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Apples of Gold
Radio Script for April 12, 2010
“Have You Found Your Place in the Body of Christ?”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
Are you a Christian?
If so, then you are a part of what the Bible calls “the body of Christ.”
Ephesians 4:12 uses that exact phrase, the body of Christ.
The body of Christ is also called “the church,” and Jesus is called “the head.”
For example, Ephesians 5:23 says “…Christ is the head of the church, His body…”
So if you are a Christian today, then you are a part of the body of Christ.
Now you might think, “Well, I’m a member of one church, and you’re a member of another church, and there’s a church across the street and a church down the block and…”
Okay, wait a minute. Listen to Colossians 3:15. It says we are members of “one body.” There is only one body of Christ.
Ephesians 4:25 says “…we are all members of one body…”
First Corinthians 12:27 says, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”
Verse 14 says, “Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.”
Of course the illustration is quite simple – the human body. Your body has hands and feet and knees and fingers and joints and bones and ligaments – lots of parts, but all working together as one body.
Well in the body of Christ, you are one of those parts, and the rest of us need you to be working efficiently.
“Well Doug, I’m a Christian, and I go to church, but I don’t really know what ‘part’ I’m supposed to be.”
Well first of all you need to know that you really do have a part, chosen by God.
First Corinthians 12:18 says “…God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be.”
Verse seven says, “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”
Verse 11 says, “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as He determines.”
Romans 12 says, “Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.”
First Corinthians 7:7 says “…each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.”
So listen, God has placed you in the body of Christ as a specific part with specific gifts.
And like it says in First Corinthians 12:7, “…to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”
That is the part you are to play, to use your gifts for the common good of the body of Christ.
Verse 25 says the “parts should have equal concern for each other.”
Ephesians 4:16 says the body of Christ “grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
So are you doing your part of the work? Are you working for the common good of the body of Christ?
You have been gifted to do so. Every Christian has. If you don’t already know, you need to find out what your gifts are, then put them to work for the common good of the body.
“But I don’t know what my part is!”
Well first of all you need to pray about it. Christ is the head of the church, and it’s God’s Spirit inside of us that gives us these gifts and chooses which body part we will be.
Second of all, you need to work with leaders in the church; mature and more experienced Christians who can help you discover your role in the body.
Ephesians 4:7 says “…to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.”
Then verse 11 continues by saying, “It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature…”
So there are certain leaders in the church who have been called by God to prepare the rest for their place of service for the common good of the body.
A wise church leader will be able to help you do just that, so if you don’t know what your gifts are, if you don’t know what your part of the body is, then pray about it and seek wise counsel from church leaders.
There are even some good “spiritual gifts tests” out there to help you discover your gifts and callings in the body of Christ.
Maybe you aren’t a pastor or a teacher. Maybe you aren’t one of those obvious leaders in the church, but know this. You are an important part of the body of Christ! God has chosen you and gifted you to do some very important things in the church.
Now you just need to find out what those are and then get to work.
The body of Christ will grow and become mature and complete, but only as each part does its work for the common good of the body.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2010 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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