One Body with Many Members

Well, I had never thought about how important my second toe was until I broke it. I was in college and playing football with friends on a beach, so I wasn't wearing shoes. And somehow or other, I jammed my foot into someone else's leg. And it was one of those injuries that I just sort of played through at the time. But afterward, it got really painful to walk. So even simple things like going up and down a flight of stairs that we've just done without thinking about it before suddenly became this arduous journey. And all sorts of other activities and sports and anything that involved running was just off the table. And suddenly the suffering of this one little member of my body caused my whole body to suffer with it. My hand couldn't say, well, you know, I'm fine. I have no need of you. I mean, there was no replacement for this one little toe. Of course, every part of the body is necessary. And when any part of the body isn't functioning properly, it can be debilitating for the whole. Of course, you've probably experienced something like that as well. Maybe you've had an injury like me, or maybe it was an illness. Maybe an allergy and you sort of found out about all this complexity of inner parts of your body that you didn't even know were there and yet are so important. Well, in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, we see that God has designed the church to be like a body. That just like a body is one, the church is one, and yet it is composed of these many parts or these many members which all serve different functions and need to be working together properly for the health of the whole. Now before we dive into our passage, let me just remind us a little bit about where we've been. First Corinthians is a letter written by the Apostle Paul to the church in Corinth. In chapters one through six, Paul's responding to a series of issues that have been raised by reports he's heard about what's going on in the church. And then in chapter seven through 16, he's responding to a series of issues raised by a letter that he's received from the Corinthians. And when you get to chapters 11 through 14, Paul turns his focus to a series of three matters that all pertain to the public gatherings of the church. First, there's the matter of head coverings, where some of the women were creating a stir by removing the customary head covering worn during public worship. Second, there was the issue of the Lord's Supper, where there was this evident division between the rich and the poor at the love feast, or the full meal that accompanied the partaking of the Lord's Supper. And then thirdly, there's this issue of spiritual gifts. And you can see that that was introduced in chapter 12, verse 1, where Paul says, now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. And his sort of informing them about this lasts all the way through the end of chapter 14. Now, at least outwardly, it seems that the main issue of the Corinthians with regard to spiritual gifts is the way they were using the gift of tongues. For whatever reason, the Corinthians seem to really like this gift. They're sort of giving it this pride of place as if it were the gift that every truly spiritual Christian should want or even need. And therefore, of course, the ones who have that gift are very zealous to use it. And some were apparently even speaking in tongues in the public worship service with no interpreter. So no one could actually tell what was being said. And we can probably kind of infer the Corinthians' attitude about this. You know, if the Spirit isn't empowering this supernatural ability, why shouldn't we use it? You know, if it's a gift from the Spirit, it must be good, right? So we wouldn't want to quench the Spirit by sort of restricting it or not using that gift to the full, would we? Well, it seems that Paul actually recognizes a general misunderstanding of the work of the spirit and of the purpose of spiritual gifts in the minds of the Corinthians. So in chapter 12, verses one through three, he basically lays out a criterion for distinguishing a genuine work of the spirit. And that's the kind of set up this whole conversation. And there he basically says, look, there are many ways that evil spirits lead people astray to mute idols. But only the spirit of God leads people to confess the truth that Jesus is Lord. The spirit of God is not just about bestowing random miracles that display some vague power. But he is all about ministry that points people to the word of God and builds up the church in the truth that Jesus is Lord. And then in verses four through 11, Paul explains that we're all gifted by the same spirit in various ways for the common good. So we're not supposed to all be united around having the same gift. but by the fact that we're all gifted by the same spirit. And the gifts that the spirit gives us are not for self-promotion or personal advancement, but for the common good, for building up the church and the truth that Jesus is Lord. Now with that background, we come to today's passage, where Paul is gonna further develop this idea of one spirit bestowing various gifts for the common good by using the metaphor of the human body. And I think the main point here, if you want to write this down, I think the main point of this passage is this, Christ's church is like a body having different parts united by their interdependence. So Christ's church is like a body having different parts united by their interdependence. Now let's unpack Paul's argument here in four points. So point number one, we are like a body. And by we here, I mean the church. Look with me at verses 12 and 13. Paul says, for just