One: As on the same page/One Spirit, One Mind

 One Spirit, One Mind:

It is the assertion of this author that the mind is the spirit. It is the spirit that possesses the flesh to create and maintain a symbiotic relationship. It is a relationship in which both parties maintain the other. Imagine the relationship between a car and its driver. I present an extended example. We all know that a driver is responsible for maintaining his vehicle. He must make sure that all parts work in harmony. In my example, the car is also responsible for maintaining the driver, in the certainty that what works for the driver works for the car. What builds the driver builds the car. Such a relationship is found between Christ and the body of Christ. The body is Christ and Christ maintains the body, but also, the body maintains Christ. Scripture will tell us to 'magnify' the Lord. That is an important responsibility. It is like the exercise of a muscle; without exercise, the muscle is lost.

Have you ever wondered about the use of sheep in parables? On the whole, sheep stick together as a flock. In other words, they practice and maintain their 'flock-ness.' That body of sheep is a conversation that all the members understand and respond to. Philippians 1:27 “Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit.”

There is a real connection between a body and the spirit that possesses it. In its maintenance of the body, the spirit may decide that the body needs hydration. It is the spirit that deems it necessary, but it is the body that reaches for the glass of water. Both parties work together. In a sense, each party serves the other. In a group, an individual spirit may decide that another group member is worthy of encouragement, but it is the mouth of that individual that speaks. Romans 15:6 “That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

That which is held in common within a group is the spirit. I have said that the spirit within an individual is the mind. The combined (similar) minds within a group are the spirit of the group, the mind of the group. In a group of Christians, when one mind communicates the issue of 'faith' to another mind, there is a resonance between the two. They are on the same page and share a full understanding. The minds are in synch and are possessed of a singular belief. Think of a line of light bulbs connected in series. According to the series circuit analogy, the flowing current is the same in all the bulbs. I take that information from https://www.electricaltechnology.org/2012/11/series-wiring-lighting-circuits.html Interestingly, the circuit line is also known as 'live.' When minds are so linked, the same energy lights all of them. What affects one mind, good or bad, affects the others. 1 Peter 3:8 “Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous.”

To be like-minded is not simply to agree. I can agree with your right under the law to have the opinions you have, but not share them. In fact, I may be fully opposed. To be like-minded is to be fully possessed and fully synchronized. Quite simply, a group is a group for that very fact. The members of a body do not oppose one another. A house divided cannot stand. The members of a group are fully committed to each other. They fully understand one another. A member will support, and even fight for, the other members of the group. That is because the spirit of the group is equal to each member. The mind is the same. Romans 12:16 “Be of the same mind one toward another.”

In the sport of bodybuilding, one must apply oneself regularly with determination and patience. Through long hours and much personal effort, one sees the desired result. In other words, to those who have, more will be given. To be of the same mind requires work. Like-mindedness is achieved through patient application. That is to say, it will never happen unless you make it happen. Take a good hard look at the body whole. It is not a flower that blooms by chance. A loving family is achieved through patient direction and discipline. A body dedicated to mutual support and love is a body directed by the combined mind of love and support. It takes real work. It takes patience, discipline, and yes, quite a lot of self-discipline. All of the attributes listed above are derived through the spirit: the spirit of patience, the spirit of discipline, the spirit of unity. Romans 15:5 “Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus.”

One mind. One spirit. It is a goal that billions of souls have strived to achieve. It is not the gold medal, but it is the finish line. Mankind, as a historical whole, has never ceased reaching for unity. We have never ceased climbing the mountain to reach the zenith. Every body whole has its own plan for unity and singularity. It has often been mismanaged, politicized, and spoiled through conflict, but the higher aspirations of love, and integrity; honor, and righteousness are inviolable. Men and societies continue to reach for them. In the highest and most viable sense, they are perfection. There is a spirit of perfection that draws the body whole into its fullest expression. There is a spirit of peace that brings the seed into the light. There is a spirit of love that rains life upon the aspiring garden. 2 Corinthians 13:11 “Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.”

