24. The Body of Christ

That institution which is separate from the world and unites the people of God into a distinct community; having laws, ordinances, manners, and customs of its own, directly derived from the Savior of the world, is called the congregation or church of the Lord. This is sometimes technically called the mystical body of Christ, distinguished from his literal and natural body. Over this spiritual body, he is the Head, the King, Lord, and Lawgiver, and they are each members of his body, under his direction and governance.

The true Christian church, or house of God, is made up of all those everywhere who publicly acknowledge Jesus of Nazareth as the true Messiah and the only Savior of humanity; and, building themselves on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, associate under the constitution which he himself has granted and authorized in the New Testament, and are walking in his ordinances and commandments — and no others.

This institution, called the congregation of God, is a great community of communities — not a community representing communities; but a community made up of many particular communities; each of which is built on the same foundation, follows the same rules, enjoys the same charter, and is under the jurisdiction of no other community of Christians; but is to all other communities as an individual disciple is to every other individual disciple in any one particular community meeting in any given place.

Still, all these particular congregations of the Lord, whether at Rome, Corinth, or Ephesus, though equally independent of one another in managing their own specific affairs, are, by virtue of one common Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one common salvation, one kingdom or church of God; and, as such, are obligated to cooperate with one another in all measures that promote the great purposes of Christ's death and resurrection.

But, in order to this holy fellowship and cooperation of churches, it is essential that they have an intimate and approving knowledge of one another, which can only be had and enjoyed in the form of districts. Thus the "congregations in Judea" intimately knew one another and cooperated. Those in Galatia also knew one another and cooperated. And while some of the churches or brothers in each district were mutually acquainted with some in another, making the churches of both districts acquainted with one another, they were enabled to cooperate to the ends of the earth.

These districts are part of the circumstances of Christ's kingdom, as well as the method of maintaining correspondence and cooperation among them, and the occasions and incidents requiring concerted and joint action. For these, as well as for the circumstances of any particular community, the Apostles gave no specific directions. It was, indeed, impossible they could: for as the circumstances of particular communities, and of the whole church, vary at different times and places, no one set of particular, sectional, or intersectional regulations could suit all these peculiarities and emergencies. These, then, are necessarily left to the wisdom and discretion of the whole community, as the particular needs and changes of society may require.

But in granting to the communities of the saints this necessary freedom to decide what is expedient, orderly, decent, and of public and practical utility in the circumstances of Christianity, no allowance is implied authorizing any interference with a single item of the Christian institution. Hence the necessity of a very clear distinction, not between "the essentials and non-essentials," for in Divine Christianity there are no non-essentials; but between the family of God and its circumstances — between the Christian institution and its accidents. It is certain that there is a very clear difference between any individual man, family, community, or institution, and its circumstances. What is more obvious than the difference between a man and his clothing, his house, his neighborhood, his associations and connections?

The Christian institution has its facts, its precepts, its promises, its ordinances, and their meaning or doctrine. These are not matters of policy, arrangement, or expediency; but of divine and unchanging ordination and permanence. Hence the faith, the worship, and the righteousness; or the doctrine, the piety, and the morality of the gospel institution are not legitimate subjects of human legislation, alteration, or arrangement. No person or community can touch these and be innocent. These rest upon the wisdom and authority of Jehovah; and anyone who meddles with these presumes to do what the cherubim and seraphim dare not. Whatever, then, is part of the Christian faith or the Christian hope — whatever constitutes ordinances or precepts of worship, or statutes of moral right and wrong, like the ark of the covenant, is not to be touched with uninspired and uncommissioned hands.

But whether we register the churches in a given district, or the members in a particular church; whether we meet more than once on the Lord's day, or at what hour, and in what kind of building; whether we commemorate the Lord's death in the morning or afternoon, before day or after night; whether we sit around one table, or in our respective pews; whether we sing from a book or from memory, prose or verse, etc., are matters in which our ideas of expediency, decency, and good order may have free scope. Also, whether the churches in a given district shall, by letter, messengers, or regular meetings, once or twice per year, or more often, communicate with one another; whether they shall send one, two, or twenty persons, or all go and communicate face to face, or send a letter; and whether they shall annually print, write, or publish their statistics, etc., are mere circumstances of the Christian institution.

