I am privileged to present the final part of Bud Hancock’s instructive series concerning the Body of Christ. Many thanks Bud.

Gibber! Gibber!

Chugley

The Body of Christ – Part Three

By Bud Hancock

Introduction

In this part of the article series discussing “The Body of Christ”, I will hopefully delve a little deeper into the Anointing that provided the power Jesus demonstrated in his ministry. He spoke often during His ministry about the mighty, miraculous works He did being the result of the Anointing of the Holy Spirit on and in Him. There can be no overstating the fact that Jesus cannot be separated from The Anointing. Even though He was/is the very Son of God, righteous, sinless and perfect, He needed the Anointing to perform miracles, but the benefits of the Anointing extended far beyond the performance of miracles and were a source of superhuman strength.

Superhuman Strengthener

When Jesus was “led by the Spirit” into the wilderness, there was a definite motive that God had for that venture. Not only was Jesus anointed to resist Satan’s attempt to cause Him to sin, He was anointed to do something that is humanly impossible: He ate nothing for forty days straight; we are not told whether He had water to drink, but fasting for forty days is something very few, if any, humans could ever accomplish and remain alive, let alone healthy. If not the Anointing, what was it that sustained his physical body for that time of testing?

There are several instances in the gospels where Jesus was preaching or teaching and the words He spoke infuriated the crowds to the point where they would have attacked Him and tried to kill Him, but He “passing through the midst of them, went His way” (Luke 4:30). Whether He suddenly became invisible to the angry mob, allowing Him to escape, we are not told, but that same miraculous event occurred when Jesus was teaching on the Mount of Olives (John 10:39). His words sent that crowd into a frenzy and once again, He “escaped out of their hand”. Even though Jesus was/is the Son of God, He still needed the guidance of the Holy Spirit in His daily life to avoid the pitfalls put in His path by Satan.

The Holy Spirit is probably the least understood part of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Ghost. He is always present everywhere (omnipresent), He knows all things (omniscient) and has all power (omnipotent). So when the Logos, the Word of God, became flesh and left His divine traits and became a human being, He was as much in need of the guidance of the Spirit as we all are. As He was growing up, neither His mother, Mary, nor His “stepfather”, Joseph, were learned scholars of the scriptures, but even when He was twelve years old and was taken to the Temple in Jerusalem, He astounded and amazed the most learned Hebrew scholars and teachers with His knowledge of the scriptures.

But wait a minute, you might say, Jesus was half God, so He had access to more godly wisdom and knowledge than we can ever have. Really?

The Holy Spirit As The Guide Into ALL Truth

In the Book of John, Jesus told His disciples, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come” (John 16:13). If you are a born-again believer, and you have received the anointing of the Holy Spirit, those words are as much for you as they were for the early disciples. The promise to have a guide into ALL truth is still an active promise of the Holy Spirit and will not change, because God (Father, Son and Holy Ghost) does not change. Just as Jesus was guided into all truth by the Holy Spirit, He promised His disciples that they also would receive the same guidance.

Jesus, speaking to a group of new believers said this: “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Notice that there is an “If-Then condition” in His statement, namely that one will only be made free by continuing in Jesus’s word. The continuous study and research of the word of truth, guided by the Holy Spirit, is the key to living in complete freedom, and the reference to being made free here is to living free from the slavery of sin.

The Holy Spirit As The Comforter

A short time before Jesus was crucified, He was teaching His disciples about His coming death and resurrection. In that teaching, in the fourteenth chapter of John, He introduced The Comforter, saying that, once He had ascended to His Father, He would pray the Father and He would  send them another comforter. That word is interesting and deserves further explanation.

Comforter is the English translation of the Greek word, “parakletos”, (Strong’s 3874, pronounced par-ak’-lay-tos) meaning an intercessor, an advocate, or a consoler. It is derived from two Greek words, “para” (Strong’s 3844), meaning “beside” or “alongside”, and “kaleo” (Strong’s 2564, pronounced kal-eh’-o, meaning “to call”. The clear meaning is that the Comforter that would be sent to them would be one who could be “called alongside” to provide consolation and comfort as an intercessor or advocate.