One: One as on the Same Page/ The Actions of a Single Heart and Soul

 The Actions of a Single Heart and Soul:

There is a guiding impetus in all bodies. Some may call it a mindset. When the toes wiggle, it is the brain that sends the guiding electrical impulse. The brain rules the body, but the brain is, itself, just a member of the body. What rules the brain? Long answer short, it is the mind. That being said, the mind is the spirit. All living bodies derive life and purpose from the spirit of life, the living Spirit. Without that spirit, a body only possesses basic functions, like an amoeba. By the spirit, single cells combine under the spirit of purpose, a common goal. An organ does not decide what it wants to be, or where it wants to be in the body. Guidance for such as that is derived from the spirit. It is the spirit of guidance that calls the organ into its place and purpose. In older, more poetic texts, the guiding organ is the heart. These days, we know that the heart is neither responsible for the thoughts we think, nor for the emotions we feel. The spirit of God rules, first through the mind, and then through the brain. We know that the brain is called like any other organ of the body. Colossians 3:15 “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body.”

Men differentiate between the intellectual and the emotional. In reality, both functions are centered in the mind. Men differentiate between the body and the soul. In reality, a soul is not separate from the body. In the Bible, Adam was called a living soul only after the flesh had been augmented with spirit. A soul is a thinking body. A soul is an individual capable of receiving instructions from the spirit that is one with the body. A soul is the perfect combination of vehicle and driver. The actions of a single soul are the actions of a single heart: which is the mind: which is the spirit: which is God. God is one: it therefore follows that the spirit within man is a spirit of unity and singularity. The spirit is expressed in many forms from least to most. We see the spirit of unity and singularity in a family, a race, a nationality, a religious belief, a cause. The tenets of unity and singularity are expressed in that which is held in common. One heart, one soul, one belief, one direction, one responsibility to the body whole. Acts 4:32 “And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things common.”

One: One as on the Same Page/One Accord

 One as on the same page:

One Accord:

In the old days, people used expressions like 'one accord.' It is much more common in our present-day to hear expressions like 'on the same page.' Either way, the synchronicity is the same. We think of the inner ear as being responsible for the balance of the whole body, but the inner ear works with one accord along with other members of the body to achieve balance. Arms, legs, spine, and even the little toe are in synchronicity. They are on the same page. In a peace accord, many nations come together and agree on one cause. Their thoughts and hopes are on the same page. They are in one accord. When the members of that accord speak, they each speak of peace. Acts 5:12 “and they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch.”

People can be lumped together and classified by the thoughts they share and the words they speak. They sound so much alike that we can immediately recognize to whom they belong. Think of the people you know, and test your knowledge of them. What are the words that most often come out of their mouths? In my life, I have found it quite common for one person to say to another, “You always say that.” Actions aside, we may say with certainty that the things a person most often says are the things that define that person. When many people, as a group, speak and assert the same things, identification is both easy and inevitable. Acts 2:1 “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.”

When people are on the same page, we may look at any number of them and compare their words and deeds with others of their group. Their words dictate their deeds because their words are an accurate expression of the thoughts of their hearts. Many things may be determined by the words that people speak in common. Foremost, if they share the same words, they share the same thoughts. Those thoughts will include the shared beliefs and desires of the group. You will not hear an Atheist champion the beliefs and desires of a Christian. The same is true for Christians, their words and deeds are not those of the Atheist mindset. You will hear the Christian speak Christian words, and you may know the Christian, in all certainty, by the words they share in common. Acts 1:14 “These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.”

Back in the days of the arcade, you could look into any arcade and see it filled with like-minded gamers, each at their favorite machine. When they spoke, they spoke in the language of games. You knew them for what they were. Likewise, surfers developed their own unique language. We could close our eyes and listen to hippies speak. Their language gave them away. Each body whole had its own clearly identifiable language. The language they shared in common was the mark of who they belonged to. Similarly, they would congregate in their own places. Gamers went to the arcades, and surfers went to the beach. It is no wonder we find Christians congregating in their own places. We find them in temples and churches. It's only natural that they would gather to share the things they hold in common. Acts 2:46 “And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple.”

Like-minded people go to the same places. Like-minded people say and think the same things for the same reasons. Language and communication, by their very fundamental natures, exist by way of what is known and shared in common. The common bond of any group is expressed in the information they receive and the messages they broadcast. Acts 4:24 “And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord.” Acts 8:6 “And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake.”

