One Body; Many Members

May 17, 2015 Background Scripture: 1 Corinthians 12:12 – 31 Lesson Passage: 1 Corinthians 12:12 – 31 Hezekiah Walker was biblically correct when he wrote the lyrics “I need you. You need me. We’re all a part of God’s body.” As Christians, we acknowledge that we are members of the body of Christ but do we know what that really means? Paul explained our oneness as a means to show Christians in Corinth that schisms or cliques have no part within a local church. If we can’t understand oneness within the context of a local congregation, then we will have a difficult time comprehending that all Christians everywhere work together for the same purpose in Christ. All Christians are a part of a human temple for the Spirit of God to live in. When each of us allows the Spirit within us to control our life, then we will act and work in unison. Then what Christians do in Japan will have an effect on what Christians do in Brazil or Canada. That is where the difficulty lies when it comes to understanding the oneness of Christianity. There is a nagging question that asks “How are all Christians connected together?” Sadly, we don’t always know when we are in the presence of other Christians. Therefore, how can we know that what each of us is doing is somehow accomplishing a single purpose? First we need to understand that each Christian is undergoing a process of sanctification. Through the process of sanctification, the Holy Ghost is delivering us from the power of sin in our daily living. However, the rate at which sanctification takes place is determined by the individual’s willingness to submit to the lordship of Christ. We may readily submit to the need for fellowship by deciding to make Sunday a sacred day and demonstrate this by dutifully attending a local church on a regular basis. On the other hand, we may not be ready to submit to the lordship of Christ in the area of financial stewardship. Each portion of a person’s life can be evolving at a different pace in terms of our spiritual maturity. A Christian can be spiritually mature in some areas but not in others. As an example, salvation does not necessarily bring the desire to turn our financial decisions over to the guidance of the word of God. Often, many Christians need to grow in that area. Likewise, we may not be ready to submit seven days a week to God’s schedule for us. If we manage to give up every Sunday, that is often such a large commitment that we want to get accustomed to it before we consider any more of our “personal” time. It is for this reason that we don’t always get the “many members but one body” understanding of our Christianity. Nevertheless, Christians are all a part of the body of Christ. Each of us has been endowed with spiritual gifts that are to be used to build up the body. The different gifts enable us to function differently just as a physical body is composed of different parts that perform different functions. So it is with the body of Christ. Christians are all a part of the spiritual body of Christ. The fact that Christ is not divided is reason enough for Christians to learn to work together for Christ’s sake. We are many members but we are gifted differently to allow us to operate as one spiritual body. Robert C. Hudson April 16, 2015