The Body of Christ is the corporate expression of the Triune God. Romans 12:4-5 says, “Just as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we who are many are one Body in Christ, and individually members one of another.” This description of the corporate entity produced through God’s full salvation implies oneness (Eph. 4:3-6), one accord (Acts 1:14; 2:46), blending and mingling (1 Cor. 14:24; Lev. 2:4), and a genuine care and concern for one another as fellow members of the Body. Therefore, the members of the Body of Christ should not be detached or separated; instead, they must be organically joined and coordinated together with each one depending on the function of the others.
In order for Christ to gain His Body in reality, we the members must have much fellowship with one another. While the Lord certainly needs to accomplish a great work in each member individually, He must also gain the coordination among the members, for without such coordination, the reality of the Body of Christ cannot be attained. A great picture of coordination is seen in Ezekiel 1 with the four living creatures (vv. 5-28). Each creature possessed an expression of Christ as signified by the four faces—that of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle. However, in order to display the full expression comprised of all four faces, it was necessary for all four living creatures to move together in a coordinated manner. Thus, to keep the oneness of the Body of Christ, do all things with one accord, and become the full expression of Christ, we must coordinate with the other members of the Body.
A great hindrance to the sweet coordination in the Body is offenses among the believers. Some may think that if they have offended or have been offended by another believer, they should simply pray about it. However, this attitude directly contradicts the Lord’s words in Matthew 5 and 18, which clearly address offenses. According to Matthew 5, if we remember that another believer has something against us while we are trying to contact the Lord in fellowship, we should stop, be reconciled to that believer, and then return to continue our fellowship with the Lord (vv. 23-26). In Matthew 18, the situation is reversed and the offended one is the one who takes the lead to seek reconciliation. Verses 15 and 16 do not say that the offended one should pray and try to get over the offense, but that he should approach the offending believer first alone, and if that does not resolve the problem, with one or two others. Unforgiven offenses make coordination impossible and ultimately result in dissension and division. In order to have the proper coordination among the believers for the reality of the Body of Christ and the full expression of the Triune God, we, the believers must be quick to deal with offenses among one another.
Further Reading:
Witness Lee, Life-study of Ezekiel, Message 8 (Nook, Kindle, Print).
Witness Lee, Life-study of Matthew, Messages 17 and 51 (Nook, Kindle, iBooks, Print).
(Most references in the Further Reading can also be viewed on www.ministrybooks.org.)
Wow, that last paragraph is very helpful. I always thought that we should only deal with the Lord when trying to get through an offense. This is very enlightening.
Last paragraph was helpfull to me too. I do have offenses that I just can go over, although I pray t The Lord that He ll supply me to forgive and forget. Lord, be our wisdom how to open up our of fence in the way that we can gain someone, not stumble
Through coordination, we obtain the reality of the Body of Christ. The church as the Body of Christ is an organic entity and only His life allows us to coordinate and fellowship with one another. The flow and operation of life within each one part produces the function of each member. This results in a glorious expression. When the oneness is expressed, the Triune God is glorified.
The church life is the kingdom life today. In order to get a picture of the kingdom life, we must open up a few verses in Matthew. Matthew Ch. 5-7 reveal to us the constitution of the kingdom. Regarding the kingdom life, let’s focus on the aspect of the relationships of the kingdom people. Matthew 5 reveals to us that if a disciple remembers a brother has something hindering him/her, to “be reconciled” to your brother. This describes a principle in dealing with offenses. If something has occurred only before the Lord, then we deal with the issue before the Lord. As an example, if one has negative feelings, we should deal with those feelings before the Lord. Revealing negative feelings toward the brothers or sisters could possibly cause more damage than intended. If something has occurred before men, in like manner the fellowship is to be reconciled and restored. Keep in mind every brother and sister is one for whom Christ died, and should be valued as such. This in view, he/she must allow Christ to be his/her forgiveness, even if the other does not seek to be reconciled. We even would not expect it, require it, or demand it, but just pray for the Lord’s life to grow and spread in the believers. This is in view that the fellowship and coordination be restored. Only the Lord’s life is able! Living in the kingdom is only by the resurrection life. “The highest life within us can fulfill the highest requirements of the highest law.” The kingdom life is a living in oneness. The oneness is sweet. The oneness is treasured very much in the recovery. In these days, may the Lord gain the reality of the Body of Christ.