Each body whole is like a sun around which the planets find their orbits. The electromagnetic energies of the sun pierce and connect the planets so that even the outlying planets share the energies known by the closest. Those energies are the beliefs of the members. When planets send messages, they are the energies that fill them. Each planet tells the others, I believe in the sun. Similarly, each planet is orbited by a moon. That moon is desire. Belief and desire go hand in hand. The same energies that bind the planets bind the moons. All that an individual believes, an individual desires. The energies of the body whole are expressed in the members as a shared knowledge, a shared language, and a shared desire. Acts 15:25 “It seemed good unto us, being assembled with one accord.”

The furthest planet may register a sense of cool satisfaction while the closest planet may burn with joy. Therefore, satisfaction is a lesser degree of the same joy. The light of the sun may not illuminate the furthest planet the way it does the nearest, and the outlier may be tempted to dismiss the light altogether, but that accounts only for what it sees. The same energies that fill the nearest fill the furthest. There can be joy in that knowledge just as there can be faith in the light dimly seen. To be on the same page maintains both joy and faith. Philippians 2:2 “Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.”

One: On Knowing the Whole and the Member/Know Your Place in the Body Whole

 Know Your Place in the Body Whole:

None of us, by ourselves, are the whole, but each of us is a member of a whole. Which whole – i.e., good or evil, depends on what the individual opens or closes within himself. We are members of something; that is a fact. No man stands alone. Even a nonconformist is a member of nonconformity. To know the body whole to which we belong, to know our place within the whole – that is wisdom. All of us can't be the head. All of us can't be the foot. We must know there is no real spiritual distance between the head and the foot. The head can not look down on the foot, saying, 'I lead.' The foot can not look down on the head, saying, 'I carry.' If each of us are members of the same body, we are members of each other. While our functions vary, our value is equal. Romans 12:5 “So we, being many, are one in the body of Christ, and everyone members one of another.”

It may appear to a member that its function is small or menial. Our value as a small and menial member is equal in value to the member that is large and elevated. Only the functions are different. Romans 12:4 “For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office.” We can not each be the same member within the whole. Common sense tells us this truth. Equally, we are assured that the body does not consist of a single member. I have never seen a head float by. Nor have I ever seen a foot stamp by. Hands do nothing apart from the arms and all the other attached parts. 1 Corinthians 12:19 “And if they were all one member, where were the body?” We have expressions that prove the connectedness of different functions. The hands are of little effect until, as we say, we 'put our backs into it.' 1 Corinthians 12:20 “But now are they many members, yet but one body.”

Imagine a person who gets an honor in school. They are a member of the honor roll. Imagine a human pyramid in which the man on the bottom falls. The other members of that pyramid fall with him. Imagine you are a member of an ordinary crowd on the street. A car bomb or a mass shooting would affect everyone in that crowd. 1 Corinthians 12:26 “And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.” On the playing field of membership, we are all equal. In a sport with teams, it is not a single player that wins or loses, but the entire team. Also in a sport with teams, the players have a common understanding that they have one coach, and all of them, the team, are just the players. They are equal to their fellow team members. They share a sameness in the team goal. Their individual functions are supported by the functions of other team members, and in a winning team, all of the players are wise enough to know that none of them is equal to or better than the coach. Matthew 23:8 “But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.”

The smart thing to do is to know your place. Are you a Christian? You are a member of the body of Christ. While you are a part of the body, with your own function and equal value, and while you are imbued with the spirit of the whole, you are not the whole. Know your place; fulfill your function. Matthew 23:9 “And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your father, which is in heaven.” Matthew 23:10 “Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.” It is not the place of the team member to call the shots. You may not say that one member is more important than another. You may not say that one person belongs and another does not. The whole is a perfect and complete body. The body has the say, and within any complete and perfect union of parts, the part may only reiterate the truth of the whole. The truth of the body whole has mastery over all individual members, and there can be no individuals apart from the mastery of one whole or another. You can be part of this, or you can be part of that. Luke 6:40 “The disciple is not above his master: but every one that is perfect shall be as his master.”

Sound advice for the members of the body of Christ follows the natural flow of humble common sense. Ephesians 4:25 “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbor: for we are members one of another.” Let Jesus call the shots; let Jesus be the coach. Lean not on your own understanding. You are imbued with the spirit of Christ; run with it. You carry forward his truth; run with it. We are supported by the framework of his body. We get our strength from his muscles. He is not a part of us; we may not assume the lead. We are a part of him; our goal is his goal. Ephesians 5:30 “For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.”

