Holding the Head

  Scripture Reading: Eph. 1:22; 4:15-16; Col. 2:19

One

  In order for God to establish Christ as the Head over all things, He must first make Christ the Head of the church. God must first make Christ the Head of the church before this headship can extend to include all things. The future position of Christ in the universe has much to do with His position in the church today. God must first secure Christ's headship among His children, that is, in the church. This is why it is a crucial matter for Christ to be the Head of the church.

  Christ is the Head of the church, and the church is the Body of Christ. The whole Body is headed up under the Head. Nothing in the Body can exist apart from the Head. If the Body is detached from the Head, the only result is death. Every movement of a human body is governed by the head. If the head is injured and loses its function, the activity of the whole body will cease, and the body will not be able to survive. The head is the hub of the life of the whole body. God's Word tells us that those who have the Son of God have life. A Christian receives life from the Lord, yet this life is never detached from the Lord. Those who have the Son have life, yet this life is still in the Son. This life is never for a moment apart from the Son. Without the Lord, we cannot live. Brothers and sisters, God does not give us a piece of Christ; He has given us the whole Christ so that we may be tightly joined to Him. The power of our existence comes from Christ. If we lose our fellowship with the Lord and if we move away from Him, we will immediately become lifeless. A Christian receives life from the Lord, and the life he possesses is still in the Lord. It is true that we have received life, but this life cannot be separated from the Head. After we have received Him, we must still abide in Him and trust in Him. Therefore, we cannot be independent in anything, because only the Lord is the Head and only He is the source of our life.

Two

  Christ is the life of the Body; He is also the authority of the Body. Since life is in Him, authority is also in Him. Since He is our life, He has authority over us. Whenever we submit to His authority, we have life. Every move of our body is governed by the head. For Christ to be the Head means for Him to have the authority in the Body. Brothers and sisters, if we see what the Body is, we will spontaneously come under the control of the Head. The Body cannot move freely; it can only move at the direction of the Head. Without direction from the Head, the Body cannot move. The Body is under the authority of the Head; it cannot propose anything on its own. The power to direct the Body rests with the Head. Where life is, there is authority. In fact, true authority is life. Since the Lord governs our life, He has authority over us.

  Those who say with their mouth that they understand the life of the Body need to ask themselves further whether or not they are under the authority of the Lord. Whether we are under the authority of the Head determines whether we know the life of the Body. Toward God's Word, some have the attitude: "Although the Lord has said this, yet..." Who has given us permission to say "yet"? What authority do we have to say "yet"? In the world anyone who disobeys the command of his superior is lawless. If Christ is the Head, then we cannot be the Head and we have no right to disobey Him.

  What does it mean to follow? To follow means that someone else decides your footsteps and destiny. This is the meaning of following. To follow the Lord means that you have no right to decide your own way. Have you ever said to the Lord that He is the unique authority and that you do not have any choice of your own? The only responsibility the Body has toward the Head is submission and obedience. If you want to live the life of the Body of Christ, you must cover your head and not have any opinion, proposal, or thought of your own. You can only submit to the Lord and allow Him to be the Head. If the Lord is the Head, no one else can be the head. You cannot be the head, nor can anyone else in the church be the head. The Body can only have one Head and can only submit to one Head. Only Christ is the Head, and therefore, you must submit to Christ.

  However, many times there are too many heads in the church. There are many human leaders, methods, and ordinances in the church. Man wants to be the head. Christ is the Head in heaven, and man wants to be the head on earth. When the "head" on earth agrees with the Head in heaven, there is obedience. But when the "head" on earth does not agree with the Head in heaven, there is disobedience. How wrong this is! In the church only Christ is the Head; there is no other head. As long as Christ is the Head, no one else can be the head. Brothers and sisters, have you ever said to the Lord, "Lord, You are my Lord. I have no right to make any decision, and I have no right to choose anything. May You deliver me from being my own head and from taking anyone else as the head"? Brothers and sisters, we must all learn to receive orders from God. Christ is the Head, and no one can walk according to his own will. It is a basic Christian experience to surrender to the Lord and submit to Him.

  Acts 2 shows us Peter's preaching of the gospel: "God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you have crucified" (v. 36). The minute he opened his mouth, he spoke about Christ as Lord. Christ is not only the Savior but also the Lord. We all need to have the Lord as our Lord, and since we have all sinned, He must be our Savior. Consider Paul's experience when he was saved on the way to Damascus. The Lord shone His light on him, and he asked the Lord, "Who are You, Lord?" (9:5). Paul first saw Him as Lord and then believed in Him as the Savior. Brothers and sisters, if our eyes are opened, we will say, "Lord, I am through. From now on, take control of me; be my Lord."

Three

  Hence, we must hold the Head. Holding the Head means that we recognize only Christ as the Head; it means absolute obedience to the authority of Christ. We have to hold Christ as our Head. Ephesians 4:15-16 says, "We may grow up into Him in all things, who is the Head, Christ, out from whom all the Body, being joined together and being knit together through every joint of the rich supply and through the operation in the measure of each one part, causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love." The members are joined together through holding the Head and living the Body life. God is not satisfied with us just taking care of those around us. He wants us to hold the Head; He wants us to have a proper relationship with Christ. Once we have a proper relationship with Christ, we have a proper relationship with the other members. If we hold the Head, everything else will follow. If we can submit to the Head, our problems with other brothers and sisters can be solved easily. If we do not have a problem with the Lord, we will not have any problem with other brothers and sisters. Whether or not we can live the Body life properly depends on our relationship with Christ. If our relationship with Christ is proper, our relationship with everyone else will be proper. Brothers and sisters, we did not become Christians just because other Christians were amiable or because we found a set of methods to live a successful Christian life. We became Christians through knowing Christ. The way we were born is the way we should live. We were born through developing a relationship with Christ. In the same way we should live by maintaining a proper relationship with Him.

