“Part of the Body” -- 1 Corinthians 12:27-31

American story telling loves the lone wolf, the one man who stands against a group of evil men or women intent on destroying our world. We have the Lone Ranger, or Will Kane in “High Noon.” Clint Eastwood made a career playing the lone wolf in law enforcement in his “Dirty Harry” movies. Even the “Rocky” movies portrayed Rocky Balboa as a man against all odds.

There is no room for a lone wolf in God’s kingdom, though. Not only do we need the presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit, but we also need each other. Today’s passage speaks to us about this truth.

Background

The Church in Corinth was a mess. It consisted of men and women who were striving to serve Christ while having an immature understanding of what it means to be Christian. The Corinthians were fighting over all sorts of things, placing great importance on issues that really had no importance. The book we call 1 Corinthians is written in response to a list of questions brought to him by a delegation from the Church there, asking for direction on where to go and how to live out their faith as individuals and as a Church.

One of the things that was dividing the fellowship of believers was the various spiritual gifts and their importance in the Church. Apparently, there was a group in the Church that seemed to think the “charismatic” gifts—healing and tongues, specifically—were of prime importance. (In the first place, “charismatic” applies to all the gifts God gives, since “charisma” means “gift.) Paul uses chapters 11-14 to speak to worship in general and the spiritual gifts in particular.

In Chapter 12, Paul first assures the Corinthians that gifts are real, but he also stresses that these gifts are from God. In vs. 4-6, Paul writes, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.” His point is that the gifts, rather than dividing the Church, are intended to unite and strengthen the fellowship of believers. He says that in the next verse.

To make his point, Paul uses the illustration of a body. A body is made up of many parts, but each of the parts are necessary in order for the body to function properly. Some parts of the body may seem more important than other parts, but we need all the parts of our bodies in order to be effective in living our lives. The body parts are dependent upon one another. This is made clear when one part of the body hurts or becomes ill. It’s hard to function with a severe earache, a troubled stomach, even a stubbed toe. Try walking when one of our legs falls asleep.

In this passage we come to today, Paul is bringing the illustration to a point. The truth he’s making is this:

Central Truth: Each of us who profess Christ as Lord are members of His body and have a part to play in it.

1. The great truth (27)

One of my favorite passages of the Bible is when Nathan the prophet is speaking to David about a man with a little lamb that is treasured by the family. The story he tells David is that the man had a neighbor who had a large flock of sheep. One day a guest comes to the wealthy man’s house. Knowing he would need to feed his guest, but not wanting to use one of his sheep, the wealthy man takes the neighbor’s pet lamb and butchers it for the meal.

David, a man of empathy and compassion, is outraged at the callousness of the wealthy man. David tells Nathan that something must be done, to find the wealthy man.

Nathan looks directly at the king and says, “Thou art the man!” In saying that, David realized the story was not about a man and a lamb, but Uriah and Bathsheba. David falls on his knees and confesses his guilt before Nathan and God.

While perhaps not as dramatic, Paul uses a similar point in v. 27. Having told the illustration of the body and its multiple parts, Paul then tells the Corinthians, “You are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” In saying these words, Paul is reminding the Corinthians of a number of truths.

The first truth is that we need each other. No one part of the human body can function without the others, nor can it survive. As the body of Christ, we are dependent upon God and each other to fulfill our calling. We need the support of our brothers and sisters in Christ to encourage us and pray for us and share their insights into what it means to follow Christ. Because we are the body of Christ, we need each other.

The second truth is that we are all important to the success of the ministry of the body of Christ. Little toes seem insignificant until we stub one. They also seem unnecessary until we lose one or more. Imagine life without a thumb. We can replace our teeth with dentures, but the dentures are a poor substitute for the teeth God has given us. There are parts of the body that may seem insignificant, but each of our parts are necessary. This is also true in the church. Where would our church be without each other?

The third truth is that we have a common mission. As the body of Christ, our mission is to be sharing His message and doing His works in our world, or at least our portion of the world. We are the ones who represent Christ on earth, and we are called to be His ambassadors, His representatives in our world. Our task is to be united in our message and in our ministry, supporting one another as we are being led by His Spirit.

