1 CORINTHIANS: MOVING FROM THE CARNAL TO THE SPIRITUAL STATE

Part XXVIII: Appreciating How God's Diversification Of The Gifts Produces Unity

(1 Corinthians 12:12-28)

 

I.                 Introduction

A.    When we trust in Christ as Savior, we enter God's fold with varying racial, ethnic, cultural and social identities and characteristics, entities that are breeding grounds for disunity if we live by means of our sinful natures.

B.     Accordingly, God offsets the influence of these entities by providing a wide diversity of spiritual gifts for ministry to produce unity, and we view the dynamics of this work for our insight and edification in the church:

II.              Appreciating How God's Diversification Of The Gifts Produces Unity, 1 Corinthians 12:12-28.

A.    Paul claimed that just as the physical human body is a single body, but that it has many different members that together comprise that body, so also is the spiritual body of Christ, the local Church, 1 Corinthians 12:12.

B.     In one Holy Spirit were all believers baptized into one body, regardless of our natural racial, ethnic, cultural or social orientations and characteristics, and we were all made to partake of the same Holy Spirit, 1 Cor. 12:13.

C.     The diversity of the Holy Spirit's spiritual gifts then work to produce unity that offsets the natural identity distinctions that would otherwise tend to separate us from one another as follows, 1 Corinthians 12:14-27:

1.      First, no one can say he is not a part of the local church body, that he is not necessary, 1 Cor. 12:14-20:

                             a.         The local body of Christ, the local church, is not one member, but many members, 1 Corinthians 12:14.

                            b.         For this reason, if one member like a foot were to claim that because he was not the hand, what seems to be more valued as it is more used by the person in the body than his foot, that he is then not a part of the body, it does not really make him not a necessary part of that body, 1 Corinthians 12:15.

                             c.         Paul applied the same idea to the ear claiming it wasn't as important as the eye and thus was not a part of the body (v. 16), for if the whole body were an eye, one would lack the ability to smell, 1 Cor. 12:17.

                            d.         God has thus set all the different members of the local body of Christ with their different spiritual gifts for service in the local church body as it has pleased Him, making each one necessary, 1 Cor. 12:18-20.

2.      Second, no one can say he has no need of another part of the body, for all are necessary 1 Cor. 12:21-27:

                             a.         Paul observed that the eye cannot say to the hand that he has no need of the hand, nor can the head say the same thing about the feet (1 Cor. 12:21), for the seemingly more feeble, less-showy parts of the body are needed for the maximum production of the seemingly stronger parts of the body, 1 Corinthians 12:22.

                            b.         Actually, upon the less-attractive parts of the body we bestow more abundant honor in covering them with clothing to make them more attractive, 1 Cor. 12:23; Ryrie St. Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to 1 Cor. 12:23.

                             c.         Similarly, in the local body of Christ, God has tempered the body together, giving more abundant honor to those who lacked that there should be no dissension or division in the body, but that every member should have the same care of every other member, Ibid., ftn. to 1 Cor. 12:25; 1 Corinthians 12:24-25.

                            d.         Because of this unity amid the diversity of the spiritual gifts, if one member suffers, the rest suffer with it, and if one is honored, all the members rejoice because of the one who is honored, 1 Corinthians 12:26.

                             e.         In summary, all of us together in the local church are the collective body of Christ, and each of us are members of that collective body when viewed individually, 1 Corinthians 12:27.

D.    Paul then listed some of the major spiritual gifts, ranking them in the order of the honor God bestows upon them to compensate them for personal needs for that honor in Christ's body (as follows), 1 Corinthians 12:28:

1.      First in rank of honor, God has given some men to be (1) apostles.

2.      Second behind them in rank of honor are (2) prophets.

3.      Third in rank of honor behind the apostles and prophets are (3) teachers.

4.      Then, in apparent descending order are (4) miracle-workers, (5) healers, (6) helps, (7) administrators and (8) diversities of the gifts of supernaturally speaking God's truth in human languages.

 

Lesson: To offset the divisive tendencies of believers' diverse human backgrounds, God the Holy Spirit has tempered the body together, giving spiritual gifts of varying degrees of honor to various believers so that the body will be unified when people function in proper relationship with the Holy Spirit.  This work of the Spirit counters efforts for believers to think they are either not needed in the body as well as efforts for believers to think that other believers are not necessary, but that all believers see the value of each other so as to unify the whole body of Christ.

 

Application: May we rely on the Holy Spirit to use our spiritual gift for the benefit of the whole body that we appreciate the need not only of our own role in the local church, but that of each of the other believers in the body.