Paul uses the human body as an illustration of what the body of Christ is like. As the body is made up of different parts with each part performing a unique function, so it is with the church. Each member of the body is uniquely gifted by God to work alongside all the other parts of the body to help it function to its fullest ability.
Even more, we are members of one another or, as the New International Version puts it, “each member belongs to all the others.” This statement can profoundly affect the way we see our place in the church. We are not just individuals who gather for worship or discipleship or service. We are interdependent. We need each other and we belong together.
God’s design is that we bring our distinctiveness and our giftedness together, and like a human body function as one under the leadership of the head, that is, Jesus. In this way we can make the greatest impact for the kingdom of God.
God did not give us all the same spiritual gifts and natural talents, and this was intentional. As Paul wrote to the believers in Corinth – 17 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? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. (1 Corinthians 12:17-20)
Whatever your gifts are, whatever your talents, whatever skills you have developed, they make you unique and uniquely able to make a difference for the kingdom of God – BUT when combine with the uniqueness of other believers, the impact is multiplied incredibly. Let’s be the body!
Be Transformed 