“The
Body of Christ” By General Pastor
F. Paine November 18th,
2012 In professional sports, there is a
team on the field, there are cheerleaders, and then there are people in the
stands, or watching the game on TV, or listening on the radio or whatever. But, you see, here at church when we talk
about Christ, we don’t have a team and then fans; we’re all on the field. Amen?
None of us should have an ‘in the stands’ mentality; all of us should
have an ‘on the field’ mentality. We’re
here to be about something. We’re not
just here to root for the team; we’re not just here to cheer them on; we’re not
just here to shout when they make a touchdown, we’re here to be part of the
touchdown. I want you to think about a
potluck for a minute (maybe I should have saved this for the end of the
message, because I don’t want to lead you astray here). If you are planning on
going, you’re not just a passerby, you know way in advance you’re going to a
potluck… Anybody not know what a potluck
is? it's a meal where everybody brings something. If you’re going to a potluck, usually you
bring what you’re best at. You go shopping
ahead of time, and you make it up; your husband tries to sneak a bite before
you take it to the church… And then
you’re thinking, “Oh yeah, I know what Sister Ashley’s gonna bring.” And you start thinking about what your
brothers and sisters are going to bring and calling them up and asking, “What
are you making? I hope you’re making…” Right?
Everybody with me? Anybody need a
tissue? So you get the idea of what I’m
trying to get you to understand. So, you
know at a potluck, you’re supposed to bring something. It’s great that you’re coming to get something. It’s great that you know you’re going to get
something there that you know you couldn’t bring. It’s all right to know that brother George is
going to make something and he’s going to cook it the way he cooks it and I
sure hope he’s not going to be out of town this weekend for the potluck,
right? But it’s also important to know
that you’re bringing something. I tell
you this because I want to look together at the text that the Apostle Paul
wrote to the church at Corinth in what we now call First Corinthians, the
twelfth chapter. I want to talk to you about what it means to be part of a team
where you’re not in the stands just cheering for your team, but you’re on the
field. Amen? And I want to remind you that we have an
audience of one, and that’s Jesus Christ.
We’re to be on the field every day of our lives; we’re not just to be
fans in the stands, but we’re to be on the field, every day of our lives. When we come to the potluck, we’re supposed
to bring our best dish—we’re not supposed to just stop at the store and buy a
bag of chips (although that should not be taken as an indictment against those
for whom bringing a bag of chips IS their best dish—some people have limited
cooking skills and/or facilities. If
buying a bag of chips is the absolute best you can do, then bring a bag of
chips, but if you have the ability to bring more, then you should). Chips are fine; they’re not great. If you could bring a roast and then end up
just bringing some pretzels, you know, that just ain’t right. Before I read this text, I want to
see if I can set the scene this way: You
see, Paul loved this church in Corinth.
This church was made up of people that really loved God. Here’s what happened to the church in
Corinth: some things got out of balance; some things got out of whack; some
things got off course. These people
loved God. Do you love God? These people had let some things that were
supposed to be in the church become too big of a deal in the church, and they
had let some things that weren’t supposed to be in the church come into the
church, and they lost their way somehow.
I’m not telling you that I think they weren’t saved; I’m telling you
that I think that they weren’t being the best that they could be. Anybody here willing to say, “You know what?
I’m saved, but I’m not the best that I could be. I’m just not the best that I can be. I’m willing to let God speak to me through
His Word and through His Holy Spirit and tell me, ‘you know, you ought to
embrace this more than you’re embracing it. You ought to let go of that and
leave it alone. You know what? You’ve
got some things out of balance.’”? Now
stay with me for a minute, I’m still laying a foundation, but I get started
preaching, it’ll go quick. I can tell you
that there have been times in my life when it was out of balance. Anybody here ever have times when your life
was out of balance? Raise your hands,
and keep them up for a minute; look around at your brothers and sisters. There’ve been times in our lives when we’ve
been out of balance. Almost all of
us. Out of balance doesn’t mean you’ve lost
your way; out of balance doesn’t mean you don’t have a goal. Out of balance doesn’t mean that you’re all
wrong; it just means that you’re not all right.
The church in Corinth wasn’t all right.
