For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For by one spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the organs of the body, each one of them, as He chose. If all were a single organ, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. 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.” On the contrary, the part of the body which seem to be weaker are indispensable, and those part of the body which we think less honorable we invest with the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable part do not require. But God has composed the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior part, that there may be no discord in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracle, then healers, helpers, administrators, speakers in various kind of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? Bue earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.
I Corinthians 12:12-31
One of the greatest gifts God gave to the world is the gift of variety. If everyone and everything was the same, life would be boring and the world would be incomplete. In I Corinthians 13, which we will examine in the next several reflections, St. Paul writes what is known as his “treatise on love,” a definitive description of what love is and why it matters. He sets up this well-known chapter with a chapter on variety. He extols variety but then brings it to a unity by saying that each person, regardless of his variety and difference of gifts, has the ability to love and the need to be loved. Love is the uniting factor in relation to all the various gifts. And because God is love, God is the One who unifies everything. He is the universal Creator and Savior, and loves everyone the same, regardless of their gifts. Before we get to the unifying virtue of love, let’s spend a reflection talking about variety.
Saint Paul compares the Body of Christ to a human body. Our bodies are the one sum of many parts, some which are more seen and known and others which are unseen and would seem obscure, except without them, we cannot live. He compares the foot to the hand, as if they were speaking to each other. That even if one were to brag it is more important than the other, that they are all members of the same body. He does the same with the eye and the ear. Neither is less essential or less a part of the body than the other. If the whole body was the ear, St. Paul writes, where would be the sense of smell? The whole body isn’t a single organ, but interdependent parts that work together to form the body. Thus, one part cannot reject the others.
Saint Paul is quick to point out that the parts of the body which seem to be weaker are indispensable. (I Corinthians 12:22) Take for instance our smallest toes. We need all five toes in order to stand. Or our elbows, knees, and the associated muscles and nerves that allow each to move. We treat certain parts of our bodies with greater modesty. These are not the “front-line” part of our bodies, like our arms and legs and hands and faces. Yet, we treat these other seemingly “inferior” parts with the greatest of care and modesty.
When we are sick, we do not think “only my head is sick.” A headache affects our entire body, it slows down our entire body and our entire life. We read in I Corinthians 12:26, If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all are honored together. This is true for the human body. It is also true for the Body of Christ, the Church, and it should be true for the body of society. In our bodies, when one part suffers, the whole body feels it. In the Church, when people suffer, the whole body of the Church should empathize. This is why we continually pray for the sick and suffering. And in the world, when one segment of society suffers, we are to empathize and help.
Saint Paul, having made a lengthy analogy about the human body being comprised of many parts, each of which is important, now turns his attention to the Body of Christ, the Church. And makes the same analogy regarding the Church. The Church is one body, comprised of many members. And each is important. Saint Paul lists specific roles in the church—apostles, prophets, teachers, workers of miracles, healers, helpers, administrators, and speakers in various kinds of tongues. Not everyone is an apostle, or a prophet, or a teacher, etc. Each of us has a different way of helping out when it comes to spreading the message of the Gospel.
In his book, “The Purpose Driven Life” (Chapter 17, “A Place to Belong”), author Rick Warren writes the following:
In Christ we who are many form one body and each member belong to all the others. Following Christ included belonging, not just believing. We are members of His body—the Church. C.S. Lewis noted that the word membership is of Christian origin, but the world has emptied it of its original meaning. Stores offer discounts to “members,” and advertisers use member names to create mailing lists. In churches, membership is often reduced to simply adding your name to a roll, with no requirements or expectations. To Paul, being a “member” of the church meant being a vital organ of a living body, an indispensable, interconnected part of the Body of Christ. We need to recover and practice the biblical meaning of membership. The church is a body, not a building, an organism, not an organization.
We are all vital members in the Body of Christ, the Church. Everyone is endowed with some gift to make the Church go, and get the message of Christ out. It is up to us to figure out our gift and to use it for the spreading of the Gospel and the glory of God. This is what stewardship is all about—how we can use what we’ve been given in the church and in the world.
Going to the world for a moment, we need every kind of gift to make the world work correctly. At a youth group meeting several years ago, I asked the teens to come up with the top three jobs in America. And we settled on these: 1) Sanitation engineer. Without someone picking up the garbage, we’d all be dead within a few weeks. 2) Truck driver. Without truck drivers, no supplies are delivered to doctors, pharmacies, etc. 3) Farmer. Without food to eat, we cannot live. So while few parents encourage their children to be sanitation workers, truck drivers and farmers (we all encourage our kids to go to college and get prestigious, well-paying jobs), we would not be alive to have “prestigious” jobs if it were not for the less glamorous workers who keep our streets clean, deliver our good and grow our food. Everyone has a talent to offer the world and to offer the church, and according to St. Paul, each is of equal importance. Just like the body cannot operate without all its members, society cannot operate without everyone’s talents. Neither can the church.
Saint Paul concludes this chapter with a reference to the higher gifts and the more excellent way, and these gifts will be dealt with in the next chapter, because they all revolve around love, which is the thing that unites everyone. Everyone’s gifts should be on display under the umbrella of love, which is the umbrella of God.
Lord, thank You for whatever gifts I have (list them), thank You for my unique opportunities to use them (list those). Help me to be a good steward of my gifts, to be grateful for what I have and not to be discontent if there is something I do not have. Help me to appreciate the gifts of others. Help me to do my best to contribute to the world, as well as contributing to the life of the Church. May I be a good steward of all that I have been given. Show me the way I can best serve others, the best way I can serve You, and the most effective way I can help spread Your message through the Church. Amen.
There are a variety of gifts, just like there are a variety of parts in a human body. Each part of the body allows it to function completely. Each person is critical to the fabric of society functioning well. And each person is crucial to the spreading of the Gospel as a member of the Body of Christ, the Church.
