The Necessity of a Practical Ecclesiology

 The other day, a mentor commented to me again on the practical importance of a strong theology of the church and its workings, good ecclesiology. When Christians do not have a strong, practical ecclesiology, we are more likely to act in ways that disagree with the spirit of the Scriptures. I am not referring to breaking explicit "rules" of Scripture, but to the fact that we may fail to fulfill our roles as integral and integrated parts of the body of Christ. Thus, there could be a failure to care for a sister or brother in need, to submit to the (church) body or its leaders, to value troublesome and supportive members equally, to provide for those who minister the Word, etc. These problems could be supplemented with a list of difficulties that a weak theology of the church can impose on the structuring of the church, such as choosing proper leadership and removing those who are persisting in behaving in ways that disagree with Scripture.

  As I was reading 1 Corinthians 12 in the last couple days, I was struck by one of these practical aspects of ecclesiology:

  Shepherds of churches may see a requirement here to spend more time and energy on those people who seem 'less lovable', but the point in 1 Corinthians seems much wider. This is BODY work. The whole body of Christ, everyone in a church, should be united in intimate concern with the health and progress and honor and needs of every other member or organ. (As I've shared before, the word "member" here has more of the modern idea of "body parts" or "limbs and organs.") Anthony Thiselton (2006) comments, "So-called unpresentable parts play an even more indispensable role in sustaining the life of the body than, for example, an eye or an ear, which on the surface may appear more important." While a body can live without an eye, living without an intestine or stomach - as unpresentable as those may be - is obviously far more problematic. The "unpresentable" parts are "indispensable," and if there were not such differences - gross and under-appreciated though some of them may be, there would be no body. Many indispensable and honorable parts must always be contributing to the "common good" of one body.

 In the context of 1 Corinthians 12, the Holy Spirit and Paul apply this truth by warning the Corinthian believers not to see certain members as having "lesser gifts." There are no second-class followers of Christ! The Spirit has carefully distributed the gifts to the church in such a way that honor and responsibility will be given to all. This, of course, has practical implications for how each one of Christ's living body parts should behave and feel toward each other part. Two more quotes from Thiselton and one from MacLaren's Expositions expose some practical implications of this:

Thornton observes, "In the Body of Christ there are, strictly speaking, no private sufferings. All are shared because there is one life of the whole. Accordingly wrong done to one member is wrong done to the whole Church, and therefore to Christ himself" (Common Life, p. 36). This principle also demands the utmost sympathy and sensitivity between fellow Christians, to share in the joys and sorrows of each. 

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How often do we use this model (as Paul does) to stress that the vulnerable and less favored need the support and service of the strong? 

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For every one of us has something, and no one of us has everything; so, on the one hand, we want each other, and, on the other hand, we are responsible for the use of what we have. (MacLaren)

 In applying this to ourselves, I have two questions for you: How many body parts do you have as a human? Do you keep a list of them? I imagine that you don't know and that you don't have one. Me neither. We don't usually make lists of the things closest to us; but, we recognize our body parts when we see and feel them. In the same way, we should recognize those who are part of the body of Christ which we are part of. Don't simply look to a list of people as the organs and limbs of Christ in your local church: who is there, how are they functioning, how can you support them? You may not know their exact function or gifting, but value and honor them as those whom Christ and the Spirit have valued and honored. Remember they may well be more indispensable than you or I.

~ Expositions of Holy Scripture: Romans Corinthians (To II Corinthians, Chap. V) (Maclaren, Alexander)
~ 1 Corinthians: A Shorter Exegetical and Pastoral Commentary (Anthony C. Thiselton)