The Body of Christ is a living entity. We may say that nothing is more living, more one, and more vital than our body. Before believing in the Lord, a brother might have been individualistic, acting on his own. After he believes in the Lord, he becomes a cell in the Body, a member of the Body. Every cell is restricted by the law in the Body. There is a binding law in the Body, and a man must act according to the law of the Body. He cannot work by his own will. Once a person acts according to his own will, he becomes a tumor, a cancer in the Body. This is not a help but a damage to the Body.
We are wary of those who act individualistically, those who are not bound by the Body, who act according to their own will, and who have never learned to come under the authority of the Head. After we believe in the Lord, the first spiritual principle we should bear in mind is that the Body is God’s ordained authority on earth. The Body is the authority. God’s law is in the Body, and we cannot violate it. We cannot act carelessly according to our own will. When we act according to our own will, we will become unchecked malignant cells in the Body, doing our own things and completely damaging the oneness of the Body. We immediately will become a tumor. We will no longer be one with others and will become independent persons. We will not be a help to the Body but a damage to it. We must learn to accept the judgment and restriction of the Body and submit to the operation of the life of the whole Body.
The longer we go on in our Christian life before the Lord, the more we will realize the reality of the oneness of the Body. Sooner or later, we will see that oneness is a reality. It is a very sobering reality. We must learn to not damage it. It is lawlessness, rebellion, and disobedience for anyone to damage the oneness of the Body. The authority of God will not be with us if we damage it. Authority must be manifested in every cell of the Body. The cells in the Body function mutually, not individually. This is a marvelous fact. The more we comprehend the things of the Body, the more we will realize how appropriate it is to compare the church to our body.
There is another principle in the Bible which we must obey—the principle of the two or three. Please read Matthew 18:15-20. The Lord Jesus said that where two or three are gathered together in one accord, whose voices are in harmony like that of music and who meet under (or are gathered into) His name, He will be in their midst. Whatever they ask, it will be done for them. This is a very great promise of the Lord. If two or three can be fully in one accord, the Lord said that He would be in their midst and would answer their prayer.
The Lord told us something more. Suppose I sin against a brother today and he comes to me and says, “You have done something which offends me. You were very wrong.” Suppose I say, “I do not think I was wrong. You are the one who is wrong. I do not feel that I was wrong. I feel that I was very right.” Since this brother says that I am wrong, what should I do? I should learn to listen to my brother. If I am a person who has learned this lesson before the Lord, I will immediately feel that I have sinned when the brother comes to me. This is another principle in the Body. One person can represent the Body. I may be right; I may think that I am not wrong. But this brother is much more experienced than I am in the Lord, and he has learned much in the Lord. He sees that I am wrong and corrects me. If I am pliable before the Lord, I will immediately say, “Brother, please forgive me, I am wrong.”
One person is enough to be the authority; there is no need to have many people. The person beside you can be the authority; he can represent the Body, the whole church. You must acknowledge that your independent way is wrong. If one person points this out to you, it is good enough. I am not saying that you have to accept every reproof that comes along. I am saying that you should have a quick response before the Lord. Often there is no need to have two or three or the whole church tell you something. You should touch and see something of the reality of the spiritual world as soon as one person says something to you. That person is the Body; he is enough to be a representative of the Body.