Unity in the Body of Christ

My friend, Steve Sellers, recently posted another great devotional that I had to share with you:

Alright everybody, finish this stanza from a famous poem by just knowing the first line. (Now, don’t cheat.) Ready? Go!

Listen my children and you shall hear...

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Excellent! I suspect most of you were able to recall most of what follows.

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the 18th of April in 75;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

Almost everyone remembers Paul Revere. He’s almost universally famous in our country. If it weren’t for him we would have never know that the British were coming either “one if by land” or “two if by sea.” We can almost see him walking through the towns yelling his proclamation. Ooops, that should be riding a train through the towns telling his …. Let me try again. We can almost see him riding the bus through the towns … Obviously, I am gravely mistaken. We all know Paul Revere road his horse through the towns. The horse is even mentioned in the 13th, and last, verse of the poem.

In the hour of darkness and peril and need,
The people will waken and listen to hear
The hurrying hoof-beats of that steed,
And the midnight message of Paul Revere.

So, what was the name of Revere’s horse? All horses are given names. Surely we recall this famous horse’s name. Well, no we don’t. That’s because the horse is not famous. It was Paul Revere who made the critical announcement … except that he needed a trusty steed from which to deliver the message.

The Gospel writer, Paul (not Revere), may have had a similar thought in mind when he was writing to the church at Corinth.

I Corinthians 12:21-27
“The eye cannot say to the hand, I don’t need you! And the head cannot say to the feet, I don't need you! On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”

We tend to read this passage and focus on Paul’s explanation of spiritual gifts. But this chapter is much more about unity and fellowship than it is about spiritual gifts. We have, and need, unity and fellowship in spite of and because of, our individual differences. Those who are “hidden” from the community (the less honorable) need to be given special honor, for they are as much a part of the body of Christ as we are … maybe more so.

In fact, if we truly grasp what Paul is writing here, we should celebrate our differences! Our differences are evidence and example of God’s blessings on the church. Without our differences, we would be much less effective in our ministries. They are expressions of God's will for each of us, and for the Body, and as such deserve respect! We should seek to appreciate, respect, encourage and protect these God-ordained differences rather than being threatened by or fearful of them.

In my line of work we support individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. One lady we support also works at my office. She is forever ministering to me. You see, going to work can be difficult. Tough decisions have to be made. The people that work for me do not always welcome my presence with open arms. But Helen does. She always, and I mean always, has a smile on her face and a good word to say. She can motivate me when I am down. She can cheer me up when my day is difficult. She is truly a blessing to me. She also has the IQ of a 5th grader. Please don’t pity her. I don’t. She probably uses her gifts better than most of us do. She may be seen as less honorable by society, but she is quite honorable to me … and others.

The mentality of our world tends to be that the spoils belong to the strong. Far too many people prey on the weak, but the Lord wants us to pray for the weak. We should seek out the weak and help them become strong in the Lord. Someday He will ask us, “what have you done for the least of these?”

A number of biblical commentators believe that Paul, in this scripture, was making a literal reference to our own bodies. Think about the parts of your body that receive honor (a beautiful face, athletic legs, lovely skin tone and complexion, etc.). Now, think about the parts that receive little exposure and honor (heart, lungs, kidneys, liver). Losing my leg would be difficult, but losing my heart would be final.

Most of us have desensitized ourselves to everything and everyone outside of our own little world, but that's not functioning as a body. There should be a sense of pain and loss over the lack of unity and power in the body of Christ. As much as possible, we need to reach out to those members of the body of Christ outside of our own little comfortable groups.

Until you have lived the life of those given less honor, don’t let your pride and ignorance get in the way of given them more honor.

It’s really about creating and maintaining community, and Anthony D'Angelo once said, "Without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community."

Blessings,
Steve

Funraiser Luncheon

The Adult Choir is sponsoring our May Fundraiser Luncheon on Sunday, May 17th. The meal will be served immediately following the morning worship service. The menu includes fried chicken and all the fixins! Be sure to sign up or call the church office if you plan to attend.

Church Council Meeting Rescheduled

The quarterly meeting of the SCBC Church Council has been rescheduled to Sunday, May 17th. We will meet immediately following the fundraiser luncheon (approximately 1 pm). Please email your reports to Lynne Cullins this week.

Quarterly Church Conference

SCBC Quarterly Church Conference will take place on Wednesday, May 13th, at 7 pm.

Yard Sale

There will be a huge Yard Sale fundraiser at SCBC on Saturday, May 16th, from 7 am until 12 noon. Many items will be available for purchase at great prices! The event will take place rain or shine.