All believers have times when they need to be comforted; some are times when the death of a loved one has occurred and grief tries to take over. Others might be times when a loss of some possession has taken place and sorrow over the loss occurs, or when one slips into sin and needs forgiveness. During these times, the Holy Spirit, as the promised “Comforter” is there, alongside the believer to bring comfort and hope, to provide solace and the peace of God, to make intercession to the Father on their behalf. When a believer sins and fails to measure up to the righteousness demanded by God, the Holy Spirit is that advocate that encourages us to repent and seek God’s forgiveness.

While He was with them on the Earth, Jesus provided their comfort, consolation and intercession, and was their constant advocate with the Father. However, there were brief times while He was still on Earth that He was separated from them, but with the Holy Spirit as Comforter, since He is omnipresent, there should never be one moment when any believers would lack that work on their behalf.

The Holy Spirit as the Giver of Spiritual Gifts

The Apostle Paul provides the best explanation of the Gifts of the Spirit in the fourth chapter of Ephesians. In that discourse, Paul explains that in His role as the Head of the Church, HIS BODY on Earth, Jesus, the Anointed One, gave gifts to various members of His body for the purpose of the perfecting of the saints, the work of the ministry and the edifying of the Body of Christ, until all believers come in(to) the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect (mature) man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ (remember, this means the Anointed One AND His anointing) since the Anointed One cannot be separated from The Anointing.

The “edifying” reference is interesting in that the Greek words translated “edifying” here mean the maturation of the saints so that they are fully capable of performing the work of the ministry assigned to them by Jesus; that they become able to absorb the “meat” of the word (the truth) and not subsist only on the “milk”.

Immature Christians, like small children or babies are not very effective at carrying out the ministry as Jesus did. All the gifts are activated by the Holy Spirit and work perfectly together in harmony so that, whenever they are used, the result is the building up of the entire Body of Christ.

These spiritual gifts are not available as choices from a heavenly catalog, but are given in accordance with the knowledge of God as to which believer will use the gifts in accordance with God’s will and plan for the Body of Christ. The Holy Spirit knows each believer intimately and does NOT make mistakes when the gifts are given. Paul explains that “the gifts and calling of God are without repentance” (Romans 11:29), meaning that God does not change the giftings, because He does not err when the gifts are given; rather, it is up to the receiver of the gift to seek God on the proper use of those gifts.

Those who are chosen to receive one or more of these spiritual gifts carries a huge responsibility and must only use them in ways that will produce the results listed in the paragraph above.

The Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Life

Do you understand that one law, the law that brings slavery, poverty and death can be overcome and its power defeated by another law, one that brings life and freedom? How is this possible? Please allow these words from Paul to convince you that, anytime you see the word Christ, do NOT think that it is talking about the last name of Jesus, but rather it is talking expressly about the Anointing that made Jesus the miracle-worker that changed the world.

Paul stated, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2). Read the entire eighth chapter of Romans to get a thorough understanding of what it means to be “in Christ Jesus” and to have Him living in you. If Christ (the Anointed One) is in you, then the same anointing that dwelt on and in Jesus is IN YOU.

Before you were born again, you were under the control of the law of sin and death, but the moment you made Jesus the Lord of your life, you were transferred to a place under the control of the law of the Spirit of Life in the Anointed One and His Anointing. The higher law of the Spirit of Life overcame the lower law of sin and death that had trapped you in slavery all your life. This is one of the most important truths that you can learn as the Holy Spirit guides you into all Truth.

The Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation

In the first chapter of Ephesians, Paul is addressing the saints in Ephesus and letting them know of his unceasing prayers for them, praying “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Remember that it is the Anointing that guides the believer into all Truth (Jesus is the way, the Truth and The Life – John 14:6) and presents the wisdom of God to those who diligently seek Him. Some of the truth of God is gotten from much study of His word, using reason and logic, but other times, it is only through a special revelation provided by the Holy Spirit that God’s knowledge and wisdom is attained.

When John was exiled to the Isle of Patmos in the Aegean Sea between Greece and what is now known as Turkey, he was “in the Spirit” on the Lord’s Day (Revelation 1:10), meaning He was under the influence of the Holy Spirit, guiding His entire person, spirit, soul and body, as He received directly from the lips of Jesus, the “Revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto Him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John (Revelation 1:1).

Jesus told John to “write the things which thou hast seen and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter” (Revelation 1:19). Under the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Revelation, the Apostle John was shown exactly what the end of all things would be according to God’s plan. What a privilege was given to John to be the one chosen by Jesus to record the wonders unveiled through the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in that magnificent Book!

