Corinthians 12:12-21,26,27
In the name of Jesus, the church’s Head and our Lord and Savior, dear fellow members of his body,
If you haven’t noticed by now, your bulletin this morning is a little messed up. You probably found it a bit hard to read. Anyone figure out why? I replaced all the “a’s” with “x’s” – that’s all. I didn’t substitute for any of the other 25 letters of the alphabet – just the “a’s.” But even with just one letter being replaced, notice how the entire bulletin suffered because of it. It proves that every letter of the alphabet is important when it comes to putting something into print. Every letter has a part to play.
It works the same way when it comes to our role as members of our Lord’s church. Sure, we could get by with some of the members not working right, with some sitting on the sideline and not taking an active role in the Lord’s work. But how much better it is when all the members work together as one body, with Christ himself as the head.
Today let’s listen as Paul leads us in a discussion about:
“Body Parts”
I. You are part of the body of Christ
II. Do you part in serving the body of Christ
Not all the keys of the Corinthians’ keyboard wanted to work together. If you lived in Corinth back in the day, a city of wealth and opportunity, you were probably financially secure. You didn’t need anyone else’s help, and you looked at the mere thought of accepting help from someone as a sign of weakness. As a result, your own attitude about helping others suffered. You ended up caring only about yourself, priding yourself on being a “rugged individualist,” needing no one’s help and wanting to help no one. In the end you had become a pretty self-centered person, used to pursuing your own dreams and goals and not caring about those around you.
Then you became a Christian, and your “solo” act came to an end. You learned that you were not “an entity unto yourself,” but you were a part of a group, a significant part of something special. You were now a part of the body of Christ, a member of his church! So after hearing the apostle Paul talk about all the unique spiritual gifts given to members of the church (from our reading last week, verses 1-11 of 1 Corinthians 12), now your attention is directed to how all these gifts are to be used by members working together as the body of Christ.
To make his point that each of us is a part of the body of Christ, Paul uses the example of the human body (vv 12,13), “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body – whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free – and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.” The many different parts of the human body all fit together to form one functioning unit. Every part of the body is useful. Medical science used to be believe that the tonsils, the appendix, and certain other body parts were expendable – mainly because of a false belief in evolution. But now it’s been recognized that every body part serves a purpose. And so does every part of the body of Christ.
You and I are some of those parts. We became part of the body when we were “baptized by one Spirit into one body.” The same Spirit worked the same saving faith in each of us, whether it was as an infant through the water of Holy Baptism or as an adult through the hearing of the Word. Regardless of our nationality or social status – “whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free” – we stand as members of one body. And it’s all because of our Savior, Jesus. Paul tells us in Galatians (3:26-28), “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Because Jesus came into our world as one of us, now we are privileged to be one in him. So we can’t help but smile when we hear Paul say (v 27), “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”
The next time you’re tempted to think that your life doesn’t have any meaning or that you’re just taking another number in the long line of life, remember who you are – you’re a part of the body of Christ! That means that your life here on this earth has purpose, that because of Christ God wants you in his family and someday promises to take you home to heaven. Whereas this world has a knack for dragging us down and making us feel unimportant, our Lord tells us just the opposite. He’s made us his own, and while here on this earth, he has important work for us to do. Paul goes on to tell us that as part of the body of Christ, we are also to do our part in serving the body of Christ.
We never work alone as our Lord’s body parts (v 14), “Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.” That’s why God has given us all such unique gifts and blessed us in different ways. We’re not just an army of robots, cloned to all work in the same way and do the same things. And being different doesn’t mean that some are inferior to others. No, it was part of God’s plan that we be different and yet still able to come together to work with each other as the body of Christ.
So don’t expect to have the same gifts as everyone else, and don’t expect everyone else to have the same gifts as you. Respect the gifts that each part of the body has been given. Paul uses the human body to explain (vv 15,16), “If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.” Our feet and our hands, our ears and our eyes – you won’t find them quarreling and acting jealous of each other. Even if they could, they still couldn’t decide to not be a part of the body. And yet at times we see members of Christ’s body feuding and separating themselves from the rest of the body. Over the years I’ve had to deal with members who have stopped coming to church, maybe stopped contributing their offerings, and even some who have left the church altogether because in some way they no longer felt as if they were part of the body. How does this happen? Sometimes it’s the fault of the rest of the body if we, as a church, fail to make use of all the members and the talents they’ve been given. And yet it’s my opinion that the wounds are often self-inflicted as members fail to appreciate and respect the gifts and roles of other members, choosing instead to become jealous and to withdraw from active service in the church. Not only do these members end up becoming more and more disgruntled and upset, but they also end up hurting the body of Christ.
