Body Life

A decade ago, I had been taught and trained to be a "spiritual giant" as the case is in many inner life Christian groups. No wonder, I used to struggle and strive to become such a one. But the Lord, in His mercy, saved me from this extremist pursuit. Thank the Lord! 

However, having stated this, the basic practices of a Christian living are very much needed as they are the foundation for the stability of a normal Christian life. Nevertheless, all these practices are actually for the Body of Christ; spirituality is for the Body of Christ, otherwise, it is a great threat to the building up of the Body of Christ. A spirituality without Body-consciousness is individualistic and divisive. Church history has proved it. Such partial, incomplete and improper understanding of spirituality does more harm than good; instead of building up the Body of Christ, it tears down what has already been built.

Since the Lord recovered me to the Body life, He has shown special grace to me. All these years, praise the Lord, a decade now(!), many of my self have been stripped layer by layer, including my understanding of spirituality. In no way can I say, I have been fully stripped off of all that need to be stripped off, but for sure, significant stripping have been done. Looking back, I can only praise the Lord for what He has been doing which otherwise would have made me by now a half-baked cake. Having stated thus, I still look to the Lord for more grace to go on in Him, with Him, with His Body.

These days, as to God and as to man, I can humbly acknowledge that I am indeed nothing and can do nothing in myself without the Lord and His Body. Since the Head, Christ cannot be separated from His Body, the Church, I can also not be separated from my fellow brethren. A decade ago, I can spiritually do many things individually and divisively in the name of the Lord, but now, a decade after, I can only depend on the Lord and dwell with the Body and need the fellowship, balancing of the Body in the Body for the Body. Be it personal or corporate matter, I cannot be myself, do it myself any longer. The hand of the Lord is heavy upon me if I dare to be individualistic, because He loves me. I need the Body as much as I need the Head of the Body; for the body is the Body of the Head, and the Head is the head of the Body. The two co-exist as one. What the Head feels, or says or does, the Body feels, or says or does too. Recently, a brother had indirectly indicated that he is fully for the Head, Christ but had some uneasiness with the Body and further indicated that he is only for the Head. To this I retorted back, that I am for both the Head and the Body. For one cannot be sweetly joined to the Head without fitly joined to the Body; to claim royalty to the Head without being in peace with the Body is a paradox. How many of today's Christians who loves the Lord dearly need to know and live in the Body life? Lord, have mercy on us...

Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12-14 are great unveilings of the Body life. To me these are enhanced gospel, not merely being saved from negative things, but even more to be saved into the Body life. These days, I can only praise and thank the Lord for His great mercy shown especially towards me. He saved me from my self pursuit of spirituality and shepherded me into the Body life, living as a member of His Body with many other members, coordinating, blending and building together for the fulfillment of His eternal purpose " Until we all arrive at the oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ," Ephesians 4:13.