The church in Corinth had gotten out of balance. Some of the people in the church in Corinth
thought they were bigger than they really were; some of the people in the
church in Corinth thought they weren’t important when they really were
important. Paul the Apostle loved the
church so much that he said, “I’ve got to talk to you.” And in verse 1 of chapter 12 he said: 1
Corinthians 12:1 Now concerning
spiritual gifts, brethren… Let’s take our first piece right
there: “Now concerning spiritual gifts,
brethren…” So you know he’s not just
saying, “Oh, by the way…” He starts out
saying, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren…” Now, if I’m in the church, and my leader (and
Paul was their leader) says, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren,” he has
my attention, how about you? Amen? If you’re in the church that was birthed by
Apostle Paul, and Paul says, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren,” does
he have your attention? Amen? There were some who were expecting the next
word on the page that he had written to be ‘awesome!’ Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, you
rock! But he didn’t say that, did he? 1
Corinthians 12:1 …I would not have
you ignorant. He said, it’s my job to tell you
that something’s broke. Here’s the good
news: If God’s telling it’s broke,
there’s still some time to fix it. You
know, when a child is young, they think Dad can fix anything. As we get older we find that Dad can fix some
things, but not all things. When we get
wiser, then we realize that God CAN fix all things. So Apostle Paul says to the church at Corinth: “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I
would not have ye ignorant.” Evidently,
Dale Carnegie was not teaching his course on how to win friends and influence
people, yet. Evidently, Apostle Paul
hadn’t heard anything about that, yet, because he says in verse 2: 1
Corinthians 12:1-2 … ye were
Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols… Feel good about that, don’t
you? But, you know, that’s the reality,
all of us needed to be saved. We were
all lost until we were found. The Bible
says, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God;” (Romans 3:23). Did you sin and fall short of the glory of
God, or are you the exception to that rule?
I am a sinner saved by grace, how about you? So, they didn’t have the truth, but now they
have the truth. 1
Corinthians 12:3 … no man can say
that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost… In other words, if you’re led by
God, you’re not going to say that Jesus is accursed. No man can say that Jesus is Lord, but by the
Holy Ghost. If someone is saying to you,
“Jesus is Lord,” there’s something happening in their life. There is some kind of Holy Ghost influence
that they acknowledge that Jesus is Lord.
They may not have everything in tune; they may not have everything
right, but there’s some kind of understanding there to work with. Amen?
Now, if you’re carried away by idols that can’t speak (and the word
‘dumb’ there means they can’t speak)… When you say that Jesus is Lord, that
means that you have some understanding that came from the Holy Ghost. Now, to lay some foundation, Paul
said this about the Body of Christ: 1
Corinthians 12:4-7 … there are
diversities of operations, but it is the same God… In other words, there are going to
be differences. Remember the
potluck? We’re all bringing something
different. But, it’s not for you, it’s
for everybody. It’s to profit
withal. Stop comparing yourself to someone
else; you’re not supposed to bring the same thing that she brings. We’re supposed to be different, but serve the
same God. Amen? You’re not better because you’re different,
and you’re not worse because you’re different.
That’s what Paul is speaking to the church about. He’s saying can’t you get it folks? It’s God’s plan for us to bring different
things, to be different things, to have different things, to have different strengths. Some of you would love to sing at the microphone,
but you’re like me, you just don’t have a good singing voice. That’s not your talent! For a long time when I used to sing in the choir
I thought I was the only one with a cordless mike; it turns out I was the only
one that was unplugged. Not everybody
has the same gift. Be who you can
be! Bring what you can bring! Celebrate what you are and get better at it
every day. Some of you are looking at
your weaknesses and shortcomings, and you thinking because of that, that you
can’t do what God has got for you to do.
Get over that thinking. Let’s
look at something else for just a minute.
That kind of thinking will wear you down, and keep you from standing up
for the glory of God. Acts
3:1-4:14 … perceived that they were
unlearned and ignorant men… Peter and John were going to the
Temple at the hour of prayer, and they met a lame man. They healed him, and he was leaping and praising
God, right? What did the people of the Temple
say about Peter and John? They were ignorant
and unlearned men. That’s how they knew
that it was God that did it. Now, if
Peter and John had been men with an education, then people would have said,
“See? That’s just a couple of educated
guys.” But they were ignorant and
unlearned men, so it must be God. Isn’t
that cool? Some of you know my testimony that I
stuttered when I was young. In addition, I wore thick glasses; now there’s a recipe
for humiliation, huh? It’ll really keep
you humble. You’re an easy target for
the kids at school to make fun of. I
never thought that I would grow up to be any kind of a speaker. I had to be called on to speak in
class—anybody know what I’m talking about?
My vision has actually improved since I got saved; God has blessed me in
that way. Some of you are so focused on
your shortcomings that you’ve lost sight of the fact that God can use you. In the Bible God chose people because of
their shortcomings. Time would not
permit to go into al the examples, but there’s lots of examples in the Old and
New Testament where people were chosen and used, and it was actually BECAUSE of
their shortcomings, so that God would be glorified. Remember the man born blind, and the
disciples asked who sinned, the man or his parents, that he was born
blind? Jesus said that his blindness was
not the result of sin, but that God might be glorified (John 9:1-3). Sometimes things look to us like they’re
broken, but to God they look like they’re ready for a victory. God has set the church in order as it pleased
Him, and Apostle Paul is writing to the church: 1
Corinthians 12:7-8 … to one is given
by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another… Are you picturing the potluck? Are you picturing us coming into the room
with a word of knowledge, a word of wisdom, amen? What are you bringing to the table? Sometimes somebody will get