Results for "body_of_christ"
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1 Corinthians 12:21
21The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don't need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don't need you!”
21The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don't need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don't need you!”
We know that the will of God is to build up His church, and that He plans to use us in the process (Ephesians 4:11-16, 1 Corinthians 14:12). The goal of this building up is to equip us to be missionaries to our cultures and the greater world, speaking the truth *in love* to each other while being ambassadors for Christ to those who are outside of the city of God (2 Corinthians 5:14-15,20). If we effectively dismiss other Christians and their gifts or seek to always restrain rather than encourage, we dislocate the Body and a cold sickness comes over her. Why are our Christian communities so often powerless? Is it perhaps that our church governmental structures tend to centralize power to the elders or a single teaching pastor and take the freedom of ministry away from the Body. Qualified elders do have a real God-given authority, but it is an authority that comes with a great responsibility -- to shepherd and lead the flock of God to mutually grow up in the faith and minister to the world.
Bookmarked 15 days ago.
1 Corinthians 12:20
20As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
20As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
The apostle is about to hammer away at the reality of our spiritual family *again*, and this verse is a short breath. It seems like Paul has said enough, but we are thick-skinned, self-sufficient people. Not many of us live in conscious dependence upon others, and many relationships are built upon things other than our shared hope in Christ. So, again, he reminds us -- there is only one Body, even though there are believers with different interests, backgrounds, giftings, and personalities around the world and even within a local gathering of believers. Perhaps the most difficult reality is that there are believers all over the map in maturity. The mature are called to help and teach the weak; but how many 'mature' Christians have patience and love enough to bear with the wrong opinions, character flaws and inconsistencies of young Christians? The weak, if they are young in age or faith (or both), still have the same powerful Spirit and perhaps even powerful gifting that is for the Church. How many of these, especially those with great visible gifts, learn to be teachable and commit Paul's next chapter to heart (I Cor. 13)?
Bookmarked 17 days ago.
1 Corinthians 12:19
19If they were all one part, where would the body be?
19If they were all one part, where would the body be?
The answer is obvious -- we would have a very ugly body made up of one giant rolling eye, or, more practically, we would have a bunch of people doing their own little spiritual quests, trying to discern God's will and please Him. Because of the darkness of our situation, this just doesn't work. We should pray for and aspire to live in community such that people outside can begin to see the Spirit-led harmony and beauty of a people living under Jesus' reign through His love and power! It is not hard to dismiss the truth of Christ when only a few individuals follow Him well and yell at the rest to shape up. However, when a gathering of believers lives together in peace, building each other up and witnessing to the grace of God -- an outsider cannot easily deny the power of such a faith.
Bookmarked 26 days ago.
1 Corinthians 12:15-18
15If 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.
15If 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.
We all may go through times where our usefulness to the Master may seem pathetic compared to others, especially those who look very gifted. The truth is that God will judge us not by our gifting but by our faithfulness. The gifts are His alone; how we will use what we have is our responsibility (Matthew 25:14-30). Then it is no business of ours to declare that we have no place in the Church and in Christ's Kingdom. If we come to despair and are gripped by this lack of faith, we may end up as the man who buried his talent. We must hold a steady faith in God's goodness and the reward laid up for those who live for him, even if we sometimes believe that we do not have the ability or resources to follow Him. False humility leaves us at "I am nothing; I have nothing to offer God." But the meekness that comes from Christ says, "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:7-10). God has arranged the Body in such a way that all may be weak in themselves but fully supplied and built up as we walk together in the Spirit and under the shadow of the Cross, using our gifts to encourage and bless one another through every test and trial.
Bookmarked about 1 month ago.
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1 Corinthians 12:14
14Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
14Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
When we think of the Church, we should not begin to imagine an organization or group of individuals separate from ourselves. Rather, we should think of ourselves, intertwined within this *one* glorious fellowship of the light where Jesus is head. "We, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another" (Romans 12:4-5). It seems very simple, but embracing this truth in our hearts will go a long way to humble us and lead us to serve one another with our gifts in a spirit of genuine love.
Bookmarked about 1 month ago.
1 Corinthians 12:13
13For we were all baptized byOr with; or in one Spirit into one body–whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free–and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
13For we were all baptized byOr with; or in one Spirit into one body–whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free–and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
When believers are baptized, we are entering into a new way of life (Romans 6:1-4; Colossians 2:13-14). But the new life that we have comes from Jesus; we are 'in' Christ now, united to Him in heart and mind by the Holy Spirit through faith in the Gospel (Romans 8:1-11). We are also, then, united with all other believers in the family of redeemed humanity. Baptism is the clear sign of this change that happens when a person comes to faith. If, then, there is only one identity for Christians -- Christ crucified and risen, as baptism shows -- can Christ be separated? (1 Corinthians 1:10-13). Can I separate myself from brothers and sisters, claiming that Paul or Apollos, Graham or Spurgeon is my spiritual father? If our unity is based on our new identity--the crucified and risen Savior--we cannot remain divided, and the peace of Christ reigning in our hearts will not allow it. But this happens only through the Spirit of Christ in us who believe, as we joyfully obey the command to keep His peace at the forefront of our hearts. If we really face the fact that Christ's great sacrifice was not only on behalf my own sins, but rather was on behalf of the sins of the world, and especially the sins of his Bride the Church, disunity will flee from our hearts (Ephesians 4:1-6; 1 John 2:2; Ephesians 5:25-27).
Bookmarked about 1 month ago.
1 Corinthians 12:12
12The 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.
12The 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.
What makes sense of Paul's teaching here is the truth that believers are spiritually united with Christ. Paul teaches that "...as many of you as were baptized into Christ have *put on* Christ." We are all wearing the same clothes after all, for "all are one in Christ." No distinction can be made because of race or class, or any external thing for that matter; the presence of Jesus in the heart marks every true Christian (Galatians 3:26-29). More so, we identify with only one 'body' that is maintained by the unifying power of the Holy Spirit. When Paul says that there is one body he isn't just speaking figuratively -- Christ is present among us and lives within us, and indeed is displayed through us as the Church. Christians have a deeper bond than blood relation, which is a truth that few of us really appreciate; we are all members of a new family and share citizenship in the Kingdom of God. Paul makes this clear in v.26 of this chapter: why else would the suffering of another Christian cause us to suffer? Do we suffer for the suffering of the countless martyrs of our day or for those who are going without food or clothes while we have plenty? We are perhaps too busy and concerned with things other than the well-being of the body of Christ. Open our eyes, LORD!
Bookmarked 5 months ago.
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