Jesus and the Body of Christ

 

Paul says in Ephesians 1:22-23, “And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”

 

Paul says that we, the church, are the body of Christ. In fact, in Ephesians Paul refers to the church as the body of Christ seven times.

 

We see examples of that in the Gospels.

 

When Jesus enters Jerusalem the beginning of the last week of His earth existence, He has two of His disciples go and get the colt He will ride on. They put their cloaks on the colt. The crowd put their cloaks on the road and others cut branches and put them on the road.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is honoring Jesus by praising Him daily.

 

An example is when Jesus brings Lazarus from the dead and he comes out of the tomb. Jesus tells some people in the crowd to go and remove the grave clothes from him. Jesus does what only He can do restore life. We obey Jesus and help those who have experienced new life from Him to remove some old ways and habits from their lives.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is obeying Jesus and joining Him in freeing people from things that are part of their old nature.

 

So, what does it mean that we the church are the body of Christ?

 

It means we are the hands of Jesus.

 

The hands of Jesus:

Healed

Fed

Blessed

Comforted

 

We as the church of Jesus are to:

Heal, not curse them

Feed, not turn our back to

Bless, not judge

Comfort, not condemn

 

Raise the Roof an Remove the Walls is the church healing, feeding, blessing, and comforting.

 

It means being the feet of Jesus.

 

Jesus went where the people where and hung out with them.

 

Jesus went to and hung out with:

Fishermen

Tax Collectors

People with Bad Reputations

Powerless People

 

We as the church are to go to and hang out with:

Ordinary People

Outcasts

Sinners

People Who the Culture Has Dispose of

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is reaching out to people who others have rejected.

 

It means being the voice of Jesus.

 

Mark 1:14 and 15 tells us that after John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee and began to proclaim the gospel. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and repentance and faith.

 

We as the church are to proclaim the gospel. The gospel is the good news that Jesus is God in the flesh and that He died for the sins of all humanity.

 

It is not proclaiming:

Our Opinion

Our Preferences

Our Political Views

Our Rights

 

Raise the Roof and Removing the Walls is proclaiming the gospel of grace.

 

It is being the heart of Jesus.

 

In Luke 19:10 Jesus says that He came to seek and save the lost.

 

In Matthew 9:13 Jesus says that He came not to call the righteous but sinners.

 

Jesus’ heart was to save the lost and redeem the sinner.

 

The church’s heart is to be God’s instrument to bring the truth of God and the grace of God to those who are lost and separated from Him.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is having a heart like Jesus had for the those who have not experienced God’s love.

 

The chorus to “If We Are the Body” by Casting Crowns asks some questions.

 

It asks if we are the body:

Why aren’t His feet going?

Why aren’t His hands healing?

Why aren’t His words teaching?

 

Let’s be the church of Jesus.

 

Being Jesus’ Church Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                             Joe

Press On!

 

 

Philippians 3:12-14

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

 

The phrase “press on” is the same word translated “pursue” in 1 Timothy 6:11 where we are told to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness.

 

And it is the same word in 2 Timothy 2:22 where we are told to pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace.

 

And it is the same word in 1 Peter 3:11 where we are told to seek peace and pursue it.

 

It literally means to focus our minds on a goal and put all our effort to obtaining that goal.

 

In this passage Paul shares two motivating factors that are to be part of a follower of Jesus’ life.

 

The first speaks of God’s objective for each of us.

The second speaks of God’s reward for each of us.

 

God’s objective for us is found in Titus 2:14, “Who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works”

 

God’s objective in dying for us was to redeem us from sin, and not just the penalty of sin, but also the power and dominion of sin.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being freed from the penalty and power and dominion of sin.

 

The word purify speaks of an inward cleansing from the pollution and defilement of sin.

 

Jesus did not die to make us happy but to make us holy.

 

Another objective of God for us is that we become a people for His own possession.

 

We are not our own; we are bought with a price. We belong to Jesus. This speaks of His Lordship over our lives. Jesus has the right to interrupt our lives any time He wants because we belong to Him. Jesus has a right to direct our lives in the direction He wants us to go because we belong to Him.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is to live knowing we belong to Jesus.

 

A third objective God has for us through Jesus’ death is to be a people eager to do good works.

 

Rise the Roof and Remove the Walls is doing good works in the name of Jesus.

 

He intends to make us holy, to purify us from the pollution of sin in our lives, and for Jesus to be Lord of our lives so we can exhibit the traits of holy character. This is all to honor God and show the world who God really is.

 

Second, Paul pressed on to receive the prize God had for him.

 

The prize of this calling toward which Paul presses forward with all his might, is the everlasting heavenly glory. Paul knew his citizenship was in heaven, and he pressed on to obtain that heavenly prize.

 

The Bible is very clear that the glory of eternity is given to us solely through the redeeming work of Jesus on the cross. It is the gift of God and is by grace through faith, not works.

 

Yet it is also true that this gift cannot be taken for granted. True grace always produces vigilance rather than complacency; it always produces perseverance rather than indolence. Saving faith always manifests itself by the pursual of the heavenly goal.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living life in the here and now but keeping the focus on eternal life with Jesus.

 

Paul saw life as living in this world, but not being of the world. We live in world sharing the gospel of grace of Jesus, but not loving the things of the world or buying into the principles of the world.

 

So, press on to fulfill God’s objective for us and press on to obtain the heavenly prize of Jesus.

 

Pressing on to Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls,

Joe

The Gospel of Jesus is the Answer!

