Join the Church II - Spiritual Growth for New Believers

3. Becoming the Body of Christ Together with All Members

Third, we are also united in the Body of Christ, becoming one body. We are the Body of Christ. Ephesians 4 says, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling” (Ephesians 4:4, NRSVue). 1 Corinthians 12 also states, “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.” (1 Corinthians 12:12, NRSVue). This shows us that as Christians, we absolutely cannot live in isolation.

When considering that we are joined together as God's household, one might think, "I am an independent person and refuse to associate with other brothers and sisters. As long as there are no problems between me and my Father, I can shut my door and be God's child alone." This might seem possible.

Similarly, when viewing ourselves as God's dwelling place, I may acknowledge that I am a living stone but insist on standing alone—I do not want to be placed upon others, nor do I want others to be placed upon me. Before Peter joined the church, he was indeed a living stone, but he was a single stone. You might say, "If the house has a hole, so be it. It is not my concern. I just want to be a Christian by myself." This, too, may seem plausible.

However, God tells us that we are a body, which takes things a step further than a family or a house. Today, you might be an eye, a hand, or a foot in the body. “If the foot would say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ that would not make it any less a part of the body.” (1 Corinthians 12:15, NRSVue). An eye is only useful when placed on the head—if placed in a glass jar, it serves no purpose. A leg must be attached to the body to be useful—if hung up on the wall, it is useless.

Remember this well: the body functions this way, and its members are designed in this way—no member can exist independently from the others. The concept of God's household might allow for some level of separation; even God's dwelling place might, to some extent, tolerate division. But the Body of Christ cannot be divided. “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you,’ nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you.’” (1 Corinthians 12:21, NRSVue). Your ear cannot decide to become independent, your hand cannot declare its autonomy, and your foot cannot stand up and say, "I will be on my own." It is simply impossible for the members to exist apart from one another.

The life you have received does not permit you to live in isolation. The Lord did not give you a complete and self-sufficient life. This is a crucial point: the life given to us by the Lord is not independent but dependent. We must rely on the lives of others, and they must rely on us.

Never forget this: the members of the body cannot function alone. If a member is isolated, it cannot survive. Separation not only leads to a loss of richness but also to a loss of life. If I am truly part of the same body as my brothers and sisters, then I simply cannot live as a solitary Christian.

At this point, the matter should be clear—you must recognize that the life you have received must be joined with others.

4. All Christians Are Dependent in Their Faith

I hope that from the moment you become a Christian, you join with others. Do not spend ten or twenty years as a Christian while remaining alone. From the beginning, you must realize that the life God has given you is a dependent life; He has not given you an independent life. You are attached to other Christians as a Christian. Among us, no one stands alone—every Christian is dependent on others.

You have heard of subsidiary organizations, affiliate institutions, and dependent relationships. In the same way, all Christians are dependent in their faith. Every Christian is an addition to the body; there is no Christian who can exist in isolation before God.

I hope that from the very beginning, you will be a dependent believer—attached to many other Christians. In doing so, you will receive provision, edification, love, and fellowship.

For this reason, a Christian must join the church. (The term "joining the church" is a worldly phrase, but I use it here for the sake of new believers' understanding.) You cannot be a private Christian. You can only live as a Christian together with all of God's children. You can only be a dependent Christian, drawing others alongside you.

We are like vines, clinging to others, relying on fellow Christians to live out our faith.