Fitted Together

In Ephesians Paul talks about how Christ has changed the existence of Gentiles. Originally they were "having no hope and without God" (Eph 2:12). "But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." (Eph 2:13) It is Paul's "gospel," His mission, His good news. According to Paul,

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. (Eph 2:19-22)

What is this "building"? It is "a holy temple." It is the Church. The foundation is "the apostles and the prophets." For us today that translates into the Word of God provided by God through those apostles and prophets. The cornerstone -- that which guides the entire building project -- is Christ Himself, against which all structures in the building are compared. And the building material? It's you and it's me. It is "living stones" (1 Peter 2:5). Not bricks, but oddly shaped and variably rough or smooth rocks "being fitted together." The language speaks of being closely jointed together. Very literally, it takes all kinds. This one fits just perfectly here while that one cannot go anywhere else but there. It fills that spot perfectly. No, the rock is not perfect, but as it is, it is perfectly suited to its purpose in this building.

We tend to think of church as that building on the corner because that's what the rest of the world thinks, but we're smarter than that. We know it's much more than that. It's all believers. I think, still, that we don't consider it far enough. The building that is being constructed to "house God," so to speak -- this God-designed temple -- is absolutely organic. It has nuances and variations. It has rough spots and smooth spots. It is closely jointed together, built of living stones, each with their purpose and role.

It's really breathtaking when you view it in that light. And, in that light, it's really sad when some of those living stones opt out. "Nope, I don't want to be a part of that." "I can't find a good church," they tell me, failing to grasp that the church is much more organic than that and their part in it is much more important than "Am I comfortable here?" A living stone in this building is of no use -- to the building or to the other stones -- if it is not closely fitted with other stones in this building. Opting out seems like a bad idea. (Yes, "bad idea" is a euphemism.)