You Belong to the Family of God
By Rick Warren
"The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ." 1 Corinthians 12:12 (NLT)
Baptism and communion are the visible signs of unity in the church.
They’re symbols of your incorporation into the body of Christ. Both of them illustrate that you belong to Christ, and that you also belong to everybody else in the family of God.
The Bible talks about the importance of communion in 1 Corinthians 10:16-17: "When we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ? And though we are many, we all eat from one loaf of bread, showing that we are one body” (NLT).
Baptism is also a sign that you intend to protect the unity of the church family that you belong to: "The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ" (1 Corinthians 12:12 NLT).
Your physical body is made up of many parts, but they all are meant to work together in unity. It’s the same way in the church. Just take a quick look around any church, and it’s obvious that everyone is different. But the church forms one body that is meant to work in unity toward God’s purposes on earth.
Whatever differences you have in cultural, racial, religious, or national background, it doesn't matter. Every believer has been baptized into Christ's body by the same Spirit, and that makes it possible for the church to have unity.
You are unified with every other Christian, regardless of your differences. That means you have more in common with someone who looks nothing like you but is a believer in Christ, than you do with someone in your own family who does not follow Jesus. You may have physical or cultural commonalities with the people around you, but the most important commonality is with your brothers and sisters in Christ.
Have you tried to look past the differences that don’t really matter in the church and to focus instead on what you have in common in Christ? God can do an awesome work through you and a unified church that’s focused on the Gospel.
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This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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