When the Body Aches
Maybe you have noticed that as you get older, various body parts don’t always want to cooperate! Anyone else ever have a hike, a workout, a round of golf, or a trip planned, only to wake up with a hip, a knee, an ankle, or a lower back that doesn’t seem to want to get with the program! For you 30-something and 40-something readers, yes, learning to exercise and manage these inconveniences are a part of your new “adulting” responsibilities!
While Bible scholars can’t with 100 percent reliability give firm dates for everything that happened in the early church, many reliable scholars would date the writing of 1 Corinthians somewhere in the AD 56-58 range, so this letter to the church in Corinth was about 25 years after Pentecost.
When I was 25, I don’t remember having any particular body aches unless I worked out too hard and ran more miles than I should have in my distance running era. However, usually by around 25 or 26 we are expected to act like adults. Adolescent brains finish their development around this age. And as adults, we realize that we need to get our relational, emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual maturity in sync so that we are productive in every way.
Paul’s somewhat humorous approach to explaining how members of the church need to be working in a similar way as the human body parts function as a unit gives us a clear picture of how, under the leadership of Jesus, we can be most useful in doing his work.
Jesus, of course, set the table for how the church should act when he repeatedly taught his followers how to be humble, to serve others, to love and to forgive those who hurt us. All of these themes are evident in Paul’s writings, not just to the Corinthians but in his whole collection of epistles.
If we ignore wounds in our physical bodies, there can be significant damage. To ignore an infection can lead to a secondary infection. If I fail to treat a sprain, then I may do further damage to ligaments and, depending on the severity of the sprain, it might lead to further instability, which could cause other injuries. Having respect for and caring for our human body parts will lead to our ability to live well, enjoy life, and to be productive.
Similarly, we must pay attention to the health of the body of Christ, the church. When we ignore the suffering of Christians when our influence and resources can make a difference in the health of the body, then we weaken the witness of the church and ignore the teachings of scripture. When we fail to care for those who are starving or in need of basic medical supplies, we are not only failing to obey scripture, we are also damaging the arm or leg of Christ that seeks to serve and witness in other parts of the world.
Paul’s instructions to the Corinthians have implications for the global church, and we can’t ignore this teaching as it relates to the church in the local community where we live and work. Every follower of Christ has a role within the church. When we fail to do our part or think that our part is the main thing, then we weaken our witness.
Father, today we ask forgiveness for the times we have ignored the needs and minimized the role of other members of the church. Holy Spirit, lead us to identify the areas in our local communities and abroad where we need to tend to those in need. Use me to work toward unity in the church so that the light of Christ may shine brighter both near and far. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Your Time with God’s Word
1 Corinthians 12:5, 12-31 ESV
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