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I recently re-read the book, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made, written by surgeon Dr. Paul Brand in cooperation with Philip Yancey. In it, the authors explore the wonders of the body and look at the implications of the "body of Christ" metaphor. Dr. Brand writes about the importance of loyalty; if cells are not loyal to the well-being of the body as a whole, not willing to work together, not willing to sacrifice themselves when necessary, not dedicated to supplying blood or oxygen where most needed at the moment, then the body will suffer. Disloyalty is perhaps best exemplified by cancer cells which gorge themselves on available resources, refusing to practice restraint even though this puts the entire body in jeopardy. Without loyalty, the body cannot survive.

Dr. Brand tells the story of an engineer who came to him because of a spastic muscle in his neck; it twitched so violently that his chin smashed into his shoulder every few seconds. The condition, which was triggered by anxiety, brought the engineer to the brink of suicide, so Dr. Brand performed a very delicate surgery which severed the hairlike nerves that triggered the spastic muscle. "When people see someone with a spastic muscle, they often assume the muscle itself is malfunctioning. Actually, the muscle is perfectly healthy, not diseased. In fact, it is well-developed because of frequent use. The malfunction stems from the muscle's relationship to the rest of the body; it demonstrates its strength at the wrong times, when the body neither needs nor wants it to function. ... Quite simply, a spastic muscle disregards the needs of the rest of the body; its dysfunction is closer to rebellion than to disease."[1]

Muscles perform just one action: they contract. As a result of this singular focus, complex movements such as running, throwing a ball, or playing the guitar are the result of muscles working in groups, their excitation (when the muscle is contracted) and their inhibition (when the muscle is relaxed) carefully orchestrated by the brain to allow each muscle to move when needed. For instance, if you want to pick up an apple, you engage your biceps. However, this is only possible if the opposing muscle group, the triceps, relaxes and gives way to the action.

Dr. Brand writes: "A harmony of inhibitions synchronizes the whole body, coordinating heartbeats with breathing and breathing with swallowing, setting muscle tone, adjusting to all the changes in movement. In short, inhibition keeps one part of the machine out of the way of the other." [2] When the apostle Paul writes about the church, the language is similar. "But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it" (1 Corinthians 12:18, New Living Testament). "Christ, who is the head of his body, the church ... makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love." (Ephesians 4:15-16, New Living Testament).

The inhibition Dr. Brand writes about is comparable to the concept of submission we find in Paul's letters. In the New Testament, we find the Greek word hypotasso (usually translated as "submit") which was a Greek military term meaning "to arrange [troop divisions] in a military fashion under the command of a leader." In non-military use, it was "a voluntary attitude of giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, and carrying a burden."[3] We often think of submission as mostly a passive stance, but with its military imagery, hypotasso is far from passive. There is the necessity of putting aside one's own agenda in order to work together with others as one unit. There is also the importance of taking on one's unique responsibility within that unit in order to achieve a purpose larger than any individual goal. Another Greek word, ekdotos, translated "surrender," is also a military term meaning to lay down arms, to cease resistance, and to yield to another's control and authority.[4] It is used only once in the New Testament, and that is in Acts 2:23 when the writer speaks of Jesus' crucifixion and death as being part of God's plan and purpose for the salvation of the world. Here again, we note that surrender is not primarily passive, but the act of becoming part of a larger action or purpose.

We can observe the two dimensions of surrender (yielding and acting) in Jesus's calling of the disciples. When he issued the invitation, "Follow me," they responded by laying down their current occupations and locations and taking up the task of walking in the footsteps of their new master. In James 4, we again find this dual action: "Submit (hypotasso) yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." (James 4:7-8. NRSV) One of the themes in the book of James is the danger of double-mindedness, of trying to have two wills or desires or agendas operating at the same time. This results in a stalemate where nothing is accomplished (biceps and triceps again). According to James, there must be both a letting go and a taking up of a task. The order of the two is important; one must first yield in order to be able to perform the necessary action.

Alcoholics Anonymous has long recognised the power of surrender and its role in helping people move toward wholeness. An explanation of Step 1 includes these words: "Surrender is an act of saying "YES!" Prior to that you were saying "NO!" "No, I don't want to give up alcohol! No, it is not out of control! No, I don't need help, I will manage this myself! No, I am not an alcoholic!" Now you say, "Yes, I can see that it is out of control! Yes, I need help! Yes, I surrender! Yes, I am an alcoholic! There is power in saying Yes! Yes is positive, No is negative. When you say "Yes!" you are affirming something, you are letting something in. There is something inherently satisfying to the human organism in saying yes, rather than saying no. Try it just now... say NO! and see how you feel, then say YES! and see how you feel. There is a release of tension with yes. Surrender begins with a yes!" [5]

If we are ever to step fully into our purpose as the body of Christ, we must learn how to surrender. Like any muscle, surrender must be exercised. Like any discipline or skill, surrender must be practiced. We can begin with simple physical exercises like gripping tightly onto something and then letting go, tensing all our muscles and then relaxing them. We can practice with exercises of the will like giving away something precious to us or allowing someone else to choose where we go for lunch. We can practice with our words by learning to say Yes instead of No. We can also practice with our prayers. We can pray with Jesus, "Not my will but yours be done." We can also pray the Suscipe (Latin for "receive") with Ignatius of Loyola as a reminder that we are not our own, that we are part of something much bigger and more beautiful than ourselves, and that our words and actions need to reflect that reality.

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will.
All I have and call my own.

You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.

Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace, that is enough for me.

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[1] Dr. Paul Brand and Philip Yancey, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made: A Surgeon Looks at the Human and Spiritual Body (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing, 1980), 177.
[2] Brand and Yancey, 171.
[3] "hypotasso," www.blueletterbible.org
[4] "ekdotos," www.blueletterbible.org
[5] http://www.universalaa.com/steps/1_surrender.html