|
 Bro.
Turner:
Please
comment on the church as the “body” of Christ. Is the local
church “the body of Christ in the community in which it is
located?” SL
Reply:
Different
applications are made of the church as the “body” of Christ.
In Eph. 1:22-23 “the exceeding greatness of His power to
usward who believe” is being shown; (vs. 19) and I believe His
headship over all believers is being affirmed (“things”
has been supplied) so that all believers are likened unto a
" body” with Christ as the head. “Believers” being
faithful ones, or Christians; the passage says all saints
(universal church) make up this body. The same idea is found in
Eph. 5:23 where “Christ is the head of the church: and He is
the Saviour of the body.” (universal)
Jew
and Gentile are reconciled unto God “in one body” (2:16)
which is likened unto God’s building, household, etc., (2:19
-f) referring to the universal church. The “one body” of 4:4
is universal, and I believe 4:12 and 4:16 also use “body”
with reference to the universal church. The benefits under
consideration (being perfected, edified, etc.) are realized by
the units of the universal church, the individual saints
considered severally rather than collectively. Christ, the “head,”
has only one “body’.’
In
1 Cor. 12: the physical "body” is used as an example of
coordination of parts in a whole. “For as the (physical) body
is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one
(physical) body, being
|
|
many, are one (unified) body: so also
is (the universal body of) Christ. For by one Spirit are we all
baptized into one (universal) body (of Christ).. .“ (my
comments in parenthesis; rt) The head is a member of this “body”
(vs.21) so that it is the unity and coordination of a complete
physical body that is being used to impress the need for such
among the saints which make up the one universal body of Christ.
Paul
is not teaching collective action of the universal church, but
in the same vein that Peter says, “Love the brotherhood.” (1
Pet. 2:17) Paul says, “there should be no schism in the body;
and urges this on the basis of our need, appreciation, sympathy
and empathy for one another. To be sure, such unity would have
its effect upon saints at Corinth, and would correct the
particular problem in the local church which. was under
consideration; but I do not believe 1 Cor. 1.2: justifies
calling a local church “a” or “the” body of Christ.”
Ditto,
for Rom. 12:4-5; Col. 2:19.
A
local church consists of a group or “body" of saints.
Overseers imply over seen — “the flock. . . among you” —
and those who make up such a unit may be called “members” of
that unit. But there is a vast jump between “a body (group) of
saints” and “the body of Christ.” I believe we
unnecessarily complicate the language and figures of the New
Testament when we speak of a local church as “the body” or
“the kingdom” of Christ, or “the family of God.” It
seems to me these figures refer to the universal church.
[Previous
Article] [Next
Article]
|
