A Good Omelet

Chuckle: Teacher: “Phil, who was the first woman?” Phil: “I don’t know.” Teacher: “Here’s a hint. It had something to do with an apple.” Phil: “Oh, I know. Granny Smith.”

Quote: “No clever arrangement of bad eggs ever made a good omelet.” –C. S. Lewis

“Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others” (Romans 12:4-5 NIV). “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body” (1 Corinthians 12:12 NIV).

I must admit I had never thought to use eggs and omelet as an illustration for  describing a healthy church, that is until I ran across the above C. S. Lewis quote. It reminded me of a central Biblical truth -- the body of Christ, the church, is comprised of many individual Christians, each of which is essential to the health of the church. “From him (Jesus) the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love as each part (member) does its work” (Ephesians 4:16 NIV). However, if some of the members are “bad eggs,” the church will never be what Christ intended it to be – a “good omelet,” pleasing to our Lord. To put it another way: the quality of the church is dependent upon the spiritual condition and contribution of its individual members.

There are many things we can do in an effort to compensate for the spiritual inadequacies of church members. However, no matter how many times we reorganize or rearrange the members, it is, ultimately, the condition of the hearts of individual members that will determine the condition of the church as a whole. Rearranging a church of bad eggs is like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic – both are exercises in futility. Let’s consider this question: does my faithfulness to our Lord and His church qualify me as a good egg contributing toward making my church what God wants her to be – a good omelet?

What “bad egg” attitudes can seriously damage the fellowship and effectiveness of the church? Here are a few for your consideration.

          My personal contribution to the ministry of the church is not important.

          I don’t have the ability to do anything significant to strengthen my church.

          I don’t need to attend church to have a good relationship with God.

          I don’t like the way the church is being run, so, I choose not to participate.

          Someone hurt my feelings so I’m dropping out of the church.

You get the idea. If we don’t want to do something, one excuse is as good another. But what a beautiful thing it is to see a church where, in the power of the Holy Spirit, all its members are actively contributing to its loving fellowship and effective ministries – a congregation of “good eggs” working together to produce a “good omelet” for the glory of our Lord.

Love, Jerry & Dotse