That’s because all parts of the body are meant to serve a role, great or small (v 17), “If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?” There are no giant eyeballs or ears rolling down the street. They don’t exist, because they’re not meant to stand alone – the human body couldn’t function that way. It’s the same with the body of Christ. No part stands alone. There are no giants in the church, at least not any members who are so great that they can snuff out the other members. Some may be meant to be leaders and some followers, but they’re all still necessary parts intended to play a part in serving the body of Christ.
Again, this is how God intended it to be. Just look at how he made the human body (vv 18-20), “But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.” Our bodies are made the way they are for a reason. We don’t have our eyes on our sides because then we’d always have to lift up our arms to see. Our hands aren’t attached to our ears because then we’d have trouble reaching things. God had a reason for making us the way we are, for putting the parts where he did, and he has reasons for making us different as parts of the body of Christ. Be thankful for the diversity that we have. Be thankful that everyone isn’t the same as you are, no matter how gifted you may be. There still may be some who are more compassionate, some who are better leaders, some who are more knowledgeable about Scripture, some who are better administrators, some who are better teachers. That’s a good thing, because it makes for a stronger body when we recognize that we are different and yet still needed for the good of the body. As Paul puts it (v 21), “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you!’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’” The eye needs the hand to remove the speck of dirt. The head needs the feet to get it to the doctor when it’s sick. In the same way, the pastor needs the Sunday School teachers. The trustees need the church cleaners. The school board needs the volunteers at the child care center. The elders need the members to encourage each other to be faithful in hearing God’s Word. All have valuable functions as parts of the body of Christ and can’t work properly without the others.
When you have that kind of working relationship running on all cylinders, then the parts of the body can’t help but share with each other the joys and the burdens they each experience (vv 26,27), “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” If you stub your little toe on the corner of the bed at night, doesn’t your whole body display the pain? Martin Luther describes it this way: “See what the whole body does when a foot is trodden on, or a finger is pinched: how the eye looks dour, the nose draws up, the mouth cries out, and all the members are ready to rescue and to help, and none can leave the other, so that it means, not the foot or a finger is trodden on and is pinched, but the entire body.” As the body of Christ, we all share the pain of a fellow member who’s suffering in the hospital or who is going through some other difficult situation. But the opposite is also true. When one rejoices, we all rejoice. We all share in the joy of a new baby being born or of new members being added to our church family. We recognize that we’re all here to do our part in serving the body of Christ.
A quick review of our membership list here at Messiah reveals that about 50% of our membership is involved in some form of ministry. That means that half of our body has a visible function or role in serving the rest of the body. The good news? That’s a fairly high percentage for a church. The bad news? It still means that the other 50% needs to have a way to put their gifts to use. As a church, we’re trying to do better. We recently had a “service opportunities” insert in the bulletin with areas in need of volunteers, and the Board of Stewardship will continue to try to match the talents of members with ways to utilize those talents. But perhaps some of the problem might lie with members who don’t want to take the initiative to get involved. They’re letting their gifts lie idle. Does that apply to you? Here’s a test to see if it might. Ask yourself, “Would the body of Christ here at Messiah miss me if I weren’t a part of it?” In other words, would we as a church have to find a replacement for you, someone to do your part, if you were no longer here? Again, it doesn’t have to be something great or noticeable by others. But even a pinky finger is missed when it’s injured and out of commission. What about you? Are you doing your part in serving the body of Christ? If not, pray that God opens your eyes and lets you see opportunities in which you can use your gifts in serving him and his church.
The Shockers lost another basketball game last night. It’s not because they don’t recognize their problem. In yesterday’s paper, there were these quotes: “We’ve just got to become more of a team . . . and make sure we’re on the same page to get us playing better.” “The only chance you have is if you have a team that’s together. It’s too hard in college basketball to win if you’re not together.” “Basketball is very much a team game.” Well, so is church work. We’re all body parts, part of the same team, part of the body of Christ. Let’s do our part to make sure we’re all on the same page. Because then, just like in basketball, when all the parts work together, everyone wins!
Amen
–Pastor Jonathan Rockhoff