Introduction:

          We have been addressing Millennials – in hopes of encouraging them along a spiritually healthy and fruitful pathway. We want to continue to give what I hope will be encouraging pastoral counsel and advice. Romans 12:12 – This counsel has to do with the local church, and in particular, with the simple yet significant fact that the Body is ONE. We are going to consider the unity of the Body, not as an ancillary or secondary doctrine, but as an indispensable part of God’s plan for this age: the church, the Body of Christ. First we are going to look at what the New Testament says about the UNITY of the Body of Christ and how this relates to Millennials.

God’s Plan for the Body of Christ: Unity, Diversity, and Harmony

I Cor. 12:12 – “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.”

         In this passage, Paul uses the physical body of a human being as an analogy of the spiritual Body of Christ, the church.

         The Physical Human Body: three essentials- Unity: The Human Body is One (vs. 12 – the body is one). Diversity: The Human Body Has Many Parts (vs. 14 – many members; many functions). Harmony: The many parts of the human body function in unity (vs. 20 – many members functioning as one body) This is how the physical human body functions: unity, diversity, in harmony (remember that!)

         So Also is Christ (i.e., the Spiritual Body of Christ). Just as there is unity, diversity, and harmony within the human body, so also is Christ, meaning the Body of Christ, the church. The church is so closely connected to Christ that Paul actually calls the Body of Christ “Christ”! He is the Head of the Body; the Body is filled with His life; and each individual member of the body is indwelt by Christ. Each one is being transformed into the image of Christ. We are developing the mind of Christ. The Body is growing into the full stature of Christ. Christ, His life, and His holy character are manifested through the mortal flesh of each member of the Body. The connection is so close that Paul calls the Body of Christ, Christ! We don’t see the souls and spirits of men; we see their bodies. When we do, we don’t say, “There’s Tom’s body.” We say, “There’s Tom.” Tom lives in his body – but they are a unit… one. There is a much closer connection between Christ and His Body than we normally think. Remember that too.

         Paul states three essential facts about the human body that are also true of the Body of Christ: Unity: The Body of Christ is One. Vs. 13 – all baptized into ONE Body. Eph. 4:4 – “There is only ONE Body” of Christ. This is the universal church. Acknowledging the universal body of Christ is a key doctrine when it comes to the UNITY of the Body. Apart from this truth, you end up with an artificial, man-made, organizational unity, rather than a unity based on indwelling life. The Bible says there is only ONE Body of Christ and every born again Christian is a member of that Body – and ONLY born again Christians. This is the UNITY of the Spirit – a unity that God makes through the Spirit, via Spirit baptism.

         Diversity: The Body of Christ Has Many Parts. Vs. 7 – different spiritual gifts to different members. Vs. 18 – different members strategically placed by God in a specific place in the body with a specific function

         Harmony: The Body of Christ Functions as One Body. The harmony is seen in verses 21-26. Paul speaks of the interrelationship and the interdependence that exists among the members of a body. They need one another and there is a need for all to work in harmony for the body to function as a unit. This is also how the Body of Christ was designed to function: unity, diversity, and in harmony! This is God’s design for the human body; and this is God’s design for the Body of Christ, the church.

        God designed the church to be a functioning Body: with unity, diversity, and harmony. Every member is necessary. We are NOT called to create specialty “designer” churches – with MAN as the designer. We are commanded to stick to the blueprint found in the Bible. I know that this is the age of specialty everything: designer jeans, designer jewelry, and designer furniture. They even have designer babies today. You pick their eye color, hair color, their gender, and other features you want and reject features that you don’t want. Of course, there is nothing wrong with men designing furniture or clothing after their own tastes. But you enter a whole different arena once you start tinkering with God’s design in creation: The creation of a human being. Or the church, the new creation. But this gets a little murky. When it comes to the local church don’t tinker with God’s design. I Cor. 3:17 – “If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”   (Defile = corrupt; to change from one state to a worse state.)

        Designer-churches are a violation of the Biblical pattern because MAN becomes the architect and not God. Once man (even with good intentions) begins to tinker with God’s creative works (whether it be designer babies, altering the food supplies, or the local church), there is a serious potential for some unintended consequences. And sometimes those consequences don’t show up until quite a bit later… until after the damage is done.

So, what in the world does this have to do with Millennials?

         It relates to Millennials today in this sense: Millennials are being specifically targeted by church planters today – many of whom are themselves Millennials. Churches are being designed specifically for Millennials – to attract them. While I’m commanded NOT to judge their motives, (I don’t know their hearts), we are told that the spiritual man “judges all things” – we are commanded to PROVE all things, their words and works, including the finished product… the new design. The finished product has been weighed in the balances and found wanting. The finished product has me concerned on many levels. But the particular issue we are considering today is the UNITY of the Body. The end result of targeting Millennials and designing a church to attract Millennials is that you end up with (for the most part) a church full of Millennials! That was their goal; that’s who they targeted; and (not surprisingly) that’s what they usually end up with. One of the consequences (intentional or unintentional) is that the church is divided along the lines of age. You end up with a church full of young Millennials. And where did they all come from? Some came through evangelism. Most came from other churches that were NOT designed for one particular group.