The Holy Spirit as a Friend

“….and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). The words for “friend” and “brother” in this verse yield some interesting clues as to the identity of the true friend.

The word for brother is the Hebrew word “ach” (Strong’s 251, pronounced “awkh”, and it means the literal familial relationship of a blood brother). However, the word “friend” is the Hebrew word, “ahab”, (Strong’s 157, pronounced “aw-hab’”, and it means to have affection for, to love or be loved). The idea is that there is a person who, because He loves you with great and undying affection, will never leave you nor desert you; the love He displays is out of an intense *desire to love rather than the love established due to having emerged from the same womb.  *See the word for God’s love, agape (Agapao, ag-ap-ah’-o, Strong’s 25)

In Jewish history, the word “friend” has been known as a covenant term, establishing a very special bond between people who are joined in a covenant sealed with blood. In today’s world, this intimate sharing of one’s self is almost unknown, but in the Old Testament, a covenant sealed in blood was the strongest bond known to man, and when the covenant was entered into with Almighty God, it was an eternal and unbreakable bond. It meant that the persons joined in the covenant would die before they allowed their “friend” to suffer loss.

In writing to the Hebrews, Paul quoted the words of the Lord spoken to Joshua in Joshua 1:5, “As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” . This is the perfect example of the Friend spoken of in Proverbs 18:24. This is a person who, no matter what a friend is going through, He will never be alone, without comfort, consolation, or intercession to the Father.

Throughout the Old Testament we find promises of the faithfulness of the Lord as He led His people through every danger and into His perfect place for them, and in the New Testament as He led the disciples of Jesus through every danger and into the places where the Holy Spirit could function through them.

We who are believers in Jesus, The Anointed One, are joined with Him in a covenant sealed with His own blood and there is no power in the universe that can possibly break that bond. The Holy Spirit, given to us as our Comforter, our Advocate, Our Intercessor and our Consoler is that Friend who  will never leave us nor forsake us.

Conclusion

Just as Christ is NOT the last name of Jesus, The Body of Christ is NOT the “name of the Church”.

Throughout my life, I have been in many churches that, even though they call themselves “Christian” and likely consider themselves to be the Body of Christ, they and their congregations are as dead as door nails. It is only through the presence of The Holy Spirit that any Truth, any wisdom and any knowledge can be gained. It is also only through His presence that we are able to actually function as Jesus commanded His Body to function, using the Spiritual gifts, in the Love of God, to show a lost and hurting world just exactly Who and What Jesus IS: The One Anointed with the power to bring salvation, comfort, consolation and healing to those who are lost.

We now have the greatest challenge we could possibly have, to actually BE the Body of Christ, the living organism that was planned before the foundation of the world. There are literally thousands of churches (“organizations”) on earth, with many names they use to describe themselves, but there is still only ONE Body of Christ, a living organism made up of millions of believers from every nation, with every skin color, every language, and every ethnic background. What they all have in common is the Blood of Jesus and the Anointing of The Holy Spirit.

Organizations have their place, but they are NOT to be the first priority for the believer. If we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and have allowed The Holy Spirit to change us into the image of God’s precious Son, then we are all members of the ONE Body of Christ, and only then can we function as designed and be able to be a part of any organization that allows the Body of Christ to do the work that Jesus started.

Blessings ! and Maranatha!

budaroo@twc.com

Born and raised in a small textile town in North Carolina, Bud’s family moved to Michigan in the hope of finding better employment with General Motors.  After graduating from high school, Bud began an apprenticeship with General Motors to become a Metal Modelmaker.  Retiring after a 30 year career, which included an eight year stint as a Metrologist (Science of high precision measurement), he and his wife moved back to North Carolina to be near his elderly parents.  Shortly thereafter, with both of his parents having passed, he began a new career in the bank security/ATM business, advancing from an entry level technician to one of two North Carolina customer service managers for his employer.  Retiring again after 13 years, he and his wife of 51 years relocated to Tennessee where Bud began writing articles emphasizing Biblical teaching and geopolitical issues.  At age 75, he and his wife relocated to South Carolina with their Miniature Schnauzer, Baxter.  Bud continues to study God’s word and write articles on Christian living and geopolitical issues from the Biblical end times  perspective.