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The Daily Word of Righteousness
The Body of the Anointed One, #2
To prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up Why has the Spirit given us the gift of tongues? So we may come to maturity in Christ. Then the world will receive Christ. (Ephesians 4:12—NIV)
Why do we prophesy? So the members of the Body may come to maturity and thus be able to establish justice in the earth.
Why are there apostles? So the elect may be built up in the Lord and be able to serve as the light of the world.
We are the members of the royal priesthood. Until we come to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ the nations will continue in their drunken, blind stupor.
But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort. (I Corinthians 14:3—NIV)
There are two kinds of prophecy. The one above is a prophecy within the Body and for the building up of the Body. This is an internal prophecy, one might say.
But then there is the external prophecy to the world.
Then I was told, "You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings." (Revelation 10:11—NIV)
The above is an external prophecy. In this case the Body itself becomes a prophet, a light to mankind. The purpose of the external prophecy is to bear witness to the world of the Person, will, and way of God and His eternal purpose in Christ Jesus.
Jeremiah prophesied to Israel, and also to the surrounding countries, it may be noted.
The day will come when the saved nations come up to Jerusalem to seek God and His righteous laws. They will be ministered to by Christ—Head and Body. All the gifts and ministries of the Body of Christ have been given that each one of us might be prepared to bring God to the nations in the Day of the Lord, and in our own day as well.
In order to understand the stature of the fullness of Christ we must keep in mind that there are two entities. The first entity is that to which we are accustomed—the Christian religion and its churches and liturgies.
The second entity sometimes is alluded to but will become increasingly prominent until finally the first entity passes away as the scaffolding it actually is.
The second entity is the Body of Christ. Most of the members of the one Body are in the spirit realm. They include the true witnesses of God from the time of the righteous Abel.
There is no such scriptural thing as a "local body," although this expression is used by Christians. There is only the one Body.
All the ministries and gifts of the Holy Spirit are for the purpose of building up the one Body. No ministry or gift is given to a local assembly, only to the one Body, the Wife of the Lamb, the eternal Temple of God and Servant of the Lord.
The progression is as follows: the ministries and gifts build up the one Body. Then the members of the Body bring God to the nations of the earth.
We see this progression in the third chapter of Nehemiah where the sheep gate is built followed by the fish gate. Again in the sixty-first chapter of the Book of Isaiah. The Anointed Deliverer brings God to the members of Zion until they are oaks of righteousness. Then the oaks of righteousness rebuild that which has been destroyed.
To be continued.