“What I mean is that each of you says, ‘I belong to Paul,’ or ‘I belong to Apollos,’ or ‘I belong to Cephas,’ or ‘I belong to Christ.’” 1 Corinthians 1:12
Reflections
Have you ever heard anyone identify a church by its pastor? For example, “That’s Tom Smith’s church.” The person may serve there as pastor but is it really his church? Sometimes we’ll see an advertisement for a church featuring a picture of a pastor and his wife. Is the church all about the pastor and his wife or something else? Or think about how some churches are officially named. Would it be appropriate to refer to a church as “St. Peter’s Lutheran Church”? Does the church actually belong to St. Peter? Usually when you look into the official name of a church it would not normally include the apostrophe and “s” at the end. It would simply be “St. Peter Lutheran Church”.
The Church, God’s gathered people, does not belong to any one person. No one human being is to have absolute authority over it. The only One the Church belongs to is Christ Jesus. The only one who has authority over the Church is Him. He is the One who was crucified for the Church. As tempting as it may be to identify with a particular person, the only one to really identify with is Jesus.
The apostrophe and “s” belong only to our Lord God. This is why it would be appropriate to name a church “Our Savior’s Lutheran Church”. It’s all about him. We belong to him.
Prayer
Lord God, thank you for leaders who serve as good examples within the Church. Keep my eyes focused upon You, the One who is the head of the Church. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Full Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:10-18