Jesus Support Team – Part 9 (Guest Writer: Norm Fadelle)
October 10, 2011
Dear Friends,
Imitating Jesus is how the supporter is transformed and the work is accomplished. The outcome is team integration and solid connection with Jesus. But what does “team integration” mean? What does “solid connection” indicate? These questions are readily answered by constructing a model of how Scripture presents the structure, function, and purpose of Jesus’ support team.
There are a number of Scripture metaphors that illustrate the relationship Jesus has with his disciples as well as the interaction of the team members. Of course, the phrase “support team” is not found in the Bible text, but finding its equivalence is easy. First, there is “ecclesia”, a term indicating an assembled group for a purpose. Second, there is “the one body”, a phrase depicting a corporate, cohesive, collection of people with a common cause. The ecclesia, AKA “the church”, can indicate the local congregation or the entire community of believers. The “church” always refers to people, never a building.
Jesus is the head of the church, his body (Eph 5:23, cf. Col 1:18,24). In a context discussing marriage, the arrangement of Christ and his church-wife is likened to a human head and body. Together, they represent the form of a human being. The head+body are connected as one, physically, functionally and purposefully. God created man (male and female) in his own image and likeness, and purposed them to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it (Gen 1:26-28). Using the natural as a basis for the spiritual, Jesus is “one” with his support team and they are “one” with him (cf. Jn 17:21-23). They are united, integrated and seen as a single, living dynamic, as the following passage teaches:
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body- Jews or Greeks, slaves or free-and all were made to drink of one Spirit. But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. (1Cor 12:12-13, 18-20, 24-27)
As each body part counts, so does the individual member of the ecclesia. As when any body part hurts and causes the whole body to hurt, so is the ecclesia impacted by a hurting member. As the multi-part human body is one entity, so the multi-faceted members make up the one body of Christ. Christ dwells in the individual believer (cf. Eph 3: 17, Jn 14:23) and is also seen in the interaction between disciples (cf. Jn 13:15).
Here are some implications/applications of these many parts, yet one body verses:
- all members are equally under the headship of Christ, i.e., there is no hierarchy in the church body; the head+body structure means that Jesus is the sole person at the top, and everyone else reports directly to him; no member needs to go through another member to get access to Jesus
- every member in good standing has a say and a part in the teaching position and spiritual well-being of the ecclesia.
- each member is expected to spiritually grow alongside and among other believers
- unless asked for input, it is not the job of one believer to tell another believer how he/she is to serve or represent Jesus
- when self-discipline or conflict resolution between individuals fails, an ecclesia must discipline itself by holding its members accountable to the truth and ways revealed by God in Scripture
- in a clash of priorities, Bible-based loyalty to Christ must always come before man-based alignment with other believers
- support roles are distinct, yet all are of value and invariably overlap and reinforce each other (cf. there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit – 1Cor 12:4)
Roles are to be performed using God-given gifts for the benefit of the ecclesia, i.e., Christ’s brethren. This is the model described by the apostle Paul:
And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. (Eph 4:11-16)
Spiritual growth of the one body to be into Christ, in every way, is the goal. All members [regardless of gender, race, age, position, power, church name] are to be individually and collectively united with Jesus (cf. 1Jn 1:3). How does that happen? By interacting in love with each other. That’s how the support team helps Jesus: help each other to be joined and held together and ensure that each part is working properly. The human body keeps itself together by using all its parts and systems and letting them do their job. Therefore, the church body of Christ is to utilize all its members and let them participate in the common cause to serve Christ.
At the behest of the ecclesia, serving brethren take on tasks of accountability and responsibility, not positions of authority and power; they are to lead by example, not by dictating. The qualifications for the overseer and deacon roles are listed in 1Tim 3:1-13. Some argue that we should not expect overseers or elders to have all of these qualifications. Why? Perhaps our situation today is different from that of the 1st century. Really? Surely human nature in the 1st century is the same as today. Were the temptations in the Corinthian church not common to man? If the Ephesian church was expected to live up to tough apostolic standards, so is today’s church. Don’t have the qualifications? Get trained! Change your status. Find a mentor. As a short-term goal, the serving team could be selected with the idea of having all requisite Scripture qualifications reflected in its makeup.
Jesus is both the benchmark and beneficiary. He is both the measure of evaluation and the means of accomplishment. In building up the body of Christ, Jesus is inseparable from the process and the product. Jesus is one with his support team.
Have a great week!
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