Intro
In our study of 1 Corinthian 12, we have discussed the nine gifts of the Spirit listed by Paul in the first part of that chapter. Our study has focused on understanding what these gifts are. Using Paul’s terms in the first eleven verses, we see that these activities are called gifts because they come to us by grace; we do not earn them, but they are given to us by the Lord. They are spiritual rather than natural abilities. They come to us “by the Spirit.” In fact, they are supernatural manifestations of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. They are expressed “as He wills” to meet the need of the occasion. We make ourselves available to be used by God; we desire spiritual gifts, and we must step out in faith when the Spirit prompts us to do so. But the Holy Spirit decides when and through whom He will manifest Himself and meet a need. That answers the question as to WHAT the gifts of the Spirit are.
But we also need to understand HOW God wants us to function in these gifts. In fact, that is the thrust of Paul’s instruction in 1 Corinthians 12 through 14. The Corinthian believers were operating in the gifts of the Spirit,i but they were making some serious mistakes in the process. Paul addresses these mistakes in his letter. 1 Corinthians is a pastoral letter addressing practical issues.
There is one basic problem that surfaces throughout the epistle: the conflicts these Corinthians were having with each other. This lack of unity quickly becomes evident in the first chapter. First Corinthians 1:10-13 “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 11 For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe's household, that there are contentions among you. 12 Now I say this, that each of you says, "I am of Paul," or "I am of Apollos," or "I am of Cephas," or "I am of Christ." 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?”ii
Let me just highlight a few examples of the conflicts mentioned in the letter.
In chapters 1 and 2, Paul seems to argue against the arrogance of human wisdom, which may have been an undercurrent of their agreements. In chapter 3, Paul tells them all this strife they are having is evidence of their carnality and immaturity. In chapter 6, they were taking fellow believers to the secular courts. In chapter 8, conflicts were going on over issues of conscience. In chapter 11, Paul addresses the disunity and disregard for one another at the Lord’s Table.
Throughout chapter 12, Paul is again dealing with their attitudes toward one another and the importance of unity. Notice how he often approaches the subject of unity with diversity in this chapter. Verses 4-7: “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all.” We have already looked at these verses in previous messages. But this time, we want to see the heavy emphasis Paul is placing on diversity within unity. He even alludes to the ultimate example of the Trinity. Notice in verses 4-7: the Spirit, the Lord (Son), God (the Father): three persons but one God. He also emphasizes unity by pointing out that every gift, every manifestation, and every ministry flows from only one source: God. As he lists the nine different gifts of the Spirit, he is very careful to add something like “through the same Spirit” or “by the same Spirit.” Then, for good measure, he concludes the list of the nine gifts by reiterating something he has been saying all along. Verse 11: “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.”
Paul’s concerns about their attitudes toward one another take on greater focus in verses 12-31. There, he teaches them to esteem and appreciate one another rather than fight with one another. Using the analogy of the human body, he gives them four good reasons to properly value and care for one another.
I. THEY ARE ALL MEMBERS OF THE SAME BODY, REGARDLESS OF DIFFERENCES.
Follow with me as we read 1 Cor 12:12: “For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free — and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For in fact the body is not one member but many. 15 If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body? 16 And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling?”
Paul is introducing an analogy of the diversity in the human body with diversity in the Body of Christ. Even though I have eyes, ears, nose, mouth, heart, lungs, fingers, feet, and toes—it is still all one human body. The eye is very different from the hand. Those two members don’t look alike. They don’t function in the same way. The abilities of the eye are so very different from what the hand can do. The hand and foot have some similarities, but they play very different roles in the operation of the human body. It is absurd for the foot to say, "Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body." You don’t have to be a hand to be part of the body. You don’t need to act like a hand or try to function like a hand. Just be what you are. Just be a foot, and all will be well. No one is to judge you for not being a hand. Every member is needed. Every member serves a specific purpose. All of us, at one time or another, have struggled with our abilities or lack of abilities. A foot is not as flexible as a hand. The foot could beat itself up all day long because it lacks the ability to grasp and hold objects the way the hand does. Or it could simply function in the ability it has.
Have you ever seen someone operate beautifully in a particular gift and wish you could do that? At one level, I don’t think that is wrong. God may be setting that example before you to stretch you and inspire you to reach for more in Him. He may be actually showing you something He wants you to enter into. If that is the case, you can ask Him to bring you into that. You can cooperate with His leading and mature in that ability. But if we see someone operating in a gift and instead of being inspired to press into God, we are disheartened by our own limitations. If we belittle the abilities we have and resent the fact that we can’t do what that other member can, then it can be very unhealthy. If we conclude that our contribution is of no value since we can’t do what that other person does, then we are on the wrong track. For “godliness with contentment is great gain.”iii Being able to peacefully accept the place and function God gives you is a blessing. Accepting ourselves for what God has made us to be is healthy. Yes, we press into God for more of Him. We grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. But we don’t press in to become something we are not designed to be.
