruit God gives us. Christ has not equipped us to simply bear children but raise them too. While this may seem like a simple concept yet it has been neglected in many of the largest churches of our day.
Discipleship is not a series of lessons but a commitment to learn who it is Christ saved you to be so you can be the person he needs you to be so you will do the things he needs you to do for His glory. It’s all about equipping the saints of God (the fruit of evangelism) in the Word of God to accomplish the mission of God in the power of God. We must continuously strive to make sure that we not only bear fruit but that it remains through the supernatural maturation process the bible defines as discipleship.
The third thing that resonates with the Father is when his children respond cheerfully to the needs of others. While the bible teaches that our heart will follow the investment of our financial resources (Matthew 6:21, Luke 12:34), it is clear that the nature of God is that of a benevolent giving Father. Rather it’s meeting the spiritual need of another with the word of God, or taking time to invest in the physical need of others it is clear that God is very interested in our attitude along with our obedience. Giving back to God cheerfully (2 Corinthians 9:7) is the evidence of a grounded and grateful heart. This will not only be noticed in heaven, but shines brightly against the backdrop of a covetous and self absorbed culture (both Christian and secular).
While Christian and churches will never be perfect in their function, we are perfect in our position before the Father because of Christ. It is my prayer that we do not resign ourselves to the “normal” or “average” Christian life, but go far beyond in our relationship with Christ. As we agree to give our all for the one who gave us all there is not doubt God will be glorified and the light of Christ will shine brightly to those who are lost.