Deepening Your Christian Life XVIII - Wednesday's Reading on Thursday (lol!)

I Corinthians 12:12-30

Paul is a master of metaphor and here we have him at his finest as he describes the Church as "the body of Christ." There are other metaphors -living stones as God's living building with Jesus as the cornerstone. When we think of "church," we tend to think in terms of a building, but the body image is one in which there is something alive and functional, requiring coordination and cooperation.

The problem here is that we tend to want to try and make everybody look, think and act like us. Diversity is a popular buzzword, but the truth is that our natural inclination is still to be "birds of a feather that flock together." And it's much easier to talk diversity than to live it. From a ministry perspective, it takes the whole body to be the church, not only to be in full ministry to each other but also to be in full ministry to the world. Laughingly, I can picture the absurdity of Paul's language as "The Eyes Have It" Church, or the "Only the Nose Knows" Church. Denominations and churches still fall into the trap of thinking they are the total package of God's truth.

Speaking of being the "total package," isn't that what we all try to be - and then compete against each other to see who is the best total package? The only problem is that the total package is a myth. It's something we create. The total package is who we become in relationship with other Christians in Christ. We are wonderfully made (Psalm 139) and intentionally created to need others to be whole and have the greatest impact we can have in our world. Instead of trying to be the total package or fake people into thinking we are one, we are best when we are our very best selves in relationship with others. Paul talks about rejoicing in his weaknesses, for it is in them we learn the strength of Christ and the greatness of one another. So which part or parts of the body might you be and who do you need most to be part of your life so that you can be whole and more useful for God's purposes?

I Corinthians 13

Some of you could quote this by memory. We have made love into an emotion, and it is, to a small degree. But love is more a disposition, a posture we take toward others - a way of acting, speaking and being. We can love when we don't like, and we can love when we don't feel it. This passage is such good poetry that we may not see it's radical and idealistic character. It is a standard to which we strive, but never quite get there. So shall we give up? As a United Methodist pastor, at ordination, I was asked, "Will you be made perfect in love in this life?" The expected answer is a confident "yes." I must admit that I stuttered and still do. I cannot even picture being perfectly loving, totally free from selfishness and sin. But God can picture it and he can accomplish it. And even though we continually fall short of it, the ideal still pulls us forward (if we're open).

I have discovered that ideals that pull us forward, like love, hope, trust, integrity, honesty, joy and goodness, are absolutely crucial. Otherwise, we just sink to the lowest common denominator. And as we stretch to these ideals, we find ourselves dealing with that which is more than ourselves and something that lasts...even forever. If you haven't memorized this chapter of scripture, I invite you to do so and keep repeating it until it starts pulling you forward. But watch out...it is a radical and counter-cultural way to live.