Build Up the Body of Christ

For many years, Saint Paul's writings in Ephesians have made a deep impression on my life, and became the centerpiece of my doctoral thesis. Chapter four is the climax of that epistle, describing the ideal structure and function of the Church, the Body of Christ. Please bear with me as I go over a few points in this chapter: in verses 1-6 St. Paul begs the saints-in-training to "walk worthy of the calling with which they were called," in patience and humility bearing with each other in love, "preserving the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Paul mentions all three Persons of the Trinity: Christ, God the Father and the Holy Spirit, stressing the importance of our faith in the Holy Trinity as the glue that binds us together.

Next, St. Paul mentions the various gifts that Christians have: "But to each one of us was the grace given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Therefore he says, 'When he ascended on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men'" (verses 7-8). Grace is not just a gift, it is the power emanating from God to transform us into the likeness of Christ: this is "the gift of Christ" - God gives us Christ to live in us. Christ, Who "ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things" (v. 10), is the One that God the Father gave "to be head over all things for the Church, which is His body, the fullness of Him Who fills all in all" (ch.1:22-23). How does Christ fill all things? Through the Church, His body! That's us, folks! St. Paul states clearly that the Church is the fullness of Christ Who fills all in all.

So then, how does this "fullness of Christ in the Church" happen? St. Paul goes on to explain:

"He [Christ] gave some to be apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for equipping the saints to do the work of ministering to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a full grown man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (ch. 4:11-13).

Today we have bishops as the successors to the apostles, then prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers... to do what? - To equip the saints (that's us, the rest of the church) to do the work of diakonia-ministering to Build Up of the Body of Christ. Too often the bishops, pastors, priests and deacons think and feel like they have to do all the work in the church, and that the parishoners just give their tithes and offerings to support these "religious professionals." But St. Paul makes very clear here that these leaders are to train and equip the rest of us to do diakonia-ministry, which will result in building up the Body of Christ, the Church, in both quantity and in quality, in numbers as well as in Christ-likeness.

Further, the Apostle Paul tells us what will happen when we start doing this: "speaking truth in love, we will grow up in all things into Him Who is the Head, Christ; from Whom all the Body, being fitted and knit together through that which every joint supplies, according to the working in measure of each individual part, makes the Body increase to the building up of itself in love" (ch. 4:15-16). Every member of the Church, "each individual part," will contribute to the building up of the Church! What a vision and goal for us as Christians!

(Linked to www.Hosken-News.info of 29 Mar. 2015.)