“of” is one of those little words that is skipped over without much thought. Words have meaning and this little word has significant meaning. Of is a word that shows possession. If it is the “car of Matt” it is “Matt’s car.” If it is the “church of Christ” it is “Christ’s church.” That little word means an awful lot. Or how about this one,
“They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.” – John 17:16
We are in the world but not possessed by the world. We are present here but we do not see this as home nor do we live our lives by worldly standards. We are possessed by another and we live according to His way of life.
The longer I minister the more I realize the importance of that little word in “Church of Christ.” It is tempting to think that we own things, run things, and are responsible for things but that is ultimately not the case. The church is Christ’s not mine or yours. We do have responsibility for our actions among other Christians, in the assembly, etc but Christ is ultimately responsible for His church, not me. This is His.
Here is why that has been an important reminder for me. When things get tough and I am tempted to think that I am in charge of fixing everything I stop and remember that this isn’t mine…it is His. That is good news because He is more powerful than me.
So remember whose you are and allow being possessed by Christ give you great joy and hope that He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world! He will overcome!
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There is a great church right down the street from our church “of” Christ. The name of that church is “Christ Church”. I recently had breakfast with the founding pastor, what a fine Christian gentleman. They now have about 2200 in attendance, almost double ours. Names are important, but far from most important.
Good point. I am not pushing a legalistic name. I am pointing out the often missed meaning of a common word. Hope that makes sense.
Oh yes. I agree completely.