as the body, and by this he means the human body, is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. Now by Christ here he means all who are in Christ, all who belong to Christ, that is the church. And he's saying that the church is like a human body and that it is one essence with many different parts. And then he backs this up or grounds it in verse 13 where he says, for in one spirit we were all baptized into one body, Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, and all were made to drink of one spirit. So these different people, Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, are joined together as one body in the church through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Now the picture here is not of the spirit as the baptizer, but of the spirit as the medium into which we're baptized. In fact, Scripture makes clear that Jesus is the baptizer, and he is the one who baptizes us in the Spirit. You may remember the words of John the Baptist in Matthew chapter three. He said, I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. And then the book of Acts makes clear that Jesus did exactly that on the day of Pentecost. He poured out the spirit on his people and the church was formed. And interestingly there, it's metaphorical, but the spirit is described like a liquid being poured out. And I think the point is to show that it's not just a little of the spirit who's given. There is this great fullness of the spirit which comes forth and completely immerses or baptizes or drenches the church. And when Paul speaks of this to the Corinthians, the assumption is that this is something every Christian experiences. He says, in one spirit, we were all baptized into one body. Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, and all were made to drink of one spirit. Right, so this is not a special experience of some Christians. This is the unifying experience of all Christians. We've all received the Spirit of God. As Romans 8, verse 9 says, anyone who does not have the Spirit of God does not belong to Christ. But to Christians, Paul can say we've all been baptized or immersed in the Spirit and thereby we've all come to drink of the Spirit so that the Spirit of God might indwell us and might go on filling us in an ongoing way. Now, for some of us, maybe this initial reception of the Spirit was more subtle. And for others, maybe it was a very dramatic experience. But the point is, all who've come to faith in Christ have this shared experience of the baptism of the Spirit. In fact, this is a fundamental way of distinguishing Christians and non-Christians. Maybe you're here this morning and you're not a believer and you boys thought that becoming a Christian was just about agreeing with a certain set of beliefs or maybe doing a certain set of things that Christians do. But actually, neither of those necessarily makes you a Christian. According to the Bible, a Christian is someone who's been supernaturally transformed by God and who's received the gift of his spirit. This doesn't mean that Christians never sin. But it does mean that there's a real inner difference in our lives, that we are no longer who we once were. Now, I also want you to understand that no one receives the gift of the spirit as a reward for doing good works. God doesn't bestow his spirit on good people who do enough good to earn it. He bestows his spirit on those who hear his word and come under conviction of their sins. and then fall down at his feet to beg for mercy. And those who in that place of repentance come to believe and trust in what God has done for us in Christ, that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and he rose again to give us new life. You see, it's when we come to faith in Jesus that Jesus baptizes us in his spirit. Just listen to the words of Peter in the first ever Christian sermon preached. When people were crying out to him, what then shall we do? And Peter said this, repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off. everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself. So friend, may you receive and obey those words even today. Now, before we move on, I'd like to point out one other application here, which is Paul's use of the term member. He says here that Christ, meaning his church, is one body with many members. Now, I not uncommonly encounter Christians who are somewhere on the scale of unsure to outright resistant to the idea of church membership. And I think one reason for that is because they hear membership and the first thing that pops into their minds is the concept of, you know, a country club. And they think the church has just sort of borrowed this idea from country clubs as if it's this clever idea to get people involved, to get people to contribute financially, and then in return, we give them this special status with member privileges. And of course, on one hand, they're certainly right to be concerned about the church incorporating worldly practices or non-biblical ideas. We should not be like a country club. But I just wanna point out that the term member is actually a biblical word with a rich biblical meaning. And when we hear member, we should not be thinking of country clubs, but of this biblical metaphor of the body. To be a church member is to be like an eye or an ear or a hand or a foot in a body. It's not just a technical formality. It's not just a way to get special privileges. It's saying something profound about the way that God has organically connected you to this group of people in Christ and the mutual responsibility and interdependence that we share. So I would just encourage you as we work through this text to consider the