Teamwork

Titus 3:12-15

12 When I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, make every effort to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. 13 Diligently help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way so that nothing is lacking for them. 14 Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful. 15 All who are with me greet you. Greet those who love us in the faith.

Grace be with you all.

 

What we do matters.  This was a lesson my pastor taught a year or two ago; that although we cannot earn salvation, our actions have an eternal impact on others.  “Being fruitful” or “having good fruit” is a common analogy throughout the scriptures because it is easy to understand.  A related analogy throughout the bible is being one body of people.  You see, it is necessary that we all have different purposes yet we all work together for one common goal: the Gospel of Christ.  Paul explains this a bit more in detail in Romans 12:

For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; ifservice, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

But if the foot gets a cut, will not the hands clean and bandage it?  If the torso wants to go somewhere, do not the legs move and the feet stabilize to get it where it needs to go?  Similarly, Paul is instructing Titus here not only to do this for the sake of the ministry of Zenas and Apollos, but reminds him that this is a necessary reminder for all who claim to be within the will of God.

I’ve said it before and I’m sure I will say it again: as the body of Christ, why can we not be as effective as the American military?  As a veteran, I’ve experienced some of the greatest teamwork ever.  We were trained to work together regardless of nationality, persuasion, background, family, rank, or part of service.  We all worked toward whatever common goal or task w were given and gave it our all EVERY TIME until the task was completed as perfectly as possible.  Why then, cannot the Church of God (aka the Body of Christ) function the same way?

In boot camp we were trained to lose our individualism.  I remember one recruit in my platoon just could not stop using the word “I”.  For those of you who have experienced boot camp of some sort, you will remember that you had to speak in the third person.  This was implemented to understand that we are part of a bigger plan, part of a bigger organization that is more important than ourselves. Some call this brainwashing, but I’ll tell you one thing, it saves the lives of many when there is no time to think for yourself.

We must constantly work to support one another in our purposes.  An eye cannot put on its own glasses, a lung cannot intake its own air, a brain cannot circulate its own blood.  Everything must work together in support of another or else each part will wither and die on its own.  We have not been pulled together into this body for our own sakes, but for the sake of others.

How are you contributing to the betterment of the Body of Christ?

 

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