Ephesians 1:23

[The church], which is His body, the fullness of Him Who fills all in all [for in that body lives the full measure of Him Who makes everything complete, and Who fills everything everywhere with Himself] (Ephesians 1:23 AMP).

We’ve all met people who claim to know Christ yet do not feel any compulsion to go to “church.”  They say things like, “Well, I can worship God anywhere.  I don’t need to go to a building to do that.”  While that may be true in one sense, it denies the compelling argument Paul sets out in this verse as to why we actually need to gather together with other believers in what we traditionally call “church.”

There is a sense in which Christ is filling us individually, but the reality that God does not want us to miss in this area of Scripture is that there is another way in which we participate in the presence of Christ that is corporate, rather than individual.  With the filling of Christ in me personally, I am complete in my gifts and calling, my indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and my position of salvation past and sanctification present.  Yet, when I get together with other believers, I contribute my fullness to their fullness and it creates another level of the fullness of Christ.  This concept is very much like those photos we see of a face, but when we look more closely, we see that the photo itself is made up of individual pictures that all come together to create the bigger picture. 

That’s what Paul is saying – there is a bigger picture of Christ that is fulfilled in the body of Christ. It’s why Scripture says that wherever two or more are gathered in His name, He will be in the midst of them.  That doesn’t make sense unless you consider this concept of bigger picture because we know that Jesus is already in us by the power of the Holy Spirit, so why would He be in the midst of us only when two or more are gathered?  It is because He is with us in a different way.

It is important not to miss this concept because it is the power of God in the world today.  We can all be witnesses for Christ individually, but there is a synergy that is created when we collectively worship and serve the Lord.  It is like the one draft horse who can pull 2500 pounds alone, but when yoked with another draft horse of equal size and strength, they don’t just pull twice as much.  They are able to pull exponentially more because of the synergy of their union.  As a believer, I can impact my world.  As a member of the Body of Christ, I can join forces with my brothers and sisters and impact HIS world.

So while it is true that we don’t need to go to church to worship God, we sure do need to go to church to see a fullness of Christ that we won’t see in any sunrise, mountaintop, or any other place on earth worshipping God on our own.  As a believer, we would be missing out on a special blessing that God desires to give us if we fail to take advantage of the power of the Body of Christ with whom He has specifically told us to gather together. 

The next time I get together with my brothers and sisters in Christ, I will purposefully be on the lookout to see what God will do with the synergy of our faith as He shows up in a special way in the midst of us.

Check out Gennarino's devotional on this verse:  Ephesians 1:23.