[Deeply Rooted] Community Is KeySample

Building Up One Another

Strokes are terrible events that can cause real damage to the brain and other functions of the body. It’s important that a stroke is treated quickly to minimize any potential damage, so doctors teach patients to look out for stroke symptoms so they can get help as soon as possible.

What’s interesting is how broadly these symptoms show themselves in a person’s body. There are symptoms that are seen in the eyes, on the face, and in the arms and legs. Of course, basic anatomy and physiology will tell you that the brain is a central organ of the body, so this makes sense. The multiplicity of symptoms also helps us clearly see the connectedness of the human body. When something is happening in the brain, you see it and feel it in the leg.

As part of the body of Christ, we are as connected as the parts of the human body are. What do we mean by the body of Christ? Wasn’t He resurrected in His body and then taken to heaven after the ascension? The answer to that is, “Absolutely, yes.” Christ’s physical body was resurrected, and He did ascend. But before He left, Christ commanded His disciples to go into the world and make disciples. Thus, the gospel has gone out and made believers in Jesus of men and women across the world. The Bible calls this collective of Christian believers the body of Christ. And that collective includes Christians today, across the world, and across time. We are the body of Christ.

The body makes for such an apt illustration of the unity and function of God’s people today. We, together, can be a physical embodiment of the resurrected Jesus—loving, reaching, teaching, and inviting people to be reconciled to God through our witness, just like Jesus did in His physical body when He fulfilled His earthly ministry many years ago. His work continues through His Spirit and His people—His body.

Returning to an earlier point, Christians are connected to each other like organs and members of a physical body. On a physical body, the hand may move independently of the foot. It wouldn’t benefit the hand, or any other part of the body, to use that hand to break a healthy toe on that foot. It would better serve the body for the hand to be used to clean and tend to the toe. As Christians, and members of Christ’s body, we have a vested interest in caring for all parts of the body, and in being cared for by other parts of the body.

If you are struggling today, reach out to another part of the body, and allow them to care for you. We’re all connected, and it’s okay to need each other. It’s part of God’s design for us, and it’s God’s gift to you. Accept it with joy today!

Thought of the Day: I am a part of the body of Christ. As such, I am invited to bring my hurt and my cares to other parts of the body for care, support, and prayer. Thank God for this gift of the body of Christ!