EVERY BELIEVER IN THE CHURCH HAS EQUAL IMPORTANCE
1 Corinthians
12:14-31
AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE DIFFERENT FUNCTIONS OF THE BODY
V:14. " Now the body is not made up of one part but of
many."
A. The Human body is
magnificently made by God to do His will and to
give Him praise
and honor.
1. The human body
is made of different parts, each joined together to function as
one unit.
2. I am not sure
you can count all the parts of the body.
3. Certainly, we
can count what we see on the surface.
4. Underneath the
skin are more parts not visible to the eye.
B. The skin is a
divinely designed covering that houses the skeleton that God
fitted with
muscles and body organs , blood and blood cells all joined together
to make a well
made human machine with capabilities beyond our imagination.
1. If one part of
the body stops functioning, the perfectly designed machine ceased
to work as
well as God designed.
2. All parts of
the body have a function.
3. All parts of
the body contribute to its' the well being.
V:15. " 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."
A. The foot is made
for walking, standing, jumping, running and stopping.
B. The hand is made
for clapping, waving, pointing, holding, pushing, pulling, directing
and sign
language.
C. One enhances the
other.
1. The two
together can certainly do more than one.
V:16. " 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."
A. The ear is made for hearing, listening and play a part in
the balancing of the body.
B. The eye is made for seeing, sending pictures of the
outside world to the brain,
distinguishing
colors, shapes and objects and gives sight to guide our actions.
C. One enhances the other.
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?"
A. The nose is for
smelling, inhaling and exhaling.
1. The nose
filters the air to keep us from bringing foreign objects into the lungs.
2. The nose
enables us to distinguish between different smells, providing
pleasure and
alerting us to dangers.
B. Every part of the
body has a specific purpose.
The eyes, the
ears and the nose enhance each other.
V:18. " But in
fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he
wanted them to be."
A. God is the
designer of the body.
1. God arranged
the body parts to function the way they should, to do the job they
were designed to do.
2. God connected
the body parts together and maintains their connectivity.
B. The body parts
cannot function without God's control.
V:19-20 " If they were all one part, where would the
body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body."
A. The body is not the perfect body without all it's parts.
1. It is the sum
of the parts, that make the body complete.
2. If any of the
parts of the body are lacking, the body
can't do all that it was designed
to do.
B. Like a puzzle, the picture is not complete without all
the pieces.
1. Each piece of
the puzzle has a specific place in the puzzle.
2. If any of the
pieces are out of place, the picture is distorted.
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!"
A. It is the eye that provides the sight for the hand to do
it's job.
1. Without the eye
the hands would have to work in darkness.
2. It is the hand
that provides the touch that the eye can't feel.
B. The head and the feet are on opposites sides of the body.
1. The head is at
the top and the feet are at the bottom.
2. The head houses
the brain that is the guide for the feet.
3. The feet takes
the head where the brain directs it.
4. If there is no
head, the feet are useless.
V:22-24. " On the contrary, those parts of the body
that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are
less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are
unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts
need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has
given greater honor to the parts that lacked it,"
A. The head is the highest point on the body and
carries expressions of approval,
disapproval, pain,
pleasure, stress and distress, peace and love.
1. The feet are on
the lowest point of the body, but provided the motion of the
body as
directed by the head.
2. The head may
have the highest honor because it gets the most attention.
3. But the feet
are glorified in their motion.
a. A dancer
can't dance without feet.
b. a runner
can't run without the feet.
B. The head with all
its glamour cannot go from place to place without the motion of the
feet.
1. The feet with all
of their mobility can't move without the direction of the head.
2. One without the
other is lacking.
3. The two working
together share the glory.
UNITY IN THE BODY
V:25-26. " So that there should be no division in the
body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one
part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part
rejoices with it."
A. When all the parts of the body work together, the body is
most effective.
1. When all the
parts of the body do what they were designed to do, the
body gains the
glory of God.
2. When all the
parts of the body work as they were designed by the maker, there is
nothing that
cannot be accomplished according to the will of God.
B. When one part of the body does not work, the entire body
suffers for lack of
its divine
perfection.
1. If the
smallest part of the body does not work there will be deformity in the
body.
2. If the blood
cells, which are not visible to the eye are not produced and distributed
throughout the body, the body slowly dies.