An old saying proves true on many levels. You are what you eat. You are what you incorporate. Have you incorporated the faith of Christ? You have taken that into yourself. It is now a trait you received from and share with Christ. Have you incorporated the life (bread) of Christ? It is now a trait you received from and share with Christ. Have you adopted the truth of Christ? Have you placed his goal in your heart as your own? Do you lean on his understanding? Do you get your support and strength from him? It is now a trait you received from and share with Christ. You are what you eat. 1 Corinthians 10:17 “For we being many are one bread, and one body, for we are all partakers of that one bread.”

We are a part of something greater than ourselves. We are 'partakers' of the nature of Jesus Christ. He gave it all to us. He shared it freely. But where did Jesus get his nature from? God is love. What are some other ways to say the word love? Synonyms of the word love include intimacy, attachment, devotion, inclination, passion, proclivity, and – yes – worship. Look it up. We choose the nature of Christ. We choose the nature of God. It is our possession, passed down to us as a heritage. It is our birthright, and we are identified by it. Galatians 5:14 “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”

One: On Knowing the Whole and the Member/The Sameness Within the Body

 On Knowing the Whole and the Member:

The Sameness Within the Body:

It is true that we may know the individual by the whole to which he or she is attached. It is equally true that we may know the whole through the character of the individual. For example, a police officer will look and talk like a police officer. All members of the police whole share the traits of the whole that mark the individuals. For another example, doctors write like doctors. Our demeanor, our actions, the things that come out of our mouths, all mark us and identify us with the greater entity to which we are aligned.

We should know the whole and we should know the individual. We should know each by the other. Within the body whole, there is a sameness of members. Membership is seen in uniformity. Think of the uniformity within the military. It does not matter so much whether they are in the Navy, the Marines, the Army, or the Air Force, despite the fact that each branch has its own distinctive uniform, all of them may be identified by the wearing of a uniform. There is a sameness that identifies the whole. That whole conveys to its individual members the traits and tokens through which we may understand the whole.

Let us, now, turn our attention to spiritual traits. In Christianity, we may understand God by the traits of Christ. We may understand Christ by the traits of Christians. In the old testament, for example, a man of God was identified when he flew into a rage. Think of Samson. When Samson flew into a rage and trashed the enemies of the chosen, it was said that the spirit of God came upon Samson. God was understood by the might seen in one of his servants. Likewise, although not necessarily seen in a rage, the spirit of God came upon David, Elijah, Gideon, Saul, and Jesus. We understand the Son of God simply because we can see with our own eyes, so to speak, the nature of the Father in the son. What did Christ share with men in his teachings? He shared the nature and truth of the Father in him.

Look at the explanation of that nature as the son, himself, explained it for our benefit. John 3:8 “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”

It is shown clearly and may be understood without mistake, that the spirit of the Father did not stop when it was shared with the son. The son shared that same spirit with his followers, thus adding to them a sameness, a token by which they may be identified with the greater entity. John 13:34 “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” Don't overlook the verse that immediately follows. John 13:35 “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” The uniform a disciple wears is his love for one another. To see that identifying mark tells us two things at once; first, it tells us that the individual is a disciple of the son of God, and second, it tells us that the trait of the member, love for one another, is the shared nature of the whole. God is love.

Sameness within the whole is the same thing as unity. Synonyms for the word unity include union, integration, amalgamation. I speak of oneness, the whole. It is the kind of oneness that mathematicians speak of when they say that both sides of an equation are equal. There is an equation expressed in the following verse, and both sides of it are the same. 1 Corinthians 3:8 “Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one.”

In Wikipedia, the definition of a peace treaty is this. A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties. There is a peace treaty between God and his chosen. Basically, the victor states, I will stand for you as long as you abide by the terms of the treaty. Historically, that has been a roller-coaster ride. To be the chosen or to be the not chosen, each side wears its identifying uniform. In the old covenant, the uniform was a strict adherence to the letter of the law. Well, that did not work out so good. In the new covenant, the uniform is the adoption of the nature of the victor.