These truths are present in the local church, but also present in the universal Church. It may seem like our small church really doesn’t matter in the big scheme of things, but consider the work we do in supporting our association and our conventions. Through the things we do on the local level, we support missionaries across the world, and we help spread the Word to a world in need of hearing about Jesus. We are needed and we have a part to play.

Paul’s last part of the verse is important to realize that we are all members and that we are also a part of it. There may have been times in our lives when we were part of an organization—a school, a job, what-have-you—that we were involved in, but we never really felt like we belonged. It’s a lonely feeling to believe we are not really needed. Paul’s words here are a reminder that we are all needed. One of the things we should always seek to do is to encourage one another and let each other know we are valued and are appreciated.

He’s also reminding them that there are no “lone wolves” in the ministry of Christ. We are the body of Christ, and we are all a part of it. We need each other.

2. Dealing with the many parts (28-31a)

This is the second time Paul makes a list of the things God gives to the Church through His Spirit in this passage. The first list, in vs. 8-10, is slightly different from that found in these verses. In both lists, though, Paul makes a point of placing the gifts of tongues and interpretation of tongues last. The gifts listed in vs. 8-10 are the message of wisdom, the message of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, speaking in different tongues and interpretation of tongues. In our current verses, he lists apostles, prophets, teachers, workers of miracles, healing, helping others, administration and speaking in different kinds of tongues.

In both lists, Paul wants to emphasize the importance of preaching and teaching, while relegating the spectacular gift of tongues to the lower tier. This is his way of letting the Corinthians know they need to get their priorities right while also acknowledging that all the gifts are a part of the body. Having begun his summary of this chapter with the statement that we are all members of the body and each has a part, the apostle continues that theme.

He is reminding the readers and us that we who make up the body of Christ, the Church, are all different and we all bring specific gifts to the effective ministry of the body. But just as we all have specific gifts, he then reminds us that we can’t all be the same. Verse 29 is a series of questions that, in the original Greek, leads to the answer “no” in each case. Are all apostles? No. Are all teachers? No.

The point Paul is trying to make in the first part of v. 31 is this: While there are various gifts in the Church that are given in order to benefit the entire body, the Corinthians seem to be focused on the seemingly more glamorous gifts of speaking in tongues and interpreting tongues. With his lists, Paul is letting them and us know that such gifts are simply a part of the body. As Paul writes in vs. 24-25, “But god has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.” The point being that the Corinthians, who are dividing their church over the gifts, need to reassess their understanding of the meaning and uses of the gifts.

3. A most excellent way (31b)

I used to listen to an old radio show that featured a trio that liked to sing cowboy songs while including humor in their show. The leader of the band was a character named Ranger Doug. Ranger Doug was always telling one of the members, “That might be one way to do this, but it wouldn’t be the Cowboy Way.” The “Cowboy Way” was always the honorable and proper way to do things. No short cuts, always doing the job right.

The last part of v. 31 is Paul’s way of saying that the Church needs to end its divisions. One of the ways is to reconsider what they were expressing about the gifts, but now Paul shows them the “Cowboy Way.” At the end of the verse, Paul is directing them to the next chapter, where Paul goes into great detail about the importance of Christ-like love and putting that love into action each day by each part of the body of Christ.

What Paul is beginning to stress is that if we love as Christ loves us, then we will seek what is best for each other, not competing against each other. We will seek to lift each other up, focusing on encouraging one another and praising God for each other. There must be a genuine appreciation for each other built upon the love of God that lives within us through His Spirit.

If we want to be an effective body for Christ, we will focus not on gifts, but Christ’s love for us and expressed through us as we live out the Golden Rule.

Conclusion

It’s exciting to be a part of something. It’s nice to belong, but it’s more exciting to know that we are not only members, but a vital part of what we belong to.

God uses Paul to show us that, as members of the body of Christ, we each have a task and we each have responsibilities. Because we are each a part of the body, each one of us has a calling and a ministry that God wants to fulfill in each of us. Discover our gifts, use them in His love and walk in His ways.