         There has been a constant flow of young people FROM fundamental Bible churches, Baptist churches, and even from some uncompromising Presbyterian and Reformed churches… and INTO the “designer churches.” Some might say, “What’s so bad about that? Now everybody can have the church they like… the style music they like… the style of worship they like… and fellowship with people who are their own age and have the same interests. Peace and harmony! What could be better?!” What could be better? God’s pattern revealed in the epistles!

God’s Plan: Unity in the Body

         This methodology of targeting Millennials and designing the church to attract and suit them fails on two fronts: It doesn’t follow the Biblical pattern for the local church. It violates the principle of the unity of the Body of Christ. The unintended consequence is you have divided the church in two: “churches for the older folks” and “churches for the youth.” It is not a hard and fast rule; there are exceptions; but that does seem to be the overall result.

God designed the Body to be ONE and it is ONE.

         Eph. 4:3-4 – The universal Body of Christ is ONE. It is one because God created the Body as ONE. Spirit baptism makes the Body one and no one can reverse God’s work. We don’t make the church one (united). It is by divine creation ONE – unified. In vs. 3 Paul does not tell us to make a unity of the Spirit. Unity of the Spirit in the universal Body of Christ already exists and no one could ever change that. Vs. 3 tells us to keep (guard; protect) that unity in the bond of PEACE – in local manifestations of the Body. Col. 3:12-15 – Ye are called in ONE Body. (vs.15)

         Paul agrees with himself hereJ Vs. 12-13 – He challenges the Colossian believers to “put on” clothing appropriate for the new creation IN Christ – mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffing, forbearing and forgiving one another. Vs. 14 – He tells them to put on love – that quality that BINDS all together as a mature unit, the way God designed. Vs. 15 – And Paul commands the believers to allow God’s peace to rule in their hearts in the assembly and with each other. Vs. 15 – and what is the driving force behind this command? It is the FACT that they are already “called into ONE Body” – every last one of those believers, regardless of their spiritual condition at the moment.

         UNITY in the Body of Christ already exists. That is God’s doing, and He wants us all to function with one another in the Body as if we really believed it! Walk by faith. That’s maturity.

         Every member and every function in the Body is NECESSARY.   I Cor.12:21 – One member cannot say to another member, “We don’t need you anymore!” I Cor. 12:22 – Even the seemingly “feeble” members of the Body are necessary. I Cor. 12:19 – And if every member were the same, then you don’t really have a body! These principles are essentials for a body. Remember that. The immediate purposes for UNITY in the Body: The smooth functioning of the Body. This is so that the work of the ministry can be conducted without fighting, complaining, and division. In the human body, the various members of the body function together or the body is handicapped; it cannot perform the necessary functions. The spiritual welfare of the body and each member: When there is fighting and division, there are often hurt feelings. It puts a lot of pressure on some members when other members that should be functioning refuse to function in harmony. If your knee doesn’t want to cooperate, you can hobble along, but it might make it difficult for your feet or your back. But when the body corporately functions in harmony and works together as ONE body, then each individual member is helped, aided, and can function more efficiently.

         The long term purpose for UNITY in the Body: For the Body of Christ, the long term effect of unity is its TESTIMONY before the world. Yes, there are many things God wants us to DO. There are many ways we are to be busy serving. We minister to one another. We share the gospel with the lost. We help send the gospel around the world. But far more important than what we DO is what we ARE. Why is unity so important in the local church? Because it magnifies the SON of God… His indwelling life… His love… His grace… His forgiveness… His mercy… His truth… When we function together as a unit – as a unified Body, we reflect what we ARE – the Body of Christ – functioning as God designed. Through that Body God’s Beloved Son is manifested to men and angels… unto the glory of the Father. And when the church is able to function in unity as designed, it will BE what God intended it to BE and it will DO what God intends for it to DO.

         The uniqueness of the Body of Christ- Gal. 3:27-28 – “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. ²⁸There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” IN Christ, those earthly distinctions don’t exist. IN Christ is a very special position – a heavenly position. IN Christ believers can live ABOVE the world and all of its skirmishes, bigotry, hatred, conflicts, and division. IN Christ, all the things that divide human beings, separate us, segregate us, categorize us, label us, and keep us apart in the world are meaningless in Christ. Paul lists a few of the issues of his day that separated people in the world: Jews and Gentiles: they were constant enemies. Bond and free: the source of much resentment and jealousy. Male and female: often the source of abuse. Paul’s list of things that divide us was not intended to be exhaustive, just illustrative… examples.

         In today’s world we might add: Red, yellow, black and white; Eastern and Western; rich and poor; Republicans, Democrats, Independents; educated and uneducated. What folly to divide the church over issues like these! And worse than folly; what a distorted picture that sends of the Body of Christ! In the Body of Christ, it is entirely irrelevant whether a deacon is rich or poor. It is totally irrelevant what color the pastor is. It matters nothing whether a church member was born in Israel or Saudi Arabia; Pakistan or India; North or South Korea. And when it comes to access to God – both male and female are irrelevant. We are all priests unto God if saved. And the same thing is true of age: In the church it should be irrelevant whether a person is a Gen Xer, Gen Y, a Millennial, a Baby Boomer, or any other generation. If they are born again, they are priests of God and members of the Body on equal footing.