Years ago, I watched people like Kathryn Kuhlman operate in miracles. I decided I wanted to be that, so I gave myself to prayer and fasting. It was beneficial in that I drew closer to the Lord by spending time with Him. God occasionally used me in supernatural ways. But I did not become a Kathryn Kuhlman. If I had prayed and fasted myself to death, I would not have become a Kathryn Kuhlman because there is a side of the issue that rests with God alone. No amount of prayer and fasting will supersede the sovereignty of God. Benny Hinn saw Kathryn Kuhlman and decided the same thing and entered into a ministry similar to hers. He was called to be that, and her example inspired him to enter into his calling.
I was called to be a pastor/teacher, and there have been mentors who inspired my entry into that. What really happened when I gave myself to prayer and fasting is that I became a better version of Richard. I got more insight into the word of God. My teaching became clearer and more anointed. Compassion for people increased. It would have been foolish for me to say, “Because I can’t be a Kathryn Kuhlman, I’m not part of the Body.” No, God has designed me to function in an honorable way. I just need to find that and function in it. I truly believe that when we get to heaven, we will see the amazing wisdom and love of God in designing each of us as He has.
Lucifer had a lofty place in the kingdom of God, but he rejected God’s plan for him. He rebelled and grasped for something different. That example makes me very careful about resenting the way God has designed me. We all have rough edges that need to be honed. There is a refining and maturing process for every one of us. And we pursue God for the fulfillment of those adjustments. But we also trust the sovereignty of God in designing us for a place in His kingdom that suits Him.
Paul wants these Corinthians to recognize the inherent unity that exists between them. That unity is based on our common connection with the Holy Spirit. Verse 13: “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free — and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.”iv Our baptismv into the Body of Christvi occurred when we were born again. That moment the believer’s spirit is joined to the Holy Spiritvii and by that connection with the Holy Spirit is therefore, joined to every other Christian as a part of the Body of Christ.viii The baptism in power that we talked about in earlier messages may occur at the same time a person is born again. That’s what probably happened at the house of Cornelius (Acts 10). Or it may occur at a later time, as it did with Paul and the believers at Samaria in Acts 8 and (with only a very brief interval) with the twelve men at Ephesus in Acts 19:6. The Holy Spirit dwells in all believers, and that is the basis of our unity.
Paul wants these believers to recognize their oneness with other believers and to treat each other accordingly. In many respects, he is saying the same thing to these believers that he said to the church in Ephesus. Ephesians 4:1-7: “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.” Then he goes on there to talk about some diversity of gifting as well.
Christians are to recognize their unity with all other believers and treat each other well.
II. GOD IS THE ONE WHO SOVEREIGNLY PLACES MEMBERS IN THE BODY AND MAKES THEM DIFFERENCT
Look with me at 1 Cor. 12:18: “But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” We learned this principle when we talked about the gifts of the Spirit. Ultimately, God has the sovereign right to use whoever He wants, whenever He wants to use them, and in whatever way He chooses. We can position ourselves to be useful to the Lord, but He decides.
The conversation has shifted somewhat with the introduction of the analogy of the body. In the first eleven verses, the key word is “manifestation”. In the remainder of the chapter, the key word is “member”. We saw nine manifestations of the Spirit listed in the first part of this chapter. Now, Paul is focused on the members of the Body of Christ.
God sets the members in the body as it pleases Him, according to His sovereign choices. When we realize that all of this comes to us by the grace of God, and when we realize that God makes sovereign choices about how He will use each one of us, then there is really no room for boasting. As Paul said in 1 Cor. 15:10, “by the grace of God I am what I am.”
Yet Paul seems to be confronting some people who think they are superior to others. Perhaps these were people operating in more visible, spectacular gifts. Paul seems to be addressing those people in particular in the next few verses. So, he stresses his next point.
III. EVERY MEMBER IS VALUABLE AND NECESSARY FOR THE WELLBING OF THE WHOLE.
First Corinthians 12:19-26: “And if they were all one member, where would the body be? 20 But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. 21 And 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." 22 No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary. 23 And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty, 24 but our presentable parts have no need. But God composed the body, having given greater honor to that part which lacks it, 25 that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. 26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.”
