There are people who have expressed, “Give me Christ but not the church.” Now, I understand there are reasons such has been said, one of which is the human aspect of the church; the imperfection among believers. Not all behave or interact as they ought. I, myself, am not always as I ought to be. However, it is not possible to have Christ and not the church because the church is the body of Christ of which He is the Head. (Ephesians 5:23; Colossians 1:18) Whether physically or spiritually speaking, there cannot be one without the other or we would have a bodyless head or a headless body. Also, it should not be thought we could have the body (a church) and decide on someone else to be the head of it; going only the direction of some human authority. Jesus is the Head (the Sovereign Authority) of His church of which we as Christians are His body. Having fellowship with Him means there will be fellowship with one another.
In his letter to the church at Colossae, Paul exhorted. . .
“(18) Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, (19) and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.” (Colossians 2:18-19 ESV)
That is the way it is to be! Due to our humanness, our experiences may not always feel divine, but we must accept this is the Divine plan! Holding fast our connection to the Christ Who is the Head, together as the body we are nourished and joined tightly together with a growth brought by God.
Considering the sphere of this fellowship, note what John encouragingly wrote where we read. . .
“(7) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7 ESV)
Clearly, in our connection with the Lord and the cleansing power of His blood is our fellowship with one another. As the body of Christ, we must acknowledge we live under His authority as the Head as we also acknowledge the connection we have with one another. May we duly surrender to Christ as we seek to glorify Him in our connections within His Body!
Have a great day SURRENDERED TO CHRIST TO SERVE OUR ROLE WITHIN HIS BODY!
Carl
