Now You Are The Body Of Christ, And Each One Of You Is A Part Of It

1 CORINTHIANS 12:20-27
“But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary. And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty, but our presentable parts have no need. But God composed the body, having given greater honor to that part which lacks it, that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.
”‭‭I Corinthians‬ ‭12:20-27‬ ‭NKJV‬
‬https://www.bible.com/114/1co.12.20-27.nkj

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Paul explains even though as Christians we are individuals, and all have different callings, and therefore, together we make up one whole body, the church, of which Christ is the head.
Each of us must play our part, for what good is a body with dysfunctional parts, or made up of all the same parts.
“If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. And if they were all one member, where would the body be?”
‭‭I Corinthians‬ ‭12‬:‭15‬-‭19‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
Therefore, the foot is not instructed by the eye, but by the head, in deed every part is subject to the instruction or leading of the head and is called to please God not man.
Furthermore, the left hand doesn’t always know what the right hand is doing (MATHEW 6:3-4).
Whilst it’s the same Spirit in all and is the same source of all the gifts, He speaks to us and leads us individually. Therefore, we may not necessarily understand others callings or spoken words, but that doesn’t mean they are wrong. We just need to remain focused on our individual roles and continue to walk by leading of the Spirit.
The body of Christ is made up of many parts, and it may seem that some are more powerful or important and others that appear weak. But the truth is, they are all equally important and subject to the head, Jesus Christ.
Of course their are some leadership roles within the church, but every part is neither above or below any other, and every member has a pacific calling within the ministry, but Christ is above all.
For “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭4‬-‭6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
My beloved, if it’s not Christ ministry, it shall profit you nothing.
Christ ministry is the five fold ministry, and each member is called to serve within at least one of the five categories.
“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬-‭16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
My beloved, whatever your position in the church, you are subject to Christ in you, and no more or less important than any other part.
Indeed, Jesus said, “But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭23‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
Paul argued for diversity of gifts and acceptance of the full range of gifts that God gives to His people.
No one should consider themselves superior about his gifts, nor inferior, because every gift is necessary for the body to operate smoothly and edify the whole body, that we can serve God affectively as individuals and together like a well oiled machine.
No one should discount the contribution of another person no matter how insignificant he or she may seem. Nor should we put anyone on a pedestal because they have more gifts or appear more powerful, for without Christ, not one of us can do anything good or lasting.
Each gift is given by the grace of God (EPHESIANS 4:7), and we should be grateful and feel honoured for our part.
But, the question is, what is your response when a fellow Christian is honoured? Are you happy for them, or does jealousy kick in? And how do you respond when someone is suffering? Since we are all apart of the same body, we are to be happy with those who are happy, but if they are sad, we are to share their sorrow (ROMANS 12:15), for if one member suffers, the whole body suffers with it.
My brethren, their is much division in our church today, but God is calling us out to remove the jealousy, the pride, and the gossip that fuels division.
Rather than putting each other down, we are to lift each up and come together in unity, edifying one another, that the body of Christ becomes more powerful, active, and productive.
My beloved, together we are strong through Christ. Therefore, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭10:23-25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
We all face trials, tribulations, and suffer losses and morn and weep in our walk of life, and it can be quite daunting facing the realities of life and death and go through the fires of testing. But even so, we must be ready for the glorious day of the Lord; to meet Christ in the clouds, for His day is fast approaching and He is coming to take His people from this ever darkening world.
“But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.”
‭‭I Thessalonians‬ ‭4:13-18‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.