But cooperation itself is one thing, and the manner of cooperation another. Cooperation, as much as the fellowship of Christians, is part of the Christian institution. We must "strive together in our prayers" for one another, and for the salvation of people; and this, even if there were no scriptural example or command on the subject, is enough. To pray for one another as individuals or communities implies that we will assist one another in every way for which we pray for one another: otherwise, our prayers and thanksgivings for each other are mere hypocrisy. Anyone who would pray for the progress of the truth at home and abroad, having the power to contribute a single dollar to that end, and yet withholds it, shows how little value he places on his own prayers, and how much on his money.

From the days of the Apostles until now, cooperative associations of churches have consistently followed the political divisions of the earth. Those "in Judea, Galatia, Achaia, Pontus, Cappadocia, Macedonia, Asia, Bithynia," etc., are designations of churches and brothers familiar to all New Testament readers. This is a matter of convenience, rather than necessity; just as the churches in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, etc., can generally more conveniently and successfully cooperate by states and territories than by any other divisions or precincts. I say, this is a matter of convenience, rather than necessity. It is necessary that we cooperate, but it is a matter of convenience that the churches in one county, state, or nation form regular ways and means for cooperation.

The necessity of cooperation is felt everywhere and in all associations of people. It is part of the economy of Heaven. What are mountains but grains of sand! What are oceans but drops of water! And what are the mightiest and most triumphant armies but collections of individual men! How much more good or harm can be done by cooperation than by individual effort, the history of the world, both civil and ecclesiastical, does little more than detail. One hundred churches, well disciplined, acting together with Christian zeal, piety, and humanity — frequently meeting together in committees of ways and means for building up Zion, for fencing in the deserts, cultivating the enclosed fields, watering the dry and barren spots, striving together mightily in prayer, in preaching the word, in contributing to the needs of the saints, in enlightening the ignorant, and in devising all practical ways of doing good — would, in a given period, do more than twice the same number acting individually, without concert, without cooperation, and that united energy, always the result of intelligent and heartfelt combination.

But, to achieve this, Christians must regard the church, or body of Christ, as one community, though made up of many small communities, each of which is an organized member of this great national organization; which, under Christ, as the supreme and sole Head, King, Lord, and Lawgiver, has the conquest of the whole world in its prayers, aims, plans, and efforts. Therefore, there must be such an understanding and agreement between these particular congregations as will suffice for recognition and approval of their several acts; so that the members, or the actions of one community shall be treated with the respect due to them at home, wherever they may be presented. On this principle only can any number of independent and distinct communities of any kind — political, commercial, literary, moral, or religious — act together with mutual benefit to themselves, and with proper regard to the general good. Anyone who seeks apostolic support for this view of cooperation will find ample authority in the Acts and Epistles of the Apostles. Paul addresses "all the saints in Rome" in his Epistle to the Romans. Now, in Rome, there were various churches, as shown in chapter 16: 5, 10, 11, 14, 15. He addresses all of these as one single community. Again, he represents "all the churches of the Gentiles" as joining together in thanks to Priscilla and Aquila, 16:4. He also represents "the churches of Christ" as uniting in greetings through him to the Romans, verse 16. In his letters to the Corinthians, he addresses the church of Corinth, "All the saints who are in all Achaia," and "all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ." 1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Cor. 1:1. There he urges them to "be perfectly united in the same mind and in the same judgment." 1 Cor. 1:10. "The churches in Asia united in their greetings to the Corinthians," chapter 16:19. He speaks in the 2nd Epistle of all the churches in Achaia as "helping together in prayer for him" and his companions, and of their helping him on his way in the work of the Lord. In the 8th chapter, he informs them of the grace of God given to "all the churches in Macedonia," shown by the generosity of their united contributions to the saints. He also speaks of equality in the mutual contributions of churches in one cooperation—and of a brother chosen by several communities to travel with the Apostles, 8:14, 18, 19; and of his accompanying brothers as "messengers of the churches." The entire 9th chapter of this epistle speaks of the cooperation of the churches in public contributions for common purposes. Paul, and all the brothers with him, unite in the epistle to "all the churches in Galatia." He commands them to "bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." But indeed, all the catholic epistles are clear proofs that cooperation is of the very essence of the Christian institution. Such are some of Paul's epistles, both epistles of Peter, the 1st of John, and those of James and Jude. The very basis of such general or universal letters is the fact that all the communities of Christ constitute but one body, and are individually and mutually bound to cooperate in all things pertaining to a common salvation.