  This does not mean that there should not be any fellowship between Christians. It means that the mutual fellowship among Christians is based on their individual relationship with Christ. Because the Christ who lives in me cannot be separated from the Christ who lives in you or in others, there is a need for mutual fellowship among us. The Christ who lives in us is not fragmentary, but one. Christ is in you, and He is also in me. This Christ is the basis of our fellowship. Other than Christ, we have nothing to fellowship about. Our educations, backgrounds, and abilities are all different. But there is one thing we have in common — Christ. The Christ in us is the same; this is why we can have fellowship one with another. All those who belong to Christ can fellowship one with another. Those who do not belong to Christ cannot participate in this fellowship. We do not fellowship with a certain person because he is capable, mild, considerate, or gentle. If our fellowship is based on man, we are not holding the Head, and our fellowship is merely Absalom's fellowship. Absalom's fellowship drew the Israelites away from David. This is not holding the Head. Mutual fellowship among Christians must be based on each person's relationship with Christ. We cannot have another basis of fellowship outside the Head. If we hold the Head and others hold the Head, the mutual fellowship between us and them will be proper and beneficial. But if we do not all hold the Head, the fellowship will run into trouble. How far are we going to go as Christians? Are we going to follow the Lord all the way to the end? If some have left the proper way a few stations back, they are no longer on the proper path. How can we still fellowship with them? Therefore, if we want our fellowship to last to the end, we must follow the Lord to the end. Please remember that fellowship is based on our mutual holding of the Head.

Four

  What are the conditions for holding the Head? In order to hold the Head, we must allow the cross to deeply deal with our flesh and our natural life on one hand, and learn to walk according to the Spirit on the other hand. Only then will we have the full fellowship of the Body. If the cross has not dealt with the natural life, we cannot live the Body life. The book of Revelation mentions a group of people who follow the Lamb wherever He goes (14:4). Can we say that we follow the Lamb wherever He goes? The cross is the means that brings in the fellowship. Once the cross has dealt with our flesh and broken the self, we can go wherever the Lamb leads us. If there is no barrier between us and the Lamb, there will be no barrier between us and the Body. If our relationship with the Head is proper, our relationship with the Body will also be proper. Suppose the left hand is hurt. The head directs the right hand to help the left; the right hand does not move independently by itself. The mutual relationship of the members first goes through the head. If you hold the Head, you will help others because of the Lord, not because of human affection. Whenever you consider how others have wronged you, it proves that you are not holding the Head. If you are holding the Head, you will always be helping others for the Lord's sake. Once your relationship with the Lord becomes proper, your relationship with other brothers and sisters will also become proper. If you hold the Head, you cannot build up any direct relationship with others, and you cannot have any special affection toward a few.

  God does not allow any division or parties in the church. What is a party? It is when a few Christians have direct communication with one another without communicating with the Head. They have a special friendship between themselves which does not issue from their love for the Lord. This is to form a party. More serious than the forming of parties is the forming of sects. Some are too close to one another; they have too much affection for one another, and they become a sect. If we are holding the Head, our heart must be as large as the Head. All the brothers should love one another, but this love has a foundation. Love is something in the Body of Christ. Our mutual love is a love that is based on the Body of Christ. Any love that is outside the boundary of the Body is something that God does not permit. Christians must love one another by holding the Head. This is the only way to prevent us from becoming a party or a sect.

  In the church the knowledge of the truth, the handling of affairs, and everything else must be based on our holding the Head. The greatest problem in the church is the multiplicity of opinions. One portion of the Scripture may have a few interpretations, and someone may agree with a person while another may disagree. One matter can be viewed in different ways; some may insist on one view, while others insist on another view. If no one holds the Head or if we do not all hold the Head, there will be arguments. Paul said, "Is Christ divided?" (1 Cor. 1:13). Christ cannot be divided. The corporate Christ is one, and He will not give us two different views at the same time. The disunity among God's children is the result of not holding the Head. When we encounter any problem, we engage ourselves in disputes. Yet this is not the way to solve problems. If we will kneel down and pray in one accord and acknowledge Christ as the Head, matters will be solved easily. Spiritual things are never judged according to human opinions, thoughts, or doctrines, for these are not holding the Head. The Holy Spirit is working within us. The Holy Spirit is bringing us to the end of ourselves through sufferings, trials, and experiences. Then He will give us revelation which causes us to hold the Head; only this kind of holding is reliable. God will bring us to the end of ourselves through sufferings. Then He will give us revelation. Once we have revelation, spontaneously we will hold the Head. God's revelation is constituted into our life. This is something beyond dispute. To hold the Head is to hold what the Lord has given us. Differences of opinion often come from the proliferation of human opinion and concepts. If our opinions are not from the Head, they are vain. Who among us is qualified to express his own opinion? All expressions of self-opinion are of no value at all.

  God's goal today is that His children live the Body life on earth. In order to manifest the Body life, we must hold the Head. Brothers and sisters, are we holding the Head? May the Lord bestow His grace to us.