When do you start putting up Christmas decorations? Some people get started in October, others wait until the November holidays have passed, and some like to do it in the final days before Christmas.
Getting ready for Christmas means in northern North America means Christmas lights. The winter season means even our waking hours are dark more than see the sun. It is helpful to have Christmas lights brighten our homes and countenance.
One of our first steps is often to check the lights to make sure they work. At least, it helps to make it an earlier part of the process. It is important that the majority of the light bulbs are bright and clear. If only one or a few lights are working we will probably replace it.
A strand of lights can remind us of an important truth about the Church, both local assemblies and the greater Body of Christ.
The Power of Light
I have a string of outdoor lights from a big box store. They run on a timer and I keep them up year round. They are amazing at lighting up my entry area, which is really helpful because I basically live in the woods.
It is starting to get cold outside. As winter sets in there will be times when a random bulb will go out. It did not burn out or come loose. I know this because a quick knock with a snow shovel will bring it back to life. And the strand goes back to full light capacity in my dark (for too many hours of the day) backyard.
Jesus said Christians “are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). Many times we consider how this means we, as individuals, shine the Light of Jesus in a world of darkness. Through our words and deeds we help draw lost souls “out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).
There is a lot of power in one little light. A single candle flame can be seen over one and a half miles (or two and a half kilometers) away.
A string of Christmas lights can remind Christians how we are all connected together. It involves more light and can include variations in color and size. When the number of lights in one place come together, the light gets brighter and there is less darkness.
One out of Many
A strand of lights takes many individual lights and connects them to one power source. What a fantastic picture of the connection believers have in Christ.
For just as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. (1 Corinthians 12:12)
… Christ, the head of the body. For he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it. (Colossians 2:19, NLT)
… let us grow in every way into him who is the head—Christ. From him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building itself up in love by the proper working of each individual part. (Ephesians 4:15b-16)
One of my hobbies is reading about the American Revolution, the Founding Fathers, and the “idea” of America. One of the nation’s greatest mottos is, “e pluribus unum” (Latin), translated as “one out of many”
For me, the jump to apply this concept to the Church is simple. In the Church, Christ is the head of all. The Holy Spirit binds us together as one. Without all of the pieces together and in unity, the Body falls apart. The greater light dims because of the gaps in the strand.
In the same way, a string of Christmas lights is not meant to have missing or burned out bulbs. All should be present and functioning.
It is not enough for a pastor/minister to be functioning. The 80/20 (Pareto) Principle, which states that on average, 80 percent of what is happening is being done by 20 percent of the people, is not sustainable.
I was sitting a table with a bunch of folks in a room lit by strands of large outdoor lights crisscrossing the room. Because of my e pluribus unum ideal for the Church, I am passionate about folks realizing their value in the whole. The whole, whether it is a local assembly, a denomination, or the universal Church, will be more complete and just plain better for their individual participation and contribution.
Pointing to the lights above us, I said something like: “Look at these lights. Imagine if that was the church. If only the pastor was healthy and doing the work, there would only one bulb giving light. If people were gone, there would be empty sockets. People present but not participating would be dark bulbs. We all have a place and purpose.”
That sent the conversation rolling. You could see faces “light up” as the proverbial “light bulb” came to life in their minds and hearts.
What about you? Do you understand how vital your place in the church is?
I realize not all local churches value this line of thinking. But God does and it is plain in His Word. If you are not familiar with this idea, check out 1 Corinthians 12:12-27.
Do not get sucked into the lie that the Church just wants you to be another number in the seat or a dollar in the offering bucket. That is not the point here.
You are a soul, the member of a family, a soldier in the army, a gift to other believers. No one else can be you, and God wants to connect you with a bunch of others who are forgiven and adopted, to be the light of the world.
Chris MacKinnon 