The Human Body: God’s Picture of the Body of Christ — Guest Post

 

Have you ever stopped to think about how truly amazing our human bodies are? God created our bodies to be so intricately designed, didn’t He? All of our body parts and body systems function so well together, and we never have to consciously think about any of it! Can you imagine what life would be like if we had to remind ourselves to breath?

Think about the last time you went to the cupboard for a snack. You were hungry…so you went to the cupboard…grabbed a snack…and ate it.

For a moment, let’s take a look at what really happens in the body when we do something so “simple” like eating a snack.

So, come on! Let’s go on a little journey through the human body. You will see that our bodies are amazingly designed; each part of the body has a special role and function. Things work the most smoothly when all of our parts do what they were created to do.

Imagine that it’s been four hours since you last ate. While walking through the mall, that sweet, tantalizing smell of baking cookies fills the air. Yum!!! That smells so good!! Right now, your brain is analyzing glucose levels in your body. Since it’s been awhile since you’ve eaten anything, (and because those cookies smell so delicious), your brain is sending signals out to your body. “It’s time to eat…cue the stomach growling…”

Our feet direct us over to the bakery. We walk easily, putting one foot in front of the other. (Or maybe you ran to the bakery, like I did!) Think about the strength and coordination required to just walk…the brain communicates with muscles and joints, keeping us balanced and propelling our bodies forward. Unless we have problems with mobility, most of us think very little about the simple act of walking.

“I will take one extra large chocolate chip cookie please!” The complexity of language and speaking is a whole other conversation. (Is anyone hungry for a cookie yet?)

Hands and fingers reach out to grab our prized cookie. We do not have to inform our fingers when to open and close. Next, our hands must coordinate movements with the arm, bringing the cookie up to our lips.

The mouth, teeth, and tongue work seamlessly together, grinding the food into smaller pieces and preparing the cookie for swallowing.

Saliva is an extremely important part of digestion. If you disagree, try eating five saltine crackers in one minute…your saliva will be sorely missed.

Swallowing is another elaborate process in the body. Have you ever thanked God for your epiglottis? This small little flap of skin sits near the roof of the mouth, closing off the windpipe every time we swallow food and drink. Without an epiglottis (such a small, insignificant body part), we would be a sputtering mess every time we attempted to eat and drink. In fact, eating and drinking would be nearly impossible.

As our cookie is swallowed, it travels down the esophagus and into the stomach. This sac-like organ has muscular walls that help mix and grind our food. Enzymes and stomach acids join the party here to further break down our food.

As we leave the stomach, our cookie is now entirely in liquid form. We journey on to the small intestine. The small intestine is approximately 20 feet long!!! How does it all fit inside our body?!?

The small intestine further breaks down our food. This is where the absorption of nutrients takes place. In this case, our cookie is broken down into carbohydrates and fats. These tiny molecules pass from our small intestines and into our bloodstream, where they can be used by the rest of the body for energy. The pancreas, liver, and gallbladder, three other rarely-discussed organs, also play a role in this process.

After all the important nutrients are taken from our delicious cookie, the waste products remain. Entering the large intestine (or colon), the remnants of our cookie have reached their final destination. Water is removed, the waste becomes solid, and finally, is eliminated.

As you can see, the simple act of eating one little (okay, large) cookie is actually very complex. And this is just ONE process in ONE body system. At any given time, our lungs are exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide, our heart is pumping life-giving blood throughout an intricate system of vessels, and each one of the TRILLIONS of cells that make up the human body is performing its specific function.

At the head of it all is the brain. Our brain controls absolutely everything; every movement, every spoken word, every hormone, every process, every body system…everything! Nothing can function on its own without the influence of the brain.

The human body is just one of the many examples of God’s magnificent creation. All of our separate body parts work together as one, each fulfilling their God-given role within the body.

Yes, at times, our bodies don’t function quite like they should. Thankfully, our bodies are equipped with excellent adaptation skills. In those moments, when one part of the body is struggling, usually another part can step in and help compensate.

Truly, we are fearfully and wonderfully made!

* Every part of the body has one special place to be.
* Every part of body has one certain calling.
* No part in the body looks the same.
* Every part of the body gets their instructions from the head.
* No part of the body wishes to be some other part.
* No part of the body tries doing another parts job.
* When there is a hurt, the whole body helps.
* When the parts of the body are healthy, they all work together, to serve their head the best they can.
* There is just one head.
* The body all works together to glorify the Maker.

Sister, that list above, is also a list of how unity in the Body of Christ should be too. Today’s  TAP verses on GIGW don’t talk about peace; but rather they talk of the One Body. Have you thought about that One Body much? What does that really mean? What does working together as a Body of Christ really look like?

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Let’s transition a little bit and talk about hoe the Body of Christ works together:.

One thing I think we have down to a science, as a Body of Christ, is to support new moms. As a Body of Christ we do that with ease, like eating a cookie. Some sisters are out where you can see them, helping holding the baby, stopping in to visit. Taking.food. This has to be the single most thing we do. The sweet hands that bring food.

Then there are some sisters doing quiet things, not as seen, like sending a text or email. Maybe even calling ;0 writing a snail mail letter. Sending a gift card. Buying something off amazon and shipping it to their house.

There are still others who help to encourage the new mom. The gals that help sort out all the new hormones and emotions that come with the hormones. Someone to help teach how to take care of the baby, help her learn how to nurse, or gives advice on how much and what brand of formula to use. There are so very many different roles that a new mom needs the body of Christ to surround her with.

This new mom thing is just ONE function that the Body of Christ does. Like eating a cookie, we got the new mom support down pat.

But, Sister, there is so much more that we need to do as a body.

There are the orphans, the widows, widowers, the elderly, the sick in hospitals, just to name a few.

But there’s more… what about our children? Our teens. Not everyone can deal with these two groups of people. Just sayin’

The homeless, the needy, the sick. The LOST. Again, not everyone can completely related to these groups.

Think back to Becky’s article. Many parts of the physical body helped eat that cookie. Just as many parts of the Body of Christ help each other.

ALL of us, looking to our Head; God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, for His instructions. All of us doing the task in front of us. All of us working together to glorify God.

One Body.

One Spirit. One Hope. One Lord. One Faith. One Baptism. One God. One Father of all.

Sweet Sister, the more we know this Holy Spirit, Lord, and Father, the better we will know what part of the Body we are. The more we know this one calling we have, the less we look around at the “one calling” another sister has.

 

The more we know Jesus, the more we learn where and how this true peace comes from.

True peace is found in living a life worthy of the calling we’ve received.

 

{This article was a fun, team-work effort, that Becky Bauman and I worked on together.  We really hope you’ve been blessed and learned a little something by reading it. We pray this small example has helped you understand more how the Human Body is a picture of what the Body of Christ is to look like. And that True peace is found by ONE Body looking to it’s HEAD. Jesus.}