Building the body of Christ???

How does one construct the church?

I guess the question may need some unpacking really…

Who is trying to build the church? And what is the purpose of the church? In Ephesians 4:11-12 we see an answer for this, that is not what you probably think when you first talk about building the church…

Paul tells the Ephesians “The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,” He gave gifts for some to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.  He gave.  Who is he?  Ok I guess we all know this, but do we really think about it.  God gave gifts to us all, that we are apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, or teachers…  He did this. We all have a gift to use, and through using the gift we are doing a task to spread his message, be that through teaching, preaching, predicting, telling the story, or going and doing… And this is usually where we stop with these verses.  The gift was given, and go and use it.

But WHY?  These gifts were given for specific reasons according to Paul, “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,”  The gifts were given to equip all the saints for the work of ministry.  The gifts were given to prepare God’s people to do the work of ministry.  All of us have a part in the work of God and we are to support and uplift each other in the moving of ministry… And all of this, the gifts, the equipping and preparing is “for the building up of the body of Christ.”  All the gifts and equipping and preparing are for the building of the church!  We as the church are the body of Christ.

A church isn’t created by constructing a physical building or by hiring a professional ministry worker, or even have lots of people attend.  A church is constructed when each part finds its proper place and function and works together!  When the eye sees, the ear hears, the nose smells, the legs move the body, and on and on…

We are to build each other up and work together in the building of the body of Christ.  We are to equip and prepare each other for the work of ministry.  So remember that you have a part to play, and that church is not a spectator sport!  You are not a bench warmer – you are a key player in the body of Christ!