We just returned from Aspen, Colorado, where we catch a couple of concerts most summers as part of the Aspen Music Festival. It’s always a great time with world class classical music in a splendid setting.
A good orchestra is a marvel, if you think about it. Each musician is highly trained, disciplined to daily practice to refine their craft, AND disciplined to follow their conductor. They all have to play:
- The right note
- At the right time
- At the right volume
Back in 2021, I told the story of an arrogant conductor:
A city orchestra hired a new conductor who was reputed to be quite good. Everyone looked forward to his coming. However, it turned out that he was very arrogant and treated the orchestra badly. Every rehearsal he berated them for their lack of skill, poor direction-taking, and general lack of musicality. This went on and on. Finally, they scheduled their first concert. The townspeople filled the auditorium. The orchestra members filed onto the stage and took their places. Finally, the conductor came out, took his place on the podium, and raised his baton. When he gave the signal to begin, no one played. He tried again. Still nothing. Finally, the Concertmaster, the first violinist, got up and whispered in his ear:
Maestro, never forget that no music comes out of that stick!
It’s a great story, but it occurred to me that “no music comes out of that stick” whether it’s an arrogant conductor or not. Suppose the body of Christ is like an orchestra. Jesus is our conductor.
And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. (Colossians 1.17, 18, ESV)
Jesus is the conductor, but no music comes out of that stick! He chooses to let us make the music, under his direction. What would the orchestra sound like if half the members didn’t show up? Or if some of the members didn’t bother to learn how to play their instrument? Or didn’t learn the current music?
We have a part. How are we playing it?
He handed out gifts of apostle, prophet, evangelist, and pastor-teacher to train Christ’s followers in skilled servant work, working within Christ’s body, the church, until we’re all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God’s Son, fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive like Christ. (Ephesians 4.11 – 13, MSG)