The unity of the Body is such that if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it. Verse 26 does not say all members should suffer with it; it says they do suffer with it. Other passages do tell us to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep (Rom. 12:15). So that concept is biblical. But here, Paul is helping us see the significance of our unity. If I hit my thumb with a hammer, it’s not just my thumb that suffers. My whole body is impacted by that accident. Paul has talked a lot about the essential unity of believers. If we understood it the way Paul did, we would be much more concerned about the well-being of other believers.
The failure of one believer affects the spiritual tone of the whole. That’s one reason there are times when it is easier to move in the gifts than at other times. The general condition of the church matters. The general condition of your local church matters. The general condition of the church in your city affects the spiritual atmosphere.ix
In verse 21, Paul says, “… the eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you.’" In verse 15, we saw the problem of a member feeling inferior and of no use to the Body. There, the danger was that they would lose heart and fail to make the contribution they are called to make.x Here we see the problem of arrogance, a believer gifted in one way and looking down on another believer who has a different gift package. Non-Charismatics accuse Charismatics of doing that—looking down on other believers because they do not speak in tongues. No doubt that has happened. In early Pentecost, many thought they had arrived if they were baptized in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. Today, most Charismatics understand that speaking in tongues is not evidence that you have arrived. It is an equipping for service unto others. It is more an entrance into supernatural ministry rather than a badge of superiority. When I tell people about the opportunity to receive Christ and be born again, I’m not trying to make that person feel second-class. I’m not trying to cause division. I’m trying to help that person receive something that will be a blessing to him/her. The same is true when I tell people about the opportunity to be filled with the Spirit and empowered to pray in tongues. It’s not a putdown; it’s an invitation. If the invitation wounds their pride, it is certainly not intended to do so. It is possible for someone who operates in different kinds of tongues to have a prideful, superior attitude. But, it is possible for someone who is more knowledgeable than others of the Bible or some other subject to have the same prideful attitude. In fact, Paul seems to be confronting some of that in the first chapter of this letter. The bottom line is that we all encourage one another to enter into all that God has for us. We do that with humility and love. We do not put one another down.
Paul goes on to explain some of the members who don’t appear so significant are more needful than you might think. Verse 22: “Those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary.” The heart is a delicate organ. If it gets punctured with a knife, it stops working. However, it is very necessary for the life of the whole. You can lose a hand and survive. You lose a heart, and you’re dead. Yet the heart is hidden; it is not visible. As it successfully pumps life throughout the body, it gets few accolades for doing so. It is simply assumed that it will continue its function.
In the natural, we care for the less presentable parts of the body by covering them with clothing. In verse 23, Paul is talking about the reproduction organs: “And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty.” Because these parts are a part of who we are, we take care to modestly cover them. We don’t need to give that care to an ear or a hand. The implication is this. Since every member is a part of the whole and what happens to one member affects the whole, then all the members should be caring for one another.
In our church in Amarillo, there was a man named Frank. Frank had some mental problems and would occasionally disrupt the service by suddenly blurting out a sentence or two in a high-pitched voice. The sentences made little sense. Some people thought he had a demon, but I never discerned anything like that. Frank never wore socks, and regardless of how cold it was, he never wore a coat. I assumed he was a street person. On more than one occasion, my wife tried to give him socks and a coat, but he wouldn’t take them. I knew Frank couldn’t help the outbursts, so we just loved and accepted him anyway.xi One day I received a call asking me to come to a certain address. Frank had been murdered. There was blood all over the house. A sophisticated, well-dressed man was there who introduced himself as Frank’s brother. He was a prominent surgeon in Dallas. He said Frank had been wounded during World War II, and it left him with some disabilities. His brother had bought him the home we were standing in. He talked about how much Frank loved our church and then gave the house to the church. He said, “Frank would like that.” Things are not always as they appear. The true honor a member deserves is not always evident. I’m so glad we were kind to Frank, not just because the church received a valuable asset but because I know we treated that member of the Body with kindness and respect.
We should value every member, regardless of that member’s gift package. We should discount no one as unimportant or insignificant. We should value and take care of each other. Today, various denominations and groups value certain gifts and discount the others. Some groups place high value on Bible teachers but virtually no value on manifestations of the Spirit. Other groups value exciting gifts but have little time for bread-and-butter Bible teaching. I’ve known churches where it was all about deliverance ministry, others in which it was about prophecy, and others where fellowship was the thing. For some, evangelism was honored, much to the exclusion of other gifts. But we need to respect and receive all the gifts if we are to have a balanced, healthy development of disciples.