importance of membership and how you could be a more faithful member of Christ's body, the church. So number one, we're like a body, number two, That means we need differences. We need differences. Because if we didn't have different parts, we wouldn't be a body. The differences are actually necessary to God's design. Look with me at what Paul says in verses 14 through 20. He says, for the body does not consist of one member, but of many. If the foot should say, because I'm 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'm 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 sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. So as verse 19 says, if all were a single member, where would the body be? We might have a colony, we might have an army, we might have a collection of spare parts, but we would not be a body. That there have to be different parts with different functions to have a body. Now it's important to keep in mind here that the differences Paul has in view have especially to do with spiritual gifts. Paul's not saying that differences in doctrine are good for the church. He's not saying that differences in ethics or moral standards are good for the church. What he's saying is that there are differences in giftings. differences in ministries, and differences in the particular activities that we as church members have and do, and these differences are a good and necessary part of God's design. So to think that one person is less endowed with a spirit, or less a part of the body, because of whatever spiritual gift they don't have, would be as ridiculous as a foot saying, because I'm not a hand, I must not be part of the body. Or an ear saying, because I can't see, I must not belong to the body. No, different people are supposed to have different functions so that the body as a whole can be equipped. That's why Paul says, if the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. Now, this teaches us two important things about spiritual gifts. Number one, none of the gifts is intended for everyone. This is one of the ways that spiritual gifts differ from Christian virtues. The fruit of the spirit are virtues that every Christian should be growing in. But the gifts of the spirit are special abilities that the spirit distributes variously to equip us for different functions in the life of the church. And to think that everybody's supposed to have a particular gift is like thinking every part of the body is supposed to be able to hear, or every part of the body needs to be able to see. It actually runs contrary to God's own design. This is also why it's, I think, tragically ironic that there are some who actually teach that the gift of tongues is the necessary evidence that someone has been baptized in the spirit. You know, according to them, if you've never spoken in tongues, you're either not a Christian at all, or you're not a spirit-filled Christian, right? So you're sort of second class. And yet the sad irony of that is that of all the gifts, tongues is actually the one Paul is most focused on here. And his whole point in this passage is that all of the Corinthians have been baptized in the same spirit, but not all of them speak in tongues. And that's okay. because it's part of God's design. They're not all supposed to have the same function, and none of the gifts is intended for every Christian. Now, a second thing to note here, spiritual gifts are not the measure of greatness in the kingdom. Spiritual gifts are not the measure of greatness in the kingdom. Now I need to be precise here because later on we're gonna see that Paul actually does say that some gifts are functionally greater than other gifts. So it's not that all the gifts are necessarily equal, but here I'm making the point that the gifts you have or don't have do not reflect your standing in the eyes of God. It's not like the higher and holier Christians have these gifts, and the lesser Christians have those gifts. It's not like the Christians who are more endowed with the Spirit get this gift, and those who are less endowed with the Spirit get that one. That would be like thinking, you know, if we could all just be holy enough, then God would make us all eyes. God would make us all ears. You know, we'd just all be prophets. We'd all be teachers. We'd all be apostles. But Paul asks, where then would the body be? Now for the body to be the best body, it needs the best foot, it needs the best hand, it needs the best ear and the best eye. You see, greatness in the kingdom isn't really about what gifts you have, it's about how faithfully you're using the gifts God's given you. And it's about how much you're maturing into the Christian virtues and the fruit of the spirit that every Christian is supposed to display. So don't ever look at someone with the gift of teaching and think, wow, he must be this great Christian because he can preach like that. Or, you know, I could never be such a great Christian because I could never preach like that. That's just not how greatness in the eyes of God is measured. As Jesus tells us, the first shall be last and the last shall be first. And I think on the last day there will be many that seemed so great to us who will be very small in the eyes of God And there'll be many who seem so small to us that will be great in the eyes of God. Because it's not primarily about what gifts we have, but how we use the gifts we've got. So number one, we're like a body. And that means number two, we need differences. And that brings us to point number three, which is that our differences help unite us. Our differences help unite us. And this is striking because we might be inclined to think, look, all these differences