“The Behavior of the Body of Christ”

Opening Prayer: Let us pray,

7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Father who is in heaven, thank you for the chance you have given us to worship you. We want to thank you as a church for allowing us to meet here again this year. As we mark this anniversary. We thank you because you are with us.thank you for hearing us through the name of Jesus Christ. Amen

Ephesians 4:3,11-13,15-16 (New Revised Standard Version)

3 making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace: 11 He himself granted that some are apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.

(v. 15) But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, (v. 16) from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

I. Description of the Liturgical Moment

The celebration of a church anniversary is more than the rekindling of memories. It is an

opportunity to remember and reclaim the vision of the church. Each church functions with a unique call from God. The anniversary provides the church a chance to remember the tribulation of those who carried the cross of Christian service. In addition to being a time to remember, the anniversary evokes the theology of the local church. The celebration of the anniversary declares: This is who we were, this is who we are, and this is who we will always be.

By focusing on whether its members are maturing and becoming more like Christ, churches automatically enhance their spiritual growth, which leads to numerical growth.

II. Biblical Interpretation for Preaching and Worship: Ephesians 4:15-16

Part One: The Contemporary Contexts of the Interpreter

At the center of the celebration is the recognition of the many clouds of witnesses who paved the way in building the ministry. The work of ministry is more than the bricks and pews that make for the home/place of worship. History is about the people who continue to lead the way. History is more than dates and memories of old songs that capture the faith of those left behind. History is about the people past, and the present should be celebrated as part of the history. It’s part of a long journey that reveals the hopes and dreams of yesterday and the victories along the way.

Part Two: Biblical Commentary

Ephesians has long held a significant influence in the Christian community.

Ephesians is practical theology placed in letter form. If a theme were attached to the letter, it would likely be “The Behavior of the Body of Christ.”

This makes it particularly appropriate for its use for a 34th church anniversary. Today’s text is

found in chapter four of Ephesians. Beginning here, we find the second major section of the

letter, beginning at Ephesians 4:3: “maintain the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.”

By living this way, they will be able to keep the unity of the Spirit. Again, unity is not sameness. We Christians maintain our God-created uniqueness but share a common vision and goal. A football team includes players with different roles, but teammates work together for the same purpose.

Notice Paul commands them to “keep” this unity, not to “establish” it. This is God’s program. The church didn’t create unity. God calls us to preserve what he’s already created. This unity is tied to our Christian character and is based on the work of the Holy Spirit. If your point of reference isn’t the Spirit of God, you’ll be operating from a merely human point of view. But when you relate to people based on God’s point of view, the Spirit can override human differences and hold us together through the bond of peace. Peace-harmony where once there was conflict-will act like a belt to hold us together.

To build unity is one of the Holy Spirit’s important roles. He leads, but we must be willing to be led and to do our part to keep the peace. We do that by focusing on God, not ourselves.

Next, the writer speaks of the unity and yet diversity of the Godhead. After that he addresses the

leadership of the Church with diverse gifts and offers that they are grow together in unity. This is

the behavior of the Church of Jesus Christ—diverse in gifts yet unified. Unified so that it can live out the character of Christ corporately and in our individual lives as we tell and show the good news throughout the earth. This is what God requires the Church to do.

The church has no right to set its own agenda. It was placed here to carry out God’s agenda. The

church was not placed in the world with a mandate to correct the evils of society but to declare

and demonstrate the power of God in Jesus Christ. The great and beautiful paradox of the church

is that the more it focuses on its true spiritual mandate, the more effective it is in correcting the

ills and evils of society.

But how is it that the black church, filled with people of all ages, occasionally of various races,

from different backgrounds, difference social strata, with different interests, can unite to

corporately live out the character of Christ as it spreads the good news.

One thing that will help do it is for the church to receive good leadership from their apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, for it is their job to “equip the saints for the work of the ministry, for building up the body of Christ until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-13).

These gifts include empowerment for the leaders. Some people attend church only for their own benefit. But that’s not what being a church member looks like; that’s called being a leech. God saved and equipped you for the work of ministry, the work of service. Why? To build up the body.

To understand the church, all you must do is understand your body. It’s a living organism composed of many parts working in harmony to contribute to the whole. Paul says the church is Christ’s body. And the church will only grow and mature when all the parts operate in harmony, in unity. If you have a Lone Ranger personality, you will be a feeble saint-and the body will suffer for it. Our relationship to the corporate body is crucial to our own spiritual development and the development of the church.

Only growing into maturity will we no longer be little children. Children are unstable in their thinking, easily tossed to and fro. Christians need the right theological and spiritual foundation to keep from being blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning. We need to be stabilized by maturity, and maturity only comes when we’re connected to each other.

Our oneness in Christ does not destroy our individuality. The Holy spirit has given each Christian special gifts for building up the church. Now that we have these gifts, it is crucial to use them. Are you spiritually mature, exercising the gifts God has given you? If you know what your gifts are, look for opportunities to serve. If you don’t know, ask God to show you, perhaps with the help of a church leader or Christian friends. Then, as you begin to recognize your special areas of service, use your gifts to strengthen and encourage the church.

God has given his church an enormous responsibility-to make disciples in every nation (Matthew 28:18-20). This involves preaching, teaching, healing, nurturing, giving, administering, building, and many other tasks. If we had to fulfill this command as individuals, we might as well give up without trying-it would be impossible. But God calls us as members of his body. Some of us can do one task; some can do others. Together we can obey God more fully than any of us could alone. It is a human tendency to overestimate what we can do by ourselves and to underestimate what we can do as a group. But as the body of Christ, we can accomplish more together than we would dream possible working by ourselves. Working together, the church can express more of the fullness of Christ. These are some of the leaders we celebrate during each church anniversary.

How else can it be done? It can be done when believers speak the truth to each other in love.

Such love is a requirement because it is only love that gives us the courage to grow up as the

body of Christ and grow into Christ. Such love gives each of us brakes when we move to make

our word the last word or when we move to interject principles and ideologies that are not in

keeping with the teachings of Christ.

Finally, it can be done when each part (meaning each member working in his or her area of

calling) is working properly in love. This promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in

love. Too often when churches speak of growth, they speak of growing numerically instead of

growing spiritually. But this text shows that one will not work without the other. So, even if a

church “blows up,” as they say in the current urban vernacular, it will deflate and die if it is not a church built on love for the sake of having its members become like Christ so that they can

personally, and corporately spread the good news and be that news for someone in need of a

Savior.

So, as you celebrate another anniversary this year, make sure that what you are celebrating

concerns your church having mature leaders, being a loving church, and most importantly being a church that God can look at and say, “They glorify me by spreading the good news of

Christ, in word and deed, to those in need.” That is why the Church exists: to glorify God by

lifting the Son in word and deed. The privilege of being able to do so is something to

celebrate. Happy anniversary!

Challenge/In Conclusion

Let us always remember our church ancestors on whose shoulders we stand, their faith and

fortitude built black churches with nickels and dimes, prayers, and courage. We must remember

and celebrate our past. However, we cannot live in the past. We too have a mark to make for

Christ—some child to house and clothe, some soul to lead towards the marvelous light, and our Great God to glorify.

Amazing grace how sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost, but now I'm found Was blind but now I see

When we've been here ten thousand years Bright, shining as the sun We've no less days to sing God's praise Than when we first begun

Church Anniversary Benediction

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be

discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come; ‘Tis grace hath brought me

safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.

Keep maturing. Keep being the ones through whom the world can see Christ. Be strong. Be

courageous. Go in confidence. Walk in the steps of our ancestors. The gates of Hell will not

prevail against us. Now, go, tell, and live the story. Amen.