Fact or Fad?

I have been thoroughly confused by a religious term over the last decade. The concept in question is "incarnational". Roughly described, we as Christians are Christ to the world or, the Christian Church incarnates Christ today. I don't think I am wrong when I say this is a stronger concept than representation or, the Church simply represents Christ in the world. I have come to the meager conclusion that this 'incarnational' ministry idea is flawed. I am not Jesus and the incarnation was a one time event. Indeed, scripture talks of Christians as ambassadors which means full representation, but it does not lend itself to incarnation.

I think this flawed view of 'incarnational' ministry stems from an historical weakness in our understanding of the Holy Spirit. Whilst we cannot dismiss the importance of Christ (we are Christians for a reason), we cannot divide the Trinitarian reality of God. Paul says we are 'Spirit People' endowed with gifts for ministry and this witnesses to Christ. This is a better analysis than 'incarnational' as the individual remains who he or she is, identified by the Holy Spirit as being in Christ before the Father... and not absorbed into the One (whether it be the collective incarnated Church or the abstraction of believer-as-Christ).