between us might be apt to create envy or jealousy. They might create conflict or division. And couldn't we all just be perfectly united if we were just exactly the same? But as Paul continues to sort of press into this metaphor of the body, He argues that our differences actually create this interdependence that unites us more closely than mere uniformity ever could. So look with me at verses 21 through 26. Paul writes, 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 parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable. And on those parts of the body that we think less honorable, we bestow the greater honor. And our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division 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. So Paul's saying here that every part of the body is necessary. Every part of the body has dignity. And every part of the body is interdependent. The eye can't say to the hand, I don't need you. And the head can't say to the feet, I don't need you. They all need one another. In fact, Paul says that in God's wisdom, even those parts of the body that seem weak, that we might otherwise think, you know, who needs that? God has made them indispensable. And perhaps Paul has in mind, you know, our inner organs that are so soft and delicate, but they are absolutely necessary for survival. Also, Paul says that every part of the body is given dignity. He mentions seemingly dishonorable parts that are unpresentable. And by this, I think he has in mind, you know, our private parts. But he says that we honor them by covering them and treating them with greater modesty. And the point here that he's making is that every part has a function, every part has dignity, and every part is necessary for the body so that, and notice the purpose clause in verse 25, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. In other words, he's saying that God has designed this interdependence of these different parts so that he would ensure the unity and the love within the church. You know, as I said in the introduction, when I broke my toe, I suddenly realized the importance of that little member to the whole body. And because of the interdependence, the rest of my body could not just get along fine without my toe. We couldn't just say, well, I have no need of you. My whole body just had to suffer with it. Because without that toe, it can't do its job. And that's why Paul says, God has so composed the body that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. So our differences foster interdependence, which fosters unity. Just to illustrate this a different way, just imagine that you're shipwrecked on an island with two other guys, and none of you get along. So you would be very happy to just be away from these people, but let's say one of them knows how to start a fire, the other knows how to catch fish, and you're the one who knows how to collect water. You see, in spite of how many things that forces they may be to want to divide you, your interdependence with them is going to be a powerful force for unity. And it's gonna make you care about them, you know, to care about those other people's well-being, just like you care about yourself. Because you all know that if one of you goes down, you're all going to suffer as a result. And I think Paul is saying that God's design for the church is sort of like that. He's designed us to need one another so that we would be united together. But there is a difference here. Because I think in the church, it's not just a selfish, I want to survive kind of motivation. I think the motivation as God actually unites us into one body is, I want to see the church built up. I want to see my Lord and Savior glorified. I want to see the lost converted. I want to grow in holiness myself. And the point is that God in his wisdom has placed us in a body so that we cannot do that on our own. I mean, God could have just given all of us all of the gifts. He kind of designed us in a way that we could all sort of be independent. But Paul's saying that in God's wisdom, he chose to make the church like a body. He chose to distribute these gifts variously across these different body parts so that we have to depend on one another to accomplish the mission he's given us. You see, it's by our differences that there's this interdependence. And so that, as Paul says, there might be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. And so that when even one member suffers, we would all suffer with them. And when one member is honored, we might all rejoice together. God wants us to learn to live in community as a body. Now just two applications of this before we move on. First, beware of thinking that other Christians are holding you back. I think especially when young people who are very zealous to accomplish big things for God, can sometimes feel like the church is slowing them down. Or we can feel like I'm just being bogged down by all these other Christians and their problems. If I could just break free, I could just do so much for God. Now, there is a time to leave an unhealthy church, but I think that attitude often reveals a very individualistic view of the Christian life and mission. I think it fails to appreciate that you and I not only can't accomplish anything without God, but that part of God's own design is that we would learn to work together and function as a church body. And I think God wants us to learn to be more like him, to have the same kind of patience and care for others who may seem weak to us, who may seem unimportant, and to realize that actually God has gifted us all, and that every single one of us brings something very vital and necessary to the