For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body–whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free–and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.... If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
--1 Cor. 12:16, 26-27 (NIV)
There are certain types of disorders where a person's immune system, instead of attacking viruses and bacteria and the like, malfunctions and starts attacking the body's own tissues instead. Some of these disorders can be so severe that they can lead to death if untreated, with the body slowly self-destructing.
In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul goes on at length developing the analogy of the body of Christ to the human body. He makes the point that, as in the human body where each organ, gland and system has a particular function, each of us has a particular role in the body of Christ, whether it's prophecy, administration, pastoring, or something else. If part of the body of Christ gives up and goes home, we fail. If part of the human body gives up, we die (or at least become seriously sick).
But what if we start acting like a renegade immune system in the human body example above? What if we in the body of Christ put on our armor of God every day, but instead of going out and fighting against the real enemy, we get confused start attacking each other? Gossip, dissension, stubbornness, disrespect. There's nothing the enemy would rather see. If we waste our energy and time fighting among ourselves, the enemy has us doing his job for him. He doesn't have to work at doing damage to God's children, we're handling that quite well on our own. And all the time we spend fighting the wrong enemy is time taken away from working for our King.
Tomorrow, when you put on your armor and get ready for a day of battle, spend a moment asking for help from the Spirit to build up the unity of the body of Christ instead of fighting other parts of the body and tearing it down. Pray for protection for the body of Christ.
In His service,
Stephanie
