The Body of Christ

[WalterTrull]

I've been told: "You are what you eat."

 

[Secret Chief]

I've been told: "Your are what you eat."

Those actual words?

 

[WalterTrull]

Those actual words?

Ooops. Typo. Fixed it.

 

[Brickjectivity]

I've been told: "You are what you eat."

My past experiences cause me to stress that the #1 thing is not to make ourselves the judges of who has eaten or who may eat. This causes me to read scripture a certain way, too, to emphasize the many passages which say something like "...Do not judge..." (Luke 6:37) or "So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat,..." (1 Cor 11:20 NIV)

Its a difficult concept -- this 'Body', because it requires denial of self to be part of a body. How can we do this? Are we not individuals?

Many people in my experience consider this passive, that we don't have to do anything to be a body. We just are or aren't. That is not how I see it, and this affects my vision of theology.

 

[Altfish]

I've been told: "You are what you eat."

It is all crackers

 

[Brian2]

Many people in my experience consider this passive, that we don't have to do anything to be a body. We just are or aren't. That is not how I see it, and this affects my vision of theology.

That is not necessarily a bad thing. Paul seems to think that being led by the Spirit is important.
Romans 8:13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

No doubt some are led by the Spirit more than others.

 

[Brickjectivity]

That is not necessarily a bad thing. Paul seems to think that being led by the Spirit is important.
Romans 8:13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

No doubt some are led by the Spirit more than others.

I would say it means accepting that others can be led by the spirit, and this is what so many find difficult. Lets say that I feel very, very strongly about not drinking coffee, but you love coffee. Now further suppose that I regularly warn you about this on an individual basis and then have other brothers come to you about it, but you refuse to stop drinking coffee. Further suppose we call you before the elders and quote to you the scripture "He who destroys God's temple, him will God destroy." Now we must take action if you still keep drinking coffee and refusing to at least keep it to yourself. We have now (out of concern for you) put you into a position to be cut off from the body of Christ over the issue of coffee drinking.

I am not saying coffee drinking is wrong just using it as an example.

Shouldn't we in this instance have the humility to accept that perhaps the Holy Spirit has not been pressing you on this issue and has been working with you in another area? Maybe you are excelling in a area where we lack, such as in visiting crazy homeless people. Maybe you have been raising orphans that no one else wants, and maybe we are too stingy and only want to raise our own blood brood. Maybe you're helping people who are afraid, but we're ignoring them. To us, however, all we see is you drinking that evil, nasty temple destroying coffee. Why should we press you on this matter? Surely we should accept that the holy spirit is in charge of who deserves to be in the body of christ?

 

[Brian2]

I would say it means accepting that others can be led by the spirit, and this is what so many find difficult. Lets say that I feel very, very strongly about not drinking coffee, but you love coffee. Now further suppose that I regularly warn you about this on an individual basis and then have other brothers come to you about it, but you refuse to stop drinking coffee. Further suppose we call you before the elders and quote to you the scripture "He who destroys God's temple, him will God destroy." Now we must take action if you still keep drinking coffee and refusing to at least keep it to yourself. We have now (out of concern for you) put you into a position to be cut off from the body of Christ over the issue of coffee drinking.

I am not saying coffee drinking is wrong just using it as an example.

Shouldn't we in this instance have the humility to accept that perhaps the Holy Spirit has not been pressing you on this issue and has been working with you in another area? Maybe you are excelling in a area where we lack, such as in visiting crazy homeless people. Maybe you have been raising orphans that no one else wants, and maybe we are too stingy and only want to raise our own blood brood. Maybe you're helping people who are afraid, but we're ignoring them. To us, however, all we see is you drinking that evil, nasty temple destroying coffee. Why should we press you on this matter? Surely we should accept that the holy spirit is in charge of who deserves to be in the body of christ?

Yes the Holy Spirit leads people in different ways. I don't think people can handle too much change at once and so there is always something that God is working on. Some places of worship are certainly too judgemental and make laws out of rather small things.
It is the Holy Spirit who is deciding who is in the Body of Christ however and not the decisions of men in their judgements.
In this respect our love for others would cover a multitude of sins I imagine.