 

 

The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible itself. There is a unity to Scripture that is not human based but is through the Holy Spirit.

 

The Bible being God’s Word shows us how to deal with any issue or problem whether an individual issue or an issue that affects all of society.

 

So, let’s look at an issue that affects our nation and the whole world.

 

In Genesis 11 we read about the Tower of Babel.

 

In verse 1 we are told that the whole earth had one language.

In verse 2 we are told that the people migrated to a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.

In verses 3 and 4 they decided to build a city and a tower. The tower was to reach to heaven and the city was to be built to make a name for themselves and so they will not be dispersed.

 

 Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is acknowledging that we many times try to build ourselves up instead of building God up.

 

In Genesis 9:1 God tells Noah and his sons to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.

 

In Genesis 11 verses 5 and 6 God sees what the people are doing. He sees that they have rejected God’s will and rebelled against it. God recognizes that because of their unity nothing would be impossible for them.

 

The people were choosing to do their will over doing God’s will.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is recognizing that we have the natural desire to do our will and not God’s.

 

In verse 7 God decides to confuse their language. God causes them to begin to speak different languages.

 

In verse 9 God disperses them in their new language groups across the earth. This then created the different people groups that we have today.

 

The question is why did God do this?

 

The people chose to disobey God. God’s will was for the people to fill the earth. The people’s will was to not be disperse over the earth but to stay united and thus make a name for themselves. They also, by try to build a tower to heaven, were attempting to make themselves equal to God.

 

God’s will is going to be done. We can choose to obey and be a part of doing God’s will or to reject God’s will and be in opposition to God.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is choosing to obey God and be a part of His will.

 

So, now because of humanity’s sin, different people groups come into being. That meant that divisions were part of the fabric of human life. These divisions became sinful because they led to racial and nationalistic bigotry. One people group saw themselves and their culture to be superior. This superior attitude led to abuses. These abuses led to wars, nations dominating other nations, slavery, and genocide.

 

God shows us how these divisions can be bridged.

 

In Acts 2 the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in the lives of the followers of Jesus.

 

In Acts 2:6 says, “And at this sound the multitude came together and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.”

 

Notice first what happened. People of different language groups and from different cultures heard the gospel of Jesus in their own languages.

 

Second, notice what did not happen. The people’s language did not change and their cultures did not change.

 

Out of this event three thousand people came to be followers of Jesus. These people go back to their nations and the gospel begins to spread across the whole world.

 

Race, language, culture all tend to separate people.

The gospel of Jesus unites people.

 

When the gospel of Jesus unites people, it does not change their language or their nationality or their race. The gospel of Jesus creates unity, not uniformity. It is unity in diversity.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being united by the gospel of Jesus but in diversity, not uniformity.

 

When the gospel of Jesus unites us, it makes our priority the kingdom of God. It means we will seek first, above all and above everything, the kingdom of God and His righteousness. It means people of all races, languages and cultures are created by God and loved by Him. It means that followers of Jesus from all races, languages, and cultures are our brothers and sisters.

 

We are one in Jesus!

 

Together with All My Brothers and Sisters

Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

Joe

Loving God Means Loving Others

 

In Galatians 5 when Paul lists the fruit of the Spirit, he lists love first to emphasize its importance.

 

Then in Colossians 3:14 Paul writes, “Over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

 

Love is the overall grace from which all the others grow.

 

Devotion to Jesus is the only motivation that will enable the development of godly character. Our love for Jesus and our desire to please Him will motivate us to want to live out the image of God we were created to have and be the motivation that enables the Holy Spirit to produce it in our lives.

 

Our love and devotion to Jesus find outward expression in loving one another. Our devotion to Jesus is validated by our love for other people.

 

In Mark 12:30-31 when Jesus is asked what is the greatest commandment, He answers that the first is to love God with all that you are: all your heart, all your mind, all your soul, and all your strength. Then Jesus says the second is to love your neighbor as yourself.

 

John 4:20-21 says, “Anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

 

We cannot truly love God without loving one another.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is loving God and showing that love by loving others.

 

This seems to be a real problem in our country today. We seem to have reinterpreted this to say, “Love your neighbors as long as they agree with you and share your values.”

 

But in Matthew 5:43-44 Jesus says, “You have heard it said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say, ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.’”

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is loving those who we disagree with and who do not like us.

 

I read this in Jerry Bridges’ book The Practice of Godliness and I want to share it with you. It is a very godly way to practically apply the truths in 1 Corinthians 13.

 

I am patient with you because I love you and want to forgive you.

I am kind to you because I love you and want to help you.

I do not envy your possessions or your gifts because I love you and want you to have the best.

I do not boast about my attainments because I love you and want to hear about yours.

I am not proud because I love you and want to esteem you before myself.

I am not rude because I love you and care about your feelings.

I am not self-seeking because I love you and want to meet your needs.

I am not easily angered by you because I love you and want to overlook your offense.

I do not keep a record of wrongs because I love you, and want to relate to you based on love, not anger.

 

1 Peter 4:8 says, “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.”

 

Love is not a feeling; love is an act. If we just love in our minds and it never gets put into action it will never help or impact another person’s life.

 

Love is not so much a character trait as it is an inner disposition of the soul that produces all the other godly character traits. This kind of love always results in actions on our part.

 

1 John 4:8 tells us that God is love. God is not a God who loves or a God of love, He is love. Love is the core character of God.

 

When I act in love, then I am acting in accordance with who God is and in accordance with His will.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is acting in unity with God’s person and God’s will.

 

Loving God and Loving Others is Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls

                                                 Joe