{"id":4044,"date":"2017-08-16T09:44:47","date_gmt":"2017-08-16T09:44:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/?p=4044"},"modified":"2023-08-29T11:21:20","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T17:21:20","slug":"why-a-body","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/","title":{"rendered":"Why A Body?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is Facebook \u201cthe new church\u201d? With its 2 billion monthly users rivaling the size of global Christianity, its cofounder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, thinks so. In a recent speech, the god of social media claimed that his technological behemoth offers \u201cpurpose\u201d and \u201ccommunity\u201d as church membership sinks.<\/span><\/p>\n

The claim is bogus, of course. As pastor Skye Jethani responded on Twitter, \u201cFacebook gives us the impression of community without all the drawbacks of actual human interaction.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>. . . churches are messy,\u201d<\/span> Peter Ormerod reacted in an op-ed piece<\/span>. \u201cThey are not organised by any algorithm or tailored to the individual end user.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Of greater concern than Zuckerberg\u2019s misguided boast are the subtle ways we Christians buy into it. Technology tempts us to think we can escape the body. Facebook-as-church is counterfeit, the latest form of the ancient gnostic heresy that denied Christ had come in the flesh, that bodies are insignificant. Jethani understands what is really at stake: \u201cThe downside of social media & tech is that it dis-incarnates us & ultimately cannot satisfy our deepest longings for human connection.\u201d The issue, then, is <\/span>incarnation<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The church can\u2019t deny the body because \u201cthe Word became flesh\u201d (John 1:14). Messiah says, \u201cA body You have prepared for me\u201d (Hebrews 10:5). <\/span>Why a body? As God\u2019s image-bearers, humans are rational, emotional, and spiritual creatures, yet all wrapped up in a body awkward, defenseless, and, yes, messy \u2014 but whereby we relate and thrive. And it was good. <\/span>But sin!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Incarnation is central to Christian faith because, as Hebrews explains, by \u201cthe offering of the body of Jesus Christ,\u201d we are sanctified body, soul, and spirit (10:10). But incarnation goes further still. Looking for the best metaphor to describe the redeemed church, Paul\u2019s selection is <\/span>incarnational<\/span><\/i>.<\/span> Church is no disembodied aggregate of convenient bits of tech but a local, visible, and tangible community: \u201cOne body in Christ . . . the body of Christ\u201d (Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:27). The church incarnates our Lord\u2019s incarnation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Facebook is a tool, but it can also be a temptation. <\/span>Being the church requires that we are <\/span>present<\/span><\/i> with and for each other, as grace and truth mingle within the limitation and vulnerability that shared incarnation assumes. Being the body may be messy, but it is also gloriously and meaningfully <\/span>real<\/span><\/i>. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Is Facebook \u201cthe new church\u201d? With its 2 billion monthly users rivaling the size of global Christianity, its cofounder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, thinks so. In a recent speech, the god of social media claimed that his technological behemoth offers \u201cpurpose\u201d and \u201ccommunity\u201d as church membership sinks. The claim is bogus, of course. As pastor […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":4045,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","castos_file_data":"","podmotor_file_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[37,36],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhy A Body? - Bible Advocate<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why A Body? - Bible Advocate\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Is Facebook \u201cthe new church\u201d? With its 2 billion monthly users rivaling the size of global Christianity, its cofounder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, thinks so. In a recent speech, the god of social media claimed that his technological behemoth offers \u201cpurpose\u201d and \u201ccommunity\u201d as church membership sinks. The claim is bogus, of course. As pastor […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Bible Advocate\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-08-16T09:44:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-08-29T17:21:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"853\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jason Overman\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jason Overman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jason Overman\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/person\/68443b7dc847765e22d7d9934532a7a1\"},\"headline\":\"Why A Body?\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-08-16T09:44:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-29T17:21:20+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/\"},\"wordCount\":379,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"BA\",\"Editor's Desk\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/\",\"name\":\"Why A Body? - Bible Advocate\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-08-16T09:44:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-29T17:21:20+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":853},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Why A Body?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/\",\"name\":\"Bible Advocate\",\"description\":\"Advocating the Bible, representing the Church, and glorifying the God of grace and truth\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Bible Advocate\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/05\/cropped-BA-Online-Logo-1-3.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/05\/cropped-BA-Online-Logo-1-3.jpg\",\"width\":380,\"height\":80,\"caption\":\"Bible Advocate\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/person\/68443b7dc847765e22d7d9934532a7a1\",\"name\":\"Jason Overman\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/879dd44f62e0c705659ad5d45bc1498a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/879dd44f62e0c705659ad5d45bc1498a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Jason Overman\"},\"description\":\"Jason Overman is Editor of Publications of the Bible Advocate Press. After 24 years in the publishing industry (in sales and management) with the Harrison Daily Times, Jason left his general manager\u2019s position to join the BAP family in 2015. He has served in ministry for 30 years and currently pastors the Church of God (Seventh Day) in Jasper, Arkansas, with his wife, Stephanie, and two children, Tabitha and Isaac. Jason enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, reading theology, playing his guitar, and taking in the beautiful Ozark Mountains he calls home.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/author\/jason\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Why A Body? - Bible Advocate","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Why A Body? - Bible Advocate","og_description":"Is Facebook \u201cthe new church\u201d? With its 2 billion monthly users rivaling the size of global Christianity, its cofounder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, thinks so. In a recent speech, the god of social media claimed that his technological behemoth offers \u201cpurpose\u201d and \u201ccommunity\u201d as church membership sinks. The claim is bogus, of course. As pastor […]","og_url":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/","og_site_name":"Bible Advocate","article_published_time":"2017-08-16T09:44:47+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-08-29T17:21:20+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":853,"url":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Jason Overman","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jason Overman","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/"},"author":{"name":"Jason Overman","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/person\/68443b7dc847765e22d7d9934532a7a1"},"headline":"Why A Body?","datePublished":"2017-08-16T09:44:47+00:00","dateModified":"2023-08-29T17:21:20+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/"},"wordCount":379,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg","articleSection":["BA","Editor's Desk"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/","url":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/","name":"Why A Body? - Bible Advocate","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg","datePublished":"2017-08-16T09:44:47+00:00","dateModified":"2023-08-29T17:21:20+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2017\/08\/smartphone-2493419_1280.jpg","width":1280,"height":853},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/why-a-body\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Why A Body?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/","name":"Bible Advocate","description":"Advocating the Bible, representing the Church, and glorifying the God of grace and truth","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#organization","name":"Bible Advocate","url":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/05\/cropped-BA-Online-Logo-1-3.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/05\/cropped-BA-Online-Logo-1-3.jpg","width":380,"height":80,"caption":"Bible Advocate"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/person\/68443b7dc847765e22d7d9934532a7a1","name":"Jason Overman","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/baonline.org\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/879dd44f62e0c705659ad5d45bc1498a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/879dd44f62e0c705659ad5d45bc1498a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Jason Overman"},"description":"Jason Overman is Editor of Publications of the Bible Advocate Press. After 24 years in the publishing industry (in sales and management) with the Harrison Daily Times, Jason left his general manager\u2019s position to join the BAP family in 2015. He has served in ministry for 30 years and currently pastors the Church of God (Seventh Day) in Jasper, Arkansas, with his wife, Stephanie, and two children, Tabitha and Isaac. Jason enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, reading theology, playing his guitar, and taking in the beautiful Ozark Mountains he calls home.","url":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/author\/jason\/"}]}},"cc_featured_image_caption":{"caption_text":false,"source_text":false,"source_url":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4044"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4044"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4044\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19602,"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4044\/revisions\/19602"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}