When we speak of the difference between a winner and a loser, we may speak in terms of a wall that separates the two. We may point to God and mankind being separated, or we may point to a man and a man being separated. When you can finally reach the last apple and add it to the bag, what we have is the whole plus one, which is the same thing as saying the whole. What kept the last apple from being reached? It was not accessible. It was in another place. Perhaps there was enmity. When two family members disagree, there is no peace. The family is broken. When peace returns, it is because the disagreement has formally been put aside. The following verses explain an important truth for all who believe in God, and some who do not. Ephesians 2:14 “For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us.” Ephesians 2:15 “Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace.” Ephesians 2:16 “And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.”

Those verses in the book of Ephesians are about a peace treaty between opposing camps. They can indicate the Christian who opposes himself, as in the case of the Apostle Paul's lament that his spirit and his flesh were at war with each other. Equally, those verses can point to the conversion of Jews to Christianity, as in the argument about faith vs works. They can also speak of the inclusion of the lost tribes of Israel back into the fold, as in “other sheep have I that are not of this fold.” And of course, the one body by the cross is the body of Christ who is the new peace treaty between God and mankind.

We see men as different, but the word of God paints a picture of an underlying sameness. There is one God, and every man, woman, and child with a spirit has a piece of God inside. All the differences in mankind are of our own making. In God's eyes, we are the same. There is actually only one difference; either you give your spirit over to God and become one with him, or you withhold your spirit and stand apart. According to the author of the book of Romans, there is one God, one faith, and one justification for both the chosen people of God and the Gentiles. Romans 3:30 “Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.”

How many races do we have in this world? How many religious beliefs and non-beliefs do we know of. How many types of people can we name? God has an overview. God is a spirit, as Jesus explained, and God sees your spirit, the part of you that is Him. Galatians 3:28 “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Just look what we have done to ourselves! What a mess we have made! Yet, God holds out that any one of us can not only be one with God but one with each other. The new covenant in Christ makes that a possibility for the Christian, the Jew, the Muslim, the Atheist. Faith is all it takes. Once we look at ourselves the way God looks at us, we know that the spirit inside us is more the determining factor than anything of our outward fiction. Romans 2:28 “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh.” Romans 2:29 “But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”

An old expression states that we are what we eat. We may extend that to include what we drink. When we drink water, we are hydrated. The spirit we have in us, despite opinions to the contrary, comes from God. The spirit we accept is like water, it fits our present form as surely as water fits the cup it is poured into. The Bible expresses the spirit as fluid, something that flows forward, something that spills over. If we incorporate the flesh of Christ, we are Christ. If we incorporate the blood of Christ, we are Christ. And Christ is one with God. Another way to say the above is, when we drink the spirit of Christ, we are Christ. And Christ is God, the whole. Is your leg your body? It is as much your body as your arm or head. The whole includes the members and imbues the members with the whole. 1 Corinthians 12:13 “For by one spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one spirit.”

If two balloons are each filled with helium, then both are helium balloons. They are one. If a Jew and a Gentile both turn to and believe in Christ, then both are one through the shared spirit of faith in Christ, which, by extension, is faith in God. Why? We have followed an example. Jesus was that example of God in man. For any of us to be a man of God, that is to have the spirit of the living God living in us, we must incorporate the spirit of Christ. When Jesus said that he was the way, what we must understand is this; in order to go where Jesus went, we must be Jesus, by which I mean, we must be God in man. Ephesians 2:18 “For through him we both have access by one spirit unto the Father.”

We cannot afford to see Christ only as that one man who died on the cross and came back to life. Christ is a whole that includes many individuals of the same spirit. Think about spirit for a moment. What is spirit? Spirit is what we get from God. It is the part of us that is not the flesh. It is the part of us that makes us living, thinking individuals. Do not make the mistake to think that the spirit of faith in Christ is different from the spirit of Christ. If you have faith, it is because Christ has faith. His spirit in you is his faith in you. Christ has faith because God has faith. The nature of God is passed to us through his son. Can you be one with Christ apart from Christ? That is an impossibility. You have the spirit of the one who said, I and my Father are one. 1 Corinthians 12:12 “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.”

I wrote earlier that when we drink water, we are hydrated. The human body, according to science is seventy percent water. That is like saying that when we drink water, we are one with the water and the water is one with us. The water can be found in each member of the body. That pretty much says that the water is both the body and the member. Is any part of that formula out of place? I think not. 1 Corinthians 12:18 “But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.”