life of the church. So beware of thinking that other Christians are holding you back. They might just be God's means of spurring you on. Number two, recognize that every gift is honorable. Look back at verse 24 where Paul says, but God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it. And the implication seems to be that there are more presentable parts of our body, like our face, and then there are these less presentable parts, those that we treat with greater modesty. And in a similar way, I think there are more outwardly honorable gifts. And I think Paul in this context has tongues in particular in mind. And then there are these seemingly less honorable gifts. But Paul is saying that God bestows honor on those gifts in different ways. And the point is, it doesn't matter how visible or recognized your gift is. Some of the most indispensable may actually be the most modest. What matters is that we understand that God has bestowed honor on every gift. And whatever gifts you have, they're necessary for the good of the body. You know, the way you serve the body may not be recognized or upfront in the way that, you know, someone who's really gifted at preaching or something like that is. But it is recognized by God. And as you use your gift faithfully, you are cultivating greater unity and love in the church. So recognize that every gift is honorable. So we've seen so far, number one, we're like a body. Number two, we need differences. And number three, our differences actually serve to unite us. But all this brings us to point number four, which is that our differences are secondary. Our differences are secondary. Now these final verses are tricky because Paul is doing several things here. He's concluding the body metaphor. He's also sort of recapping and tying back to some things he began to say earlier in chapter 12. And then he's also transitioning into what he's going to say in chapters 13 and 14 about the priority of prophecy over tongues and the priority of love over both. But let's begin working our way through and hopefully we can bring some clarity here. So picking up in verse 27, Paul says, 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 miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. So he's concluding this body metaphor by illustrating it with examples. And we'll come back to the question of why Paul ranks the first three in this list of examples. But for now, just note that this is a representative list to illustrate some of the different parts of the body and some of the different abilities that various members are given. Now, Paul continues in verse 29 and 30, are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? And the intended answer to all of these is, of course not. None of these gifts are for everyone. And no one has all of the gifts because we're all different members of a body. We contribute through whatever gifts we have, but none of us has the capacity to do it all ourselves. Now, at this point, we might expect Paul to say, so, be content with the gifts you've got. Right, he's already said the spirit distributes the gifts according to his own will. You know, God's sovereign, he's made you a particular part of the body, so you should be content with that. And then we might think that he would make an argument about how really all the gifts are equal. You know, because every part of the body's necessary, and so really we should be content because they're just all sort of the same in value. But surprisingly, that's actually not what Paul says. He says in verse 31, but earnestly desire, or be zealous for, the higher gifts. All right, so he actually seems to be encouraging us to desire gifts that we may not have, and he introduces this notion of some gifts being higher or greater than others. So what does this mean and how does this fit with the metaphor of the body and God sovereignly distributing gifts according to his will? Well, to unpack that, I think we first need to look ahead to chapter 14, where Paul continues this thought. So he says in chapter 14, verse one, pursue love and earnestly desire, right, be zealous for the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men, but to God, for no one understands him. And then he says in verse five, I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up. So Paul says that the gift of prophecy is greater than uninterpreted tongues because prophecy is intelligible and tongues are not. And he directly connects edification, which is the church being built up, with intelligibility. That is the word of God going forth in a way that can be understood. So I think what Paul means by earnestly desire the higher gifts is, for one, that the Corinthians should earnestly desire a gift like prophecy that will build up the church with God's word above a gift like uninterpreted tongues, which are unintelligible. And his point is that the gifts need to be valued in terms of what builds up the church in the truth of God's word. Remember how Paul started back in chapter 12, verses one through three, where he emphasized, we don't serve mute idols, we serve a God who speaks. And the Spirit always works to build up the church in the truth that Jesus is Lord. I'll also look back to the order of gifts in verse 28, where Paul says, God appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers. And why might Paul ascribe this priority to those three? Well, the apostles and prophets are the ones who provide the foundation of God's word to the church. And teachers are those who build up the church on that foundation by helping people understand that word. So I think Paul is saying that the gifts are to be especially valued in terms of how they