C. Every part of the
body should be concerned for the welfare of every other part of the
body.
1. When there is
joy in one part of the body, that joy should spread to every part of the
body.
2. When there is
pain in one part of the body, the whole body suffers.
WE ARE THE BODY OF CHRIST
V:27. " Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of
you is a part of it."
A. The Body of Christ
is the sum of all Church members who believe in Jesus
Christ as Lord
and Savior.
1. Everybody in
the body has equal importance to God the maker and creator of
all things.
2. No one should
be prideful of their position or status, because their work is not for
them, but for
the effectiveness of the entire body.
3. Pride leads to
envy, hatred and strife and the whole body suffers.
B. Every gift and
talent should be used to glorify God and draw others to Christ.
1. Preachers
preach, teachers teach and the lifestyles of every member draws others to
Christ.
2. You don't
have to hold a prominent position in the
Church to influence the whole
Church.
V:28. " And in
the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third
teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those
able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in
different kinds of tongues."
A. As in any
organization, there is a hierarchy in the Church.
1. The hierarchy
establishes order and direction.
2. No position is
more important than the other.
B. God gave us
Apostles because they were eye witnesses to the teaching and the
miracles of
Jesus.
1. They witness
the death and resurrection of Jesus and laid the foundation
for the rest
of the body to be built upon.
2. They were the
first teachers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
3. Except for Saint
John , they were all murdered for their faith in Jesus
Christ
and preaching
the truth.
C. Second, God gave
us prophets.
1. The prophets
were those appointed to speak under divine inspiration about
future
divinely ordained events to come.
2. Saint
John was both prophet and apostle.
a. God gave
him the inspiration for the book of Revelation which is the prophecy of
the end times.
b. Revelation
includes the final judgment and the new heaven and the new earth.
D. God gave us
teachers.
1. God gifted some with the ability to
understand His Word and to teach it to others.
2. How can we
understand God's Word without a teacher guided by the Holy Spirit?
C. In the early Church, God gave some the gift of healing
and miracles.
1. The Apostle
Paul had the gift of instant healing and the gift of raising believers
from temporary
death. Acts 20:9
2. Peter and John
had the gift of instant healing. Acts 9:40
E. Some were giving
the gift of hospitality.
1. Some went out
of their way to help others.
2. Gaius was one
who had a reputation of being kind to strangers.
F. Some had the gift
of being wise and prudent and the ability to discern spirits.
G. Some were given
the gift of languages. (tongue is really a known language Act :2)
1. As the
occasion arose, they could speak different languages that they had not
learned as
the Holy Spirit enabled them.
2. I was asked
the question: If God gave some the ability to speak different
languages,
why is it that those who speak in tongues all sound the same?
a. A light
went on in my head.
b. Perhaps
they don't have a gift, but are repeating something they learned over time.
3. I also noticed
that people in the Church who speak this language they call "tongue"
don't have an
interpreter to explain what they said. 1
Cor 14:27
a. This is
strange, because Paul said if there is no interpreter, be quite. 1 Cor 14:28
b. This is
even more strange since Paul said that gift of tongues(languages)
was not
given for believers, but non believers.
1 Cor 14:22
WE ALL DO NOT HAVE THE SAME GIFTS
V:29-30. " Are
all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles?"
30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak
in tongues? Do all interpret?"
A. There are many
gifts but they are not all the same.
1. Every gift
has its' purpose.
2. Every gift was
given to believers to be used by them to build up and edify the body
of Christ.
3. All gifts
work uniquely together.
B. Apostles, prophets
and teachers all proclaim the Word of God.
1. Those who have
the gift of miracles and healing build up and restore the fleshly
bodies for
God's use.
2. Those who speak
a language unlearn and those who interpret the unlearned
language
draw unbelievers who speak that language
naturally to Christ.
31 But eagerly desire
the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.
A. The greater gift
is the ability to use your gifts with love and compassion to the
benefit of
the whole body of Christ. 1 Cor 14:1
B. The greater
gift is obedience to God's commands.
USED YOUR GIFTS TO DRAW OTHERS TO CHRIST AND TO BUILD UP THE
BODY
Rev. M. Mitchell,
Asst Pastor of Greater Macedonia
Church
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