         One of the glories of the church is that people who would never get along in the world are ONE in Christ – brothers and sisters. But that has not always been the case in reality. Segregating the churches along racial lines was a disgrace and a blot on the history of Christianity in this country. And SHAME on those bigots who hypocritically destroyed the unity and the uniqueness of the church by dividing it along racial lines – and sending out an incredibly distorted picture of Christ and His Body! What a blot!

         But what a glory when those earthly distinctions are overcome by faith in Christ – and believers of all different backgrounds function together in love as brothers and sisters IN Christ. A Hebrew Christian and a Palestinian Christian taking communion together; what a testimony! A former Irish Catholic and Irish Protestant singing “Blest be the Tie that Binds!” A saved Sikh and a saved Muslim working together as teen directors. What a demonstration of the power of the gospel!

          Those claiming to be Christians in the 20^th century have not always functioned as if they believed what the Bible says about our UNITY in the Spirit. The result has been division of one ugly sort or another… a blemish on the Body of Christ. Segregating churches along the lines of age cannot possibly be a good idea for the 21^st century. Designing a church to suit one particular group in the body is NOT the way a church should be organized. You don’t design a church just for men, or women, or rich people or poor, or for Jew or Gentile, or for sports fans, or for a particular political party. Dividing the church over age is just as wrong-headed. That’s a blatant violation of the unique nature of the church as ONE Body with many members.

         And consider the loss that is to the church at another level: I Cor. 12:21 – One member cannot say to another member, “We don’t need you anymore!” The old members of the body need the young. And the young need the old too – in ways they may not even have considered. The body was designed by God such that the members would be interdependent – members one of another. The older folks need the strength and energy of the younger folks to get things done. The younger folks need the wisdom and experience of the older folks to guide them in what they do and how to do it. This isn’t by accident, but by God’s design.   I Cor. 12:22 – Even the seemingly “feeble” members of the Body are necessary. Those old feeble members of the body are necessary. God said so! The body cannot function as designed without them. To purposely organize a church knowing that you are excluding necessary parts of the body is a serious issue. I Cor. 12:19 – And if every member were the same, then you don’t have much of a body! Or you have a body missing some key parts. A pile of elbows is not a body!

         God’s plan is for men and women, boys and girls, young and old to worship and function together as a family – in ONE BODY. God designed the church with PURPOSE in mind: Titus 2:4-5 – God designed it that the aged women are to “teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, ⁵To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.” Titus 2:6 – God designed for the older men to exhort the younger men “to be sober minded. ⁷In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity.” I Tim. 5:1-2 – The younger men are to practice showing respect and to practice purity in the Body: “Rebuke not an elder, but intreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren; The elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity.” You can’t do that in a church divided according to age groups.

         Consider how the book of Proverbs was recorded: Several whole chapters on a father imparting wisdom to his son – the younger generation. Several whole chapters on “Lady Wisdom” shouting out in the marketplace to all the young men to forsake their foolish ways and listen to the wisdom the older generation seeks to impart. God sets the members in the Body as it hath pleased Him. The human body as well as the body of Christ was designed by God “as it pleased Him.” God didn’t need to consult with man on how to design the human body – or the body of Christ. God designed it according to His infinite wisdom to have unity, diversity, in harmony. We are members one of another: interrelated and inter-dependent. We really do need one another.

         The pattern for the design of Salem Bible Church is found in Acts 2:42 and in the pastoral epistles. This church was designed for ALL BELIEVERS, not a select few… not one special group… I can guarantee you that when the church services here were being planned, we looked to God and His Word for direction. Never ONCE did we even consider, “What would this group or that group like?” And our message is not designed for one group either; we teach the whole counsel of God for the whole family of God – for the whole Body of Christ. And yes, our doctrine is old fashioned. Our gospel is old fashioned. In fact, it is 2000 years old… and we wouldn’t have it any other way. And just to be up-front about this, we don’t even try to “make” God’s Word relevant – to any generation. The Bible IS relevant because it is TRUTH – and God’s 2000 year-old unchangeable truth is what every generation needs. My job is to feed the sheep – exactly as Jesus said to Peter and Peter recorded for us. And the sheep need a decent meal – not cookies and milk, but the deep things of God. And Spirit filled believers will rejoice in that – regardless of their age, generation, social status, color, their education, or their ethnicity. This local church was NOT designed for Millennials, or Baby Boomers, or Gen Xers. This local assembly was designed for believers: whosoever calls on the name of the Lord. And “whosoevers” come in all sizes, shapes, and colors. The church was never intended to be an exclusive club or a specialty boutique for one narrow niche of society. What a distortion!

         The church of God is ONE BODY functioning in such a way so as to demonstrate unity, diversity, and harmony… unto the glory of God – the divine architect of it all. The Body of Christ is closely connected to Christ Himself. Tinkering with that pattern of the local church is a dangerous thing indeed.