A Holy Organism

The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts, and though all its parts are many, they formed one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body – whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free – and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
1 Corinthians 12:12-13

We are a body of believers – a holy organism. We flourish when we make fellowship with one another a priority. A Christian individual isolated from other believers will begin to diminish spiritually. It's the hot coal separated from the others that grows cold. Similarly, God made us to grow in an atmosphere of community – without this “connectedness” our light can quickly grow dim.

Each person in Christ's body has been gifted differently. We have been anointed to minister to one another and to the world. Some of us are called and enabled to encourage. Some are keenly sensitive to the Spirit's voice and serve with the gift of prophecy. This gift like all the others must function under the authority of godly leadership. Others have a compassionate heart and find ways to extend mercy to the least of these. No matter who you are, if you are a believer, you have been gifted by God to minister. The Lord wants us to use our gifts in the context of the local church. He also wants us to reach out to the unsaved using our God-given talents.

God wants us to spend time with those in the body of Christ. He wants us to prefer each other in love. He desires that we use our gifts to minister to one another and to those that don't know Him. We, like the various members of the human body, collectively make up the Church of Jesus Christ – a holy organism called and equipped by God.

Dear Father God,

Thank you for making me a member of the Body of Christ. Help me to develop friendships within the context of the church I attend. Show me how I am spiritually gifted and use me for your glory. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

© Copyright 2010 by Tom Toya. All rights reserved.