In 1 Corinthians 12 the Holy Spirit writes through Paul to give us the analogy of believers as a body. "Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it." (1 Cor. 12:27ESV)He goes on to reveal that each member is important for the functioning of the body. It's harder to walk with one leg than two or to peel an orange with one hand. Over forty years I have experienced and witnessed a tremendous amount of failure in believers working together. The worldly method of one person dominating or controlling doesn't bear good fruit in the Kingdom of God. And it's usually the leaders that can't get along and thus provide a good example for others.
So what does it take to work together on a practical basis?
Humility: "Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility towards one another, for God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." (1 Peter 5:5b) This includes giving up our sense of 100% certitude in what we believe we have heard from the Lord.
Mutual Accountability: "But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called today, that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." (Heb. 3:13) Note this it is one another, not one to all of the others. No one should be immune from this.
Communication: This is hard work. It takes patience, perseverance and affirmation. The above represents the briefest introduction to this subject.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment