How A Body Is Built

What does it look like for a body to be completely mouths? What about only arms or feet? Or, if the legs not only walked, but tried to talk, digest, and think? Taking a look at many churches or para-church organizations answers these questions. These communities have lost sight of what a body looks like and why they are made of different parts and have lost their effectiveness, in at least some sense.

The Thumb-Thumbs from Spy Kids were pretty ineffective...

One cannot say another is acting foolishly, without explaining the proper way to act. So before expanding upon what behavior could be considered an ill-formed body, a proper body should be considered. A brief introduction to the gifts of the Spirit (in which this idea is based) is found in 1 Corinthians 12:4-7.

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

Note that the same sentiment is repeated three times in a row. There are different gifts, types of service, and activities, but the same Spirit, Lord, and God respectively. Displaying the gift of teaching does not mean that someone has a different Holy Spirit than one who is an administrator. And because one person serves in the kitchen while another serves as an usher does not mean they serve a different Lord. Finally, the senior pastor and the VBS volunteer serve the same God, who empowers them to complete each of their tasks. Verse seven tells us that all of this, everything we do to serve God in his power, is for the common good. When we use our gifts, whether it's healing or preaching or encouraging, each is for the common good.

Further in the passage(vv. 8-10), language like "to one is given," and "to another" is used to stress that each gift is not given to each person. The same Spirit gives each gift to whom he chooses as he chooses (v. 11). These verses explain that the Holy Spirit has a will in this, deciding who gets which gift, and that he does not empower everyone the same.

Moving forward in chapter 12, is the body analogy. Please read vv. 14-20 for an extension of how foolish these bodies Christians try to form are. The illustration is used to teach that each part of the body is important, and each role needs the other. This is why God, our Father, has built his Church with diversity in the gifts the Holy Spirit has manifested in us. Personally, I am a bad encouragement, but I have a passion and wisdom about the Bible that is not my own. My best friend, ChrisKolb, is a huge encouragement and just as passionate about God, but if he ran a church, paperwork might not get done. Another best friend, Nik, would make the paperwork and leadership duties beg for mercy, but has not been given wisdom in the word like I have. We all need each other, as we'd fail miserably if we tried to do everything. This dependence is good and willed by the Father.

But there are countless people who may have ripped this chapter out of their Bibles. Some churches claim that a specific gift needs to be shown in your someone's life as evidence they are saved. Other organizations require everyone to show every gift of the Spirit that they acknowledge, making all who are involved teach and encourage and administrate and evangelize and so on. While each of these gifts alone are good, there is not a specific gift that proves salvation (that's what the Fruits of the Spirit are for), nor are all the gifts given to everyone. Each believer is instructed to be empowered by the Spirit in the way he has manifested himself in them.

This is a part of the Bible the Church has ripped out or scratched out, so we can hold on to our own power. When will we stop ignoring God's will for his Church?