Gospel

---

Most people are familiar with the four gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. But did you know that there is a kind of fifth gospel? You won’t find it in your Bible, but you will find it in your lifestyle.

The Apostle Paul found it necessary to defend his ministry to the Corinthians, and used the believers themselves as his defense. He told them, “Do we need . . . letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts” (2 Corinthians 3:1-3). In other words, he reminded them that their lives and actions proclaimed the truth of the gospel to others. They were living gospels.

So, what does this have to do with leukocytes? Leukocytes are white blood cells. They function as the defenders of the body, guarding us by attacking harmful invaders and substances that enter the bloodstream. They are always on call, and play no favorites when it comes to helping any part of the body.

Paul reminded the Corinthians that God assembled the body “so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other” (1 Corinthians 12:25). He is using the human body as an analogy to the body of Christ, which consists of all believers. He’s saying that all believers are essential to the functioning of the body, and all are worthy of our care and concern.

The blood flows through every part of our body, large and small, obvious and hidden. When any part of the body is attacked, the white blood cells rush to the site and defend it, no matter what part of the body is suffering. The cells don’t hesitate because the feet may smell or the stomach is noisy or the liver is unsightly or the brain is too far away. They don’t say, “There goes the nostril again! It’s always the nostril!” White blood cells show no partiality, not even to differently colored cells.

Members of Christ’s body should learn a lesson from the leukocytes. Just as the actions of the white cells can alert a doctor to a problem with the human body, the actions of Christians can signal problems with the church. When Christians cease to care for one another according to the unselfish and sacrificial example of Jesus, the watching world takes notice. As diseases are symptomatic of a lack of integrity within the body, so lack of love in the church shows a fatal flaw within the local body of Christ. And, just as physical maladies often manifest themselves outwardly, church problems all too often become fodder for public ridicule and disdain, and the gospel loses its appeal.

Most people will not read the Bible, but they will take note of the lifestyles of those who profess to be Christ-followers. Jesus said, “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35). If we show the love of Christ to one another without partiality, the world will see that the gospel is indeed genuine and capable of healing the sin-sick soul.

---

PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE