Take your Bibles with me and turn to 1 Corinthians 12.
We are going to start reading verses 12-31 today, and we are going to be talking about the church as a body.
I've learned a lot about how a body works over the last four years watching doctors try to figure out and help our son Noah.
You all know this, but Noah has some kind of autoimmune condition that is causing his body to attack itself. He's been hospitalized five times in the last year with this condition, and we keep finding new things that the condition is attacking. They aren't 100% sure what is going on, but their working diagnosis is that he has something called neurosarcoidosis.
This mystery disease just keeps causing packets of inflammation all over his body, moving from system to system. We don't know what system will be infected next, and when the next attack is going to happen.
Because of this, Noah has a TON of doctors. He has two ophthalmologists (for his eyes), a rheumatologist (for his immune system), a nephrologist (for his kidneys), an internal medicine doctor (for his spleen and liver), a pulmonologist (for his lungs), a neurologist (for his brain and spinal cord), a dermatologist (for his skin), a cardiologist (for his heart) and of course a primary care doctor for everything else.
That's not even close to all the specialists, because that isn't even close to all of the body parts and systems that we have. But here is the main thing we are learning through Noah's disease - your body has lots of different systems and parts, and they all work together. When one system isn't working, your whole body hurts. When your body starts attacking itself, which is what Noah's body is doing, you are in for a whole host of problems.
By the way, that is exactly what this passage teaches us about the spiritual body - or the local church. The Corinthian church was like a body with an autoimmune condition - instead of the parts helping each other - they were attacking each other and the result was spiritual mayhem. Paul is going to sort that out in these verses.
I want to read the whole text tonight, and then work through it again piece by piece and try to show you what Paul is teaching us here.
[!bible] 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 - KJV 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. 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. 14. For the body is not one member, but many. 15. If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 16. And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 17. If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? 18. But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. 19. And if they were all one member, where were the body? 20. But now are they many members, yet but one body. 21. And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. 22. Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: 23. And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. 24. For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: 25. That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. 26. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. 27. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. 28. And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. 29. Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? 30. Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? 31. But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.
I don't believe Paul was a hobby horse preacher. But if he was, he liked to talk about the church as a body. This same teaching he gives here, he also gives in Romans 12 and in Ephesians 4. This is important stuff for the church too understand.
So there are eight different points I want to work through in the text, and I'll spend more time on some of them than on others.
The first point that we see in verse 12 is...
1. A church, like a body is a singular entity made up of a bunch of very different parts.
Look at verse 12 again:
[!bible] 1 Corinthians 12:12 - KJV 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.
That's a lot of words to swallow, and this chapter repeats these phrases over and over. This is Paul's main point.
Just like a body has a bunch of body parts, but it is still one body, the church has a bunch of body parts, but it is still one body.
We are many, but we are one. When you drove here tonight, your hand didn't drive here (although they steered the wheel), your eye didn't drive here (although it watched where you were going), you r foot didn't drive here (although it pressed the pedals.) You - a single human being drove here.
As a church we are a collective body. We are many individual parts, but we work together as one. We have a unity that is made up of diversity.
We'll come back to that in a minute. Let's move on to point 2:
2. Everybody, no matter their standing, gets into the body the same way (13)
This is an interesting thing about a church body - we are made up of people with different backgrounds.
In the Corinthian church they had slaves and freemen, rich and poor, people with Jewish backgrounds and greek backgrounds and Roman backgrounds, men and women.
But they all got into the body the same way - what Paul calls "the baptism of the Spirit."
Now it's important that we understand a few things about what the "baptism of the Spirit" is not:
This isn't talking about water baptism. It's talking about spirit baptism.
This isn't something that happens in a baptismal pool or a river, this is something that happens as a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit.
This also isn't talking about some second step that some people get and some don't. Many charismatic groups teach that there is salvation and then there is this second baptism, in which you speak with tongues that only the truly spiritual experience.
But Paul said that everyone in the church is baptized in by the same spirit. Paul later is going to say that not everyone speaks with tongues. So that clearly shows that this isn't some special second event that comes with speaking in tongues.
Here is what I believe this is talking about, I believe this is the spiritual sealing that happens when we are born again and trust Christ. We are baptized, or plunged in, to His family and made to be a part of His body.
Let's keep going through this passage.
3. A body needs a diversity of parts. (14-20)
This is kind of the meat of this passage. Your body has hundreds of different body parts and they are all different. They all do different things.
Some of them are visible - like your head and your hands - and some of them are invisible and internal - like your spleen. But you need all of them.
A church needs all different kinds of people with different kinds of gifting. We cannot all be the same. We need unity (we are one body) but that unity must come from diversity.
God is not anti-diversity. Think about the snowflakes. Isn't it amazing that God made it so that every single snowflake is unique and different. God didn't have to do that - but He did.
God doesn't make people like McDonald's chicken McNuggets. (You know, there are only five shapes and they are exactly the same.) God is into real diversity. Real difference.
I do not want everyone at Bible Baptist to be like me. What a boring church we would be if that was the case. There are so many things that wouldn't get done. God in His sovereign wisdom has put our church together with a bunch of different people and we all have different spiritual gifts.
Many of us have different backgrounds. Many of us come together out of different circles.
We aren't supposed to be all the same. We aren't supposed to all dress the same. We aren't supposed to have the same tastes in everything. We aren't supposed to have the same gifts and talents. We are different and God has knit us together so that we can work together perfectly.
Could you think of a more different guy than me and Steve Pullen? But I love that guy. I wouldn't want to have our church without him.
I love looking out at our church on Sunday morning and seeing how different we all are. The different backgrounds, the different tastes, even different ethnicity. I think God loves that.
Let's keep moving
4. A body needs every part to do its job
Let's read these verses (21-22)
[!bible] 1 Corinthians 12:21-22 - KJV 21. And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. 22. Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary:
We need every body part God has put into our church. We need you to serve the Lord together, but as your own unique selves.
Just as God knew what He was doing when He knit each working part of our physical bodies together - God knows what He is doing when He knits a church family together.
Each of you has a function. Each of you has a job to do. And YOU are important. It doesn't matter if you don't think you are important because God thinks you are important.
There were two errors in this church. You had some people who were looking down on their own gifts. "Oh, woe is me, I'm just a spleen or I'm just a big toe. I wish I was something beautiful and visible like an eye or a forehead."
No! God made you a spleen. The body needs a spleen. We need you to be you, not to wish you were someone else.
The second error that was happening was some people were looking at other people and their gifts and looking down on them. So you had people looking down on themselves and people looking down on others.
And the answer is the same: We need every part. And listen, mr. nose, you don't understand how important some of those less visible parts are.
It's just as silly for one person to say "I wish I was a preacher" as it is for the preacher to say "look at that person, all they can do is mop a floor. I'm more important than them."
Do you realize that in your body, some of your most essential and important parts are parts that no one ever sees.
You could live without an eye. You could live without both eyes even, it would be hard. But you aren't doing anything without an intestine or a stomach.
Some of you aren't super visible in the church, you aren't on the stage, you aren't out front leading - but know this, you are essential!
That leads me to point number 5:
5. God deliberately gives special honor and care to the parts that seem less important, so that there's no division in the body. Every part matters. Every part is honored. (23-24)
Let's read these verses:
[!bible] 1 Corinthians 12:23-24 - KJV 23. And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. 24. For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked:
These are tricky verses, and I'm not sure I totally understand them in detail - but I think I understand the big picture Paul is getting at here:
In your physical body, you take extra care of the parts that are more vulnerable or less presentable. You don't leave your internal organs exposed - you protect them. You clothe the parts of your body that need covering. Your brain is protected by your skull. Your heart is protected by your ribcage. The parts that seem weaker actually get special protection and care.
And Paul says God has designed the church body the same way. God gives special honor to the parts that seem less important so that there will be no division in the body.
Here's what this means practically: If you're not up front, if you're not visible, if you don't have a flashy spiritual gift - God has made sure you receive honor. The person who quietly serves in the nursery matters just as much as the person preaching. The person who sets up chairs matters just as much as the person leading worship. God has designed His church so that every single part is honored and necessary.
And the result? Verse 25 tells us: "That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.
Let's move on to point 6:
6. Body parts need to work together and take care of each other (25-26)
[!bible] 1 Corinthians 12:25-26 - KJV 25. That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. 26. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.
7. Nobody gets all the gifts (28-30)
[!bible] 1 Corinthians 12:28-30 - KJV 28. And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. 29. Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? 30. Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?
8. The most essential thing to keep the body working isn't a gift at all, but Christian love (verse 31 ch. 13)
[!bible] 1 Corinthians 12:31 - KJV 31. But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.