IV. EACH MEMBER SHOULD FAITHFULLY FULFILL HIS OR HER GOD-GIVEN FUNCTION and thereby serve the whole with humility.
First Corinthians 12:27: “Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually." That’s a good summary of what Paul has been saying. Notice here he is now talking about members in the body and how they function differently. He is listing some ministry functions. It is similar to what Paul does in Romans 12. For a member to function as a prophet, he must operate in that gift as a normal course of his ministry. So, a person who prophesies occasionally is not a prophet by those standards. He does not fulfill, as a member of the Body, the function of a prophet. The Greek word translated “function” in Rom. 12:4 (NIV) is praxis.xii It has to do with one’s practice. So, a manifestation of prophecy does not qualify a person as a member who functions as a prophet. A person who has a time or two operated in miracles is not necessarily functioning in that capacity as a member of the Body. So, when Paul asks, “Are all teachers?” he is not talking about everybody that has taught something occasionally. He is talking about someone who consistently fulfills the function of a teacher.
In verses 29-30, Paul asks a series of rhetorical questions, all of which would logically be answered no. We begin reading at verse 28: “And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?”
This is obviously not a complete list of different ways members function in the Body. Paul is not just listing functions. He is applying his analogy of members of the physical body. Different members have different functions. They don’t all function the same way.
In all these questions, Paul is referring to ministry gifting. Does everyone operate in the gifts of healings as to their function in the Body of Christ? No, gifts of healings are available as a manifestation to believers as the need may arise. But for many of us, that manifestation does not occur regularly in our ministry, and therefore, it is not our function in the Body. “Do all speak with tongues?” Again, Paul is taking about ministry function in the Body. He is talking about the public expression of the gift. He is not talking about devotional tongues in private. Every believer can and should operate in tongues for personal edification. But, not every believer functions in the gift publicly as a ministry function. Notice the distinction between the two in 1 Cor. 14. Concerning the private gift, Paul says in 1 Cor 14:18, “I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all.” That was for his private self-edification. Then, in the next verse, he contrasts that with using the gift in public. First Cor. 14:19: “Yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.” It is hard to miss the distinction there between private devotional tongues versus the public use of tongues in church meetings.
Paul makes a transitional statement in 1 Corinthians 12:31. “But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.”
First, he affirms the importance of gifts by telling us to “earnestly desire” the best gifts. What are the best gifts? They are the gifts that I can excel in for the edification of the church. Earnestly desire to be used by God to serve others effectively. First Cor. 14:12 instructs: “Let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.” Our objective is not self-exaltation.xiii Our objective is effective service to the Body of Christ. Phil 2:3-4 “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. 4 Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”
Then, he turns our attention toward love. In chapter 13, he will present love as the one acceptable way to operate in the gifts and as the ultimate objective behind the gifts. He is clearly not recommending love instead of the gifts. He has just told them to earnestly desire gifts. In the latter part of chapter 12, he has addressed their need to treat each other with respect and care. That naturally leads toward his discussion of motive while ministering to one another: love.
Conclude by partaking of Communion together.
ENDNOTES:
i In 1 Cor. 1:7 Paul says to them “so that you come short in no gift….” Unfortunately, this cannot be said of the American church today. Today there is a need to stir up Christians to “desire spiritual gifts” and through the manifestations of the Spirit, excel in edifying one another (1 Cor. 14:12).
ii All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
iii 1 Tim. 6:6
iv Gordon Fee rightly views these two phrases in 1 Cor. 12:13 (“baptized into one body” and “made to drink into one Spirit” as parallel and referring to the same thing. The New International Commentary on the New Testament, The First Epistle to the Corinthians (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 1987) p. 603.
v The Greek word, baptizo, means to immerse or submerge. Strong’s Concordance, NT:907. When the word is used in various contexts, it is not always referring to the same experience.
vi Paul’s present concern is not how believers become empowered for service, but how they become one Body. His focus here is relational and different from Luke’s perspective in Acts 1:8. ”For Luke, the gift of the Spirit has a vocational purpose and equips the disciples for service.” These perspectives are not contradictory, but complimentary. For further explanation see Roger Stronstad, The Charismatic Theology of St. Luke (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc, 1984) p. 64-73.
vii 1 Cor. 6:17; Eph. 4:16
viii When I say Body of Christ I am not referred to Jesus resurrected body, but to the Church of which He is the head.
ix Romans 14:7
x Matthew 25:25
xi 1 Pet. 4:8; 1 Cor. 13:7
xii Romans 12 should be studied in conjunction with this text in 1 Cor. 12. Time does not allow us to do that in this message. Just keep in mind, Paul is focused on function (praxis) of the members in the Body.
xiii The tenor of Paul’s corrections suggests that the Corinthians had some unhealthy views of the gifts as well as unhealthy views of the members. It is very possible they were in some cases using the gifts for self-exaltation rather than as service to others. The attitude of mind Paul discusses in Philippians 2 needs to prevail in the operation of the gifts.
