So over the past couple weeks I have been working with a group in a bible study of the book Ephesians(bomb book btw 10/10 recommend). Each week we read through the passage and dissect different themes, repeated words, and challenging questions about the realities of Christian faith.

This week was no different. We read through the passage and then someone made a comment about earlobes and the conversation kind of drifted a little off track from there. Though the reason the word earlobes was dropped is because the last couple verses in chapter one of Ephesians discusses the idea of the head and the body of Christ.

Now if you've attended church a couple times or peeked at a couple verses in the Bible you maybe have heard this metaphor. For those of you who have not it goes like this - God has named Jesus His right hand man and as a result He becomes the head of all things, including the church(which is where we come in). The word "head" here can be taken as two ways that really go hand in hand.

One is that He is the main man, the CEO, the big cahuna that is in charge. True. The second is that he is literally the head and we, as the church, act as the body of Christ. Also true.

These both go together because either way Christ is the one calling the shots.

I think there are many reasons why this explanation is used many times in the church. The first being that the head is, generally, where the brain is. Brains comprehend everything for us. They decide our morals, they tell us if something is too dangerous, they make it possible for us to speak, and they control the movement of our bodies. So, if Christ is the "head" then not only should we as the church attempt to acquire those qualities and morals but also be listening for further directions that we can help carry out as the hands and feet of Jesus.

I also think it is put this way because while the brain is in charge of all of those important aspects, for us our brains can sometimes be our greatest weakness. They allow that feeling of fear and apprehension to sink in and for us to overthink things that should truly be simple like forgiveness and love. So instead of calling us the head(because lets be real we DO NOT come close to deserving that), we are referred to as the body. The part where it becomes about doing instead of overthinking. The part that contains the heart. The part that focuses on trust and faith.

Now, the main reason I believe it is used is because without the head the body becomes motionless and stuck, unless you are a cockroach those bad boys can really survive anything. In the same way if we disconnect from God, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, etc. we are not going to be living life to our full potential. It would be like stepping in quicksand (side note has anyone ever actually seen quicksand? tbh thought it would be a bigger problem then it has been in my life) and just letting yourself sink. Instead we are connected, the church and Christ so that He can communicate to us actions/words/prayers that He would like brought into the light.

The last thing I want to leave you with is a reminder. I know that after talking about the body of Christ and the ability to BE the hands and feet of Jesus it feels like "WOW okay cool now I should probably try to heal everyone I see and perform miracles", which yeah you can really try to do those things. But doing the work of Jesus does not have to be something huge. It does not have to call attention to you but instead it should call attention to Him. Even if it is praying for someone or volunteering or just plain ol loving people God LOVES it.