Christ in Us Is the Hope of Glory

Soma is the Greek word used by Paul for “body.” Linguists and theologians enthusiastically study the rich history of this word in both ancient Greek culture and scripture. Paul’s use in this situation is, however, straightforward. Soma means a physical body, the visible part of a person, or the body that houses a person. So Paul speaks of the foot, the hand, the eye, the ear, and the sense of smell (1 Corinthians 12:15–21). He then emphasizes how the parts of the body need each other and should care for each other without division—diverse members but one body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:19–27).
The modern term that best fits this 1 Corinthians 12 imagery of a body is teamwork—the combined action of a group of people who have different responsibilities but a common goal. Although beneficial in a multitude of situations, most people can visualize teamwork best through our understanding of team sports. In football, you need a quarterback, running backs, linemen, linebackers, safeties, and more. In baseball, you need pitchers, infielders, and outfielders. The same concept applies to soccer, basketball, hockey, rugby, cricket, and whatever your favorite team sport happens to be.
Every team in every team sport also requires leadership. Paul tells us the leadership for the body of Christ is the “head”—our resurrected and ascended Lord Jesus (Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22–23, 4:15).
Kephale is the Greek word used by Paul for “head.” As in English, this can refer to the physical head on a physical body or to a ruler or leader. If we continue in our analogy to team sports, the head would be the team owner and head coach, supported by the rest of the coaching staff.
If we then apply this analogy to the description of the body of Christ in Ephesians 4, the coaching staff would be the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (vs. 11–12). All Christians (saints) would be players on the team who are properly doing their part (v. 12, 16). We would have team unity (vs. 13, 16). We would improve both individually and as a team throughout the season (vs. 13, 15–16). And the owner/head coach, Jesus Christ, would direct what each player did on every play (v. 15).
It would be wonderful if the church today met this teamwork standard. The fruitfulness of the church would increase exponentially. But every effort the church makes to get everyone involved, or everyone united, or everyone using the same playbook, seems to fall on its face. Why?
I believe these efforts fail because the teamwork standard is not the standard to which God calls us. The Lord calls us to a standard that is higher than teamwork, and though higher, it is achievable because it focuses not on the power or might of people, but on the Holy Spirit of the Lord (Zechariah 4:6).
First look at how Ephesians 4 says the members of the body should connect to the head: “We are to grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ” (v. 15).
The Greek word used for “grow up,” auxano, can mean to grow as a plant. This calls to mind the vine and the branches, or the mustard seed plant that starts as the smallest seed and grows into the largest plant in the garden (John 15:1–5; Matthew 13:31–32).
Auxano also means to grow in number, size, strength, knowledge, power, or authority. Growing up “in every way” may suggest all the above. We are to grow up “into” Christ, the head.
No one describes the relationship between players and a sports team owner or head coach like this. And here is the decisive factor, italicized to underscore its importance. There is no team in any sport where the owner and head coach live inside each of the players on the team.
Likewise, there is no symphony orchestra where the composer and conductor live inside each of the musicians.
Jesus is the head of the body of Christ. Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus lives inside every member of the body of Christ. The Holy Spirit inside each of us does not speak on His own authority but instead glorifies Jesus Christ by speaking to us what He hears from Jesus (John 16:13–15). This is, in large part, what Paul was describing when he said we have “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16).