Just as He Pleased

Paul wrote about two mysteries, and one of them is Christ and the church, the body of Christ. . Here there is an eternal fellowship with the Father, the Son, and all the members. That body is the greatest thing that exists on earth, and the members shall reign for eternity together with Jesus.

“We through the cross have our membership; with one mind, we have fellowship.” This is what we sing in WotL 182. Everyone who is crucified with Christ, , becomes a part of that body. Who they are lies in the attitude of mind of each individual member, and it is God who judges that. The members cannot judge one another, because “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” . If you doubt the attitude of mind of others, dark and destructive forces enter your life and destroy fellowship.

“But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” . A living faith in this makes every member come to complete rest in how they have been placed together with the other members. This brings great respect for one another and for each other’s ministry, even when you do not understand why God has done it. This also means that you seek fellowship and work together with all those you have been placed together with. Sluggishness and unwillingness to work together disappear.

Peter wrote to servants that they should be submissive to their masters, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. . In this body you can also experience things that seem strange. Then it is important to understand the Lord’s ways with you. Israel did not understand this; they did not know the Lord’s ways. . After all, He wants to train us so that we can be conformed to the image of His Son, and to make us fit to build His body here on earth and to reign together with Him for all eternity.

In his work with the Corinthians, Paul encountered aloofness and contempt; he was misunderstood, looked down upon, and so on. In these circumstances he had to enlarge his heart, because then he came to see the sin in his own flesh through the leading of the Holy Spirit. And then he could love them all the more, the less he was loved. This is not a natural human reaction. He was truly an elder—an example in humbling himself. Everyone who has had the grace to experience true men and women of God up close has surely experienced how quick they are to humble themselves.

May we follow such examples. This way is open to everyone, and you can begin to walk it from your youth.

Johannes Schmechel