Everyone is Important

I Corinthians 12:18,22-23, 25: "God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be . . . . 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 . . . . There should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other."

From chapters 1-4, 9, 14 of I Corinthians, it seems that the Church at Corinth had become enamored with what one might call the "divine sophia" (wisdom). Certain members had become influenced by the secular philosophies of that day which emphasized that one could attain higher levels of wisdom through spiritual gift manifestation. These believers felt that they had reached a “spiritualized eschatology.” That is, they believed they had already experienced the fullness of the divine sophia from the Spirit and were speaking with tongues similar to the angels. They were now experiencing a kind of ultimate spirituality by which they lived above the merely material existence of the present age, and this superior wisdom made them of higher importance in the church and the kingdom of God.

Of course, those in the church that believed that they had mastered the mysteries of spirituality believed that others had not attained such levels of enlightenment and were thus inferior. This arrogant disposition led to numerous quarrels within the church (see I Corinthians 3:3).

Paul instructed the Corinthian church that each member of the body of Christ is gifted and called to specific responsibilities by the Lord, "just as He wants them to be." Therefore, no person within the church has less value than anyone else . . . all are equally important for the purposes of God. Paul commands that the church recognize the "less honorable" in the congregation with special honor . . . as ones indispensible to the kingdom of God. Paul uses the analogy of the physical body to illustrate that each part, no matter its function, is of utmost importance to the optimal functioning of the body as a whole. And he reiterates that God Himself will esteem the parts of the body that may lack respect due to their position and function within the church.

This is a good word for us in the Church of Jesus Christ. We must remember that all members are invaluable for the purposes of the kingdom, and we should never assume ourselves more important due to our positions of perceived prominence within the church. None of us deserve to even be in the family of God, for we have all sinned against the Lord; thus, the grafting in of ourselves into the tree of life is solely accomplished by the grace and mercy of God. No one has the right to boast in his spirituality, as though he has mastered his redemption through his own efforts.

At the same time, each believer CAN boast in the goodness of the Lord to grant him such a privilege. Not only have we been made in God's image (Genesis 1:27), but we have been redeemed by the greatest price possible . . . the death of Christ on a cross (Romans 5:8). For those of us who have surrendered to the Lordship of Christ, we have received the blessedness of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:21-22); and through this impartation, the Lord has set His seal of ownership upon us. Therefore, we ALL can say that God has adopted us into His royal family, and this adoption gives each of us immeasurable intrinsic value (see Ephesians 1:5; John 1:12).