A Greater Body for a Greater Arena
Just outside the United Center in downtown Chicago stands a 12-foot bronze statue of arguably the greatest basketball player that ever lived.
I’m talking about 14-time NBA All-Star, five-time MVP, and six-time NBA Champion, Michael Jordan.
About a year ago, I finished watching The Last Dance, that Netflix docuseries on the dynasty of the 1990s Chicago Bulls. As I watched, it dawned on me how athletically demanding it was for Michael Jordan to do what he did.
And I don’t just mean the dexterity, the speed, the strength, and muscle coordination your body needs. It also demands mental fortitude.
On the court, other players are constantly trying to get into your head. Off the court, you’re bombarded by cameras, microphones, and people wanting your autograph. You need emotional resilience to be like Mike – because professional basketball will push you psychologically as it will physically. Professional basketball is an arena that involves your entire body.
So, what does this have to do with Romans 12:1-8? Paul, in these verses, paints a picture of a far greater body called by God to contend in a far greater arena.
This body is the Church – the body of Christian believers – and we have been called to work together toward a far greater, singular purpose.
One Body, One Mission
Paul writes in Romans 12:1. “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship.”
That’s right: in a me-first, consumer-driven, made-to-order, on-demand world, Christ calls us to walk a narrow path of lifelong cross-carrying and daily death to self. You and I as Christ-followers are called to live and give self-sacrificially. Not only that, but contrary to our culture that stresses privatization of our spiritual lives, we – in faith – have been grafted by God into a body of believers, where each member belongs to all the others. And like our own bodies, every part has a different function – yet, they nevertheless work unitedly toward a common, singular goal.
As Christ-followers, we strive to live in peace with one another (12:18). We set aside vanity, self-centeredness, and conceit (12:16b). We pursue gospel-harmony with brothers and sisters within our church (12:16a). We share with those of God’s people who are in need, and practice Christlike hospitality with everyone (12:13). We hate evil, and cling to what is good (12:9). We set aside competitive insecurity and jealousy and rejoice in the diversity of gifts God has graciously poured out on his Church (12:3). We together strive to faithfully manage all that we’ve been given – our time, our talents, and our treasures – for the spiritual “building up” of the body of believers and towards the mission of sharing the life-saving good news of Jesus – our God and Savior – with the world (12:4-8).
It’s truly amazing what our God accomplishes through us when we – as a body – work together to be what he has called us to be.
Spiritual Autoimmune Disease
But the fact is, some of you are here today because a church you belonged to at one time in your life failed to be the body God called it to be. So, what happened?
Do you know what an autoimmune disease is? An autoimmune disease is when your body’s natural defense system can’t distinguish between your own cells and foreign cells; simply put, your own body starts attacking itself.
For example, Type 1 Diabetes is where your body’s immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells in your pancreas – meaning you’ll need regular insulin shots to survive. Or how about Multiple Sclerosis, where your immune system attacks nerve cells, which results in cognitive difficulties, vision problems, fatigue, and loss of muscle coordination.
Chances are, you or someone you know struggles with an autoimmune disease. And they’ll tell you how difficult life is – because their body isn’t operating the way it’s supposed to: their body is waging war against itself.
Sadly enough, churches can suffer from autoimmune diseases, too. And I don’t mean Type 1 Diabetes or MS.
I mean when we use our words to tear each other down or run the rumor mill.
It’s when we hold grudges and withhold forgiveness.
It’s when we avoid certain people at church – or when we avoid church entirely.
It’s when we have no shortage of demands of how the church should serve me, while simultaneously having no shortage of excuses for why I can’t serve in the church.
It’s when we serve so as to be the center of attention.
It’s when we see sharing of our gifts and abilities within this body of believers as nothing more than a net loss of time and energy.
It’s when we, as a congregation, settle for merely surviving – not thriving – where we’d rather just maintain what we have, instead of grow what we have.
It’s when our attitude is self-centered, not Christ-centered.
When we start to conform to the patterns of this world, the body of believers suffers – and even wages war against itself.
“In view of God’s mercy…”
So, what sets us free from the patterns of this world – and breaks down all barriers between us? What empowers us to defy the patterns of this world and stand out – giving boldly, even self-sacrificially? What puts the patterns of this world to shame and inspires a greater goodness and a greater love within us? What reduces the patterns of this world to rubble and rallies people of all tribes and all generations behind a common, singular banner for a common, singular identity?
To answer that, we need to go back to Romans 12:1 – to the key operative phrase of that verse: “in view of God’s mercy.” The why behind our living and giving self-sacrificially is God’s abundant love for us in Christ.
Want to hear something awesome? God doesn’t need your time, talents, or treasures. They were never initially ours to begin with: God gifted them to us. Our God’s existence doesn’t depend on how much money we put in the plate – as if he needs to eat to survive; he’s the God who daily puts bread on your plate, because you need him to survive. He’s a God who doesn’t need you – yet he, in love, would relentlessly pursue you because you need him! He would rather have a heaven with you than without you. He’s the God who gives us his best – even when we give him our worst. He’s the God who, to buy us eternal residence in the mansions of heaven, would shed his perfect blood on a cross, to win us forgiveness and an identity that will never perish, spoil, or fade: in Christ, you are God’s family!
That changes how you see other people, doesn’t it? Through the lens of God’s mercy made manifest in Christ and his cross – we see our church family differently, too.
God may not need your time, talents, or treasures; but your neighbor does. Your gifts support the salary of your pastor, so he can be that which you’ve called him to be: a full-time shepherd relentlessly dedicated to Christ and his gospel and completely committed to the mission of the Church. Your gifts not only keep the lights on and the water flowing, but also support new initiatives to reach new people. Your hours of volunteering are used by God to reach communities with the timeless and timely good news of Jesus. New visitors come because you canvassed their house that Saturday morning. Drifting members come back because you cared enough to call them, to write them a letter, or pay them a visit. God delights to give through you!
The Last Dance shows certainly shows what happens when an athlete’s head isn’t in the game, or he sprains his ankle, or sustains a back injury: when one part suffers, the body suffers. But the series also showcases what happens when your entire body is in the game and wholly committed to a single vision: for Michael Jordan, the crucible of professional basketball conformed his entire body into a relentless machine that could seemingly suspend the laws of gravity and dunk from the free throw line.
You are part of a far greater body called by God to contend in a far greater arena. God prides himself with doing the extraordinary with the seemingly ‘ordinary’. May Christ and his gospel always be the why behind what we do – and may we – as one body – continue to carry out Christ’s mission in view of God’s mercy.