One: One as a member of the body whole/a recognized member of the body

One as a member of the body whole:

A Recognized Member of the Body:

A body is recognized by its members. We have words that lead our thoughts in such recognitions; words like he, she, it, they, them. The common and everyday application of the word one in the Bible points to the body as identified by its member. In the following verse, the word 'them' does not identify the whole but the members of the whole. Use of the expression 'every one of them' informs us that the unnamed whole consists of many members. Luke 4:40 “and he laid his hands on every one of them.”

In the following verse, what we see is a named whole and an unnamed member. It is the same thing in that the whole is identified by a member. The word, multitude, again shows us that the whole has many members. Mark 9:17 “And one of the multitude answered and said.”

So, we see in the common application a common mode of thought. We identify the whole by the member, and we identify the member by the whole. We have been thinking like that for centuries, and across different cultures, because it is common. It is not a mode of thought exclusive to the Bible; it is just the way we think. Mark 14:20 “And he answered and said unto them, it is one of the twelve.”

This thought mode will inevitably identify in one of three manners. Either both the member and the whole are named or unnamed; that is the first two of the three. The third manner involves one or the other, either the member or the whole, being named alone. Matthew 26:14 “Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot.” Mark 14:10 “And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve.” Mark 14:43 “And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve.”

A whole can be identified as a mixed bag, as in a multitude. A whole can also be identified as a grouping of contemporary members who are in concert with one another. One may think of such a group as an organ. Biologically speaking, cells come before organs. When those cells organize themselves by purpose and congregate exclusively, we call those cells an organ. We give our biological organs names for the sake of identification. Likewise, the identity of any named whole is about the synchronous congregation of members. That is to say, all the members of a group are on the same page. They think alike and gather around the same cause. Therefore, we see in the Bible, identification of groups by name.

Even when a name is not given, a name is implied. In the following verse, we know the maid is identifying Peter as one of the disciples of Christ. Mark 14:69 “And a maid saw him again, and began to say to them that stood by, This is one of them.” Then, in a verse that identifies the member by name, the whole is identified circuitously. Mark 14:70 “they that stood by said again to Peter, Surely thou art one of them.” In that case, the identification of Peter is not by the marker of his name, but more likely by the marker of his bearing as a Galilean.

Previously, the disciples of Christ were identified as the whole through such named members as Judas and Peter. Other groups are also identified. The members remain unidentified, they are 'one of' a whole such as Pharisees, lawyers, servants, debtors. Luke 7:36 “And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him.” Luke 11:45 “Then answered one of the lawyers.” Luke 15:26 “And he called one of the servants” Luke 16:5 “So he called every one of his Lord's debtors unto him.”

People have a lazy manner of speech. We do not always want to go to the trouble of naming the member or naming the whole. The employees will speak of the employers and say 'them.' Citizens often call elected officials 'they' and 'them.' All of law enforcement is loosely referred to as 'the man.' We identify using easy shortcuts. We not only identify others by such mechanisms of thought and language, we identify ourselves as aligned to a body whole using terms such as 'we,' 'us,' and 'ourselves.' The mechanisms of thought and language are the same in the Bible. Luke 17:15 “And one of them, when he saw he was healed, turned back.”

Nicodemus was one of 'them.' Caiaphas was one of 'them.' We know that Caiaphas was the high priest; that is how he was identified, but high priest is not the whole. The Sanhedrin was the group of which Caiaphas was high priest. We identify Nicodemus as being of the same whole because that was the body he addressed in defense of Jesus. He is also identified as a secret disciple by the portion of the verse that is in parentheses. John 7:50 “Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them.)” John 11:49 “And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year.”

There is the member and there is the body whole. Either may be identified by the other. We saw it in biology, we see it in mathematics. One plus one plus one equals one. It is easy to see a clear connection between the individual and the group. The member is 'one' and the whole is 'one.' For being a lazy application of language, 'one of them' is pretty specific when it comes to identification. John 12:2 “There they made him a supper, and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.” Acts 21:8 “Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven.” Revelation 17:13 “And one of the elders answered.”

We may look at a single object and be impressed by its singularity, its solitude, its separation. When we take a bunch of single objects and put all of them in a bag, the solitude is gone. They are one. When we see many cells combine around the same function, we no longer identify separate cells, we identify an organ. When people join in the same thinking, the same hope, the same cause, the same purpose and power, humble individuals are transformed into something far greater. They are transformed from one, the least, into one, the most.