amokarts

I was listening to the radio the other night and I heard a song that hit me lyrically like a ton of bricks. The song is by a new group called Casting Crowns and it's called if we are the body.

The chorus goes like this
If we are the body why aren't his arms reaching?
Why aren't his hands healing?
Why aren't his words teaching?
If we are the body
Why aren't his feet going?
Why is his love not showing them
there is a way.

This song brings up a crucial point. The church is the body of Jesus Christ. A large percentage of people in the US proclaim themselves to be Christians. If this is true, why do things look the way they look? I think there are two things to consider. First, the church is a house divided, brothers and sisters fighting each other over things that are sometimes insignificant, while the world dies in its sin. Secondly we aren't practicing what we preach. Are our arms open? Are we welcoming? Are we loving? Are we seeking God's will for our lives? Are we authentic? Are we helping people use their God given gifts and find their God given purpose? We are the children of God and the question is do people see the family resemblance.

Brothers and sisters, revival starts at home. Revival starts with me. Examine yourself. Would someone want to be a Christian after watching the way you live your life? When you feel that's going all right, look at your church and ask the same question. Are you united? Can people see that you are Jesus' disciples by the way you love one another? Do you have vital relationships with other churches both within and outside your denomination? Are you working together to share the love of Jesus with a hurting world? We have got to stop being severed parts and start being the body of Christ. This will all start with prayer and fasting.
Jesus came that we might have life and have it to the full. Are you living the labundant life of a follower of Jesus Christ or does something need to change?
If we are the body...