help build up the church in faith. in obedience and in understanding of the word of God. Also, what Paul says here means that our differentness as members of the body isn't so static or primary that we shouldn't earnestly desire and even pray for other gifts. It seems that on one hand, Paul wants to stress that God sovereignly distributes gifts according to his will. So we should be grateful for the gifts we have. We shouldn't envy what others have. And we shouldn't think that if we just prayed hard enough that God would just give us any gift. But on the other hand, that sovereignty doesn't mean that we should be entirely passive either. In fact, in chapter 14, verse 13, Paul will say explicitly that if you have the gift of tongues, he says pray that you'd be able to interpret. You know, so that you can use that gift for the edification of the church. So obviously there's a place to pray for other gifts. You know, and perhaps this is somewhat like evangelism. I mean, we know that God saves whom he wills, but we still share the gospel and pray for everyone just the same. And so the point is, it's godly and right to earnestly desire whatever spiritual gifts would best help you to build up the church. Paul's just saying don't desire flashy gifts for the sake of self-promotion, but desire the higher gifts. Desire whatever gift would help you build up the body of Christ. And understand that the church is being built up primarily through the ministry of the word. Now, understand that that doesn't mean that the sort of non-word-based gifts don't have a role to play even in the ministry of the word. As I mentioned a couple sermons ago, the gift of miracles served an important role in confirming the word of God. There are those in this service who are gifted musically that helped us be built up in the truth of God by singing God's truth and God's word. Or consider the gift of helps or service. And remember those men in Acts chapter six who were full of the spirit and wisdom so that they might serve tables. And why did they do that? It was so that the apostles might devote themselves to the ministry of the word and prayer. So their service was enabling the word of God to go forth. So the point is that every gift is useful and every gift can be used to support the ministry of the word. It's just that we should pray for and use our gifts with that understanding in mind, with that ambition to see the message of the gospel going forth and the church being built up in God's truth. Now as we close, we also need to note that very last phrase. Because even after all this discussion of spiritual gifts and their importance in the life of the church and the way that they differentiate us as different parts of one body, Paul really ends by saying that all of that is actually secondary. He says, and I will show you a still more excellent way. And then he spends all of chapter 13 extolling the supremacy of love. In other words, what's primary isn't the gifts of the Spirit that differentiate us, but the fruit of the Spirit. that we should all have in common, of which the first and greatest part is love. And you see, returning again to this idea of greatness in the kingdom, that really has very little to do with the spiritual gifts you have and far more to do with how much love you possess. You know, you might not have the gift of teaching. You might not be able to explain the deep mysteries of scripture or wow anyone with your knowledge, but we all have a Bible. We can all open up our Bible and do our best to tell people what God has to say. And the thing is, if you have love, people will tend to care a lot more about what you have to say than if you wow them with your rhetoric without it. And if you have love, you will bring far more glory to God by your stammering than the most golden-mouthed preacher ever could without it. You see, as we think about the fact that we're a body this morning, we need to remember that more important than the differences between us is the love that we should all share in common. The fact that we have all experienced this unspeakable love of God in Christ. We've all been baptized in the Spirit into this body so that the Spirit might produce in all of us this fruit of love. And so that we might be knit together in one body in love. And so that we might learn to care for every member of the body just like our physical bodies do when we break our second toe. And of course we should do all of that regardless of whether we had any gifts at all. But one of the ways that God in his wisdom has sought to help us grow in this most important thing of love is by distributing these different gifts to different members, that we might have this interdependence, and that we might grow in mutual appreciation, and we might grow in love. You see, the gifts aren't the main thing, but they are an important thing. And we should earnestly desire whatever gifts the Lord would be pleased to give us, so that we might all contribute to building up the church in the truth that Jesus is Lord. all because of the love that God has shown us and the love that we should have for God and for one another. May God give us grace to do so. Amen. Let's pray. Father, we thank you that you have made us a body, one body with many members. We thank you that you have baptized us in your spirit that you may dwell within us, that we may know you. We praise you, most of all, that you have loved us, the love that we have only begun to fathom, that we will never fully understand. No, God, we pray that you would help us to love you and to love one another, to live out the reality that we are the body of Christ for his glory. We pray this in his name, amen.