1Corinthians 12:12-31
UNDERSTANDING DIVERSITY The Church is not an organization, nor a promotional agency. It was never designed to be a business. It was never designed to be run by paid professionals. It is a living system; an organism. The assembly at Corinth was not functioning as a body. They were chaotic, out of control, immature, immoral, selfish, proud, heretical, and divisive. They liked human philosophy, tolerated sin, sued each other, and were gluttonous and drunkards. They were sexually evil, allowed pagan worship, desecrated the Lord’s Table, perverted and not trusted in the area of spiritual ministries. The area causing the most discord and disunity was spiritual gifts. They had counterfeited the true gifts. So instead of harmony, there was chaos. Paul is correcting this by pointing out things the way God planned. Accept the divine dignity God has placed in every member. Minister in the area in which God has gifted you. He never intended us to have all the same gifts. That is the beauty of the body. The body operates in Unity, Diversity, Sovereignty, and Harmony.
- Spiritual unity: Eph.4:3; 2:15-16; 4:4-6; Gal.3:28; Jn.17:20-23.
- Spiritual necessity: every person is important: no loners, drifters, spectators, outsiders.
- Spiritual diversity: a body is one because it has all the necessary parts. You know your gifts when you allow the Spirit of God to use you in an area of service. When some carnality jams up the works, we often compensate rather than deal with the carnality. Diversity is no accident. If you teach, then teach. If you minister, then minister. If you speak, speak as the oracles of God.
- Spiritual sovereignty: God planned the Church. Be content with what God has given you and keep the sense of dignity God has given to every part of the body. God made you to be what He wants.
God organizes the entire body. Every believer should sense the dignity of having a capacity with which to minister for the benefit of others. We are not commanded to seek a gift. “Covet to prophesy” means to have that gift used when you come together. There is no place for discontent, selfishness, and conceit: God “tempered” – mixed the gifts together.
Because of the working of the Holy Spirit in the use of the diversity of gifts, there is order and blessing that comes when all the saints use their gifts willingly to serve others. Controlled diversity maintains strong unity. Maturity in spiritual matters maintains the balance between diversity and unity that keeps a body functioning properly and productively. The illustration the apostle Paul uses is the human body, composed of many different parts, each with a unique role in the functioning of the whole body. To compare the work of an eye to the work of a foot or even a toe is foolish. Each one is different, yet each is important to the body's usefulness. If a gift is open and public, like the use of a mouth or an arm, that does not make it more important than other parts of a body, nor does it indicate other unseen members of a body are of less value. The unseen heart or lungs have an essential use in the body that cannot be filled by any other part. One who has the wisdom of God and another who has unquestioning faith have a vital role to fill in the local assembly. These are as important as a gifted speaker or one who has leadership ability. All of these gifts are from God, and the diversity is for the united purpose of glorifying God.
When we recognize our need of each other and do not discount the contribution of any other person, no matter how seemingly insignificant their gift may appear to be, the unified strength of the body is experienced. There is never a need to feel dissatisfied with the work God has given us to do and the gift He has given us to do it. Being "ready for every good work" should be our response. When a brother or sister has cause to rejoice, rejoice for them and with them. Don't be jealous of them. If one is weeping over a loss, don't ignore their suffering but comfort them and, if possible, share their grief. We should not isolate ourselves from other members of the assembly, but keep involved with them, even though each one is different from the others. Everyone is part of the whole, and the unity and diversity of the whole lead to maturity.
Each assembly of God's people has been given by God what is needed for that group to fulfill the work God intends. A small company of saints may not be as gifted as a large group, but that does not mean there is failure. Each believer's gift enables them to fill the need where they live. No gift is superior to the others, but some are more beneficial to the whole body. Prophecy, for instance, benefits all who hear, but the one who prophesies needs the benefits others' gifts give to him. The Holy Spirit gives the gifts to the local assembly as He sees the need, and we need the grace God gives to use them as God intends.