1 Corinthians 12
"How to Build a Beautiful Body "
Gospelcom Bible Gateway

INTRODUCTION:

A. 1 Corinthians 12 is Paul's favorite analogy of the body of Christ. The body of Christ fearfully and wonderfully made by Christ. This letter from Paul is written to a body that is divided. It had all sorts of problems.

B. There's not one gift, not one style of ministry, God is a God of variety. God has established a variety in His church. Unfortunately churches have established molds.

C. We are to recognize variety, however, we need to emphasize a unified body. One body with one purpose. Jesus is the head, the church is the body.

D. God has set the members in the body. We need every part of the body to maximize equality.

E. We were never created by God to be independent. The body of Christ was never designed to have independant groups, but to be unified.

I. Recognize a Variety of Gifts, Ministries, and Activities

A. There was a variety in the way that Jesus healed people. One and the same spirit controls the variety.

B. Are gifts given or earned?

C. Does the church belong to us or Jesus?

II. Emphasize Unity

A. Who directs the body?

B. When the body is functioning properly what is the result?

C. What if one member of the body isn't functioning properly?

D. What does the world see when they look at the church and body of believers?

III. Maximize Equality

A. Is one part of the body useful by itself?

B. Should we deem certain gifts more important than others?

C. How do we avoid division in the body? Sometimes the most vital parts of the body are unseen.

IV. Minimize Self Sufficientcy

A. Do the scriptures teach that we are meant to be independent?

B. Acts 6 - A. The body of believers recognized variety, unity, they maximized equality and they minimized self sufficientcy. "The saying pleased the whole multitude."

APPLICATION:

1. Let's not become 'wire meshed' Christians. Let's move forward nurturing one another and growing one another in the faith.

2. Let's be sensitive to one another's needs.

3. Let's recogizing that all of us have gifts, none are superior.

MEMORY VERSE FOR THIS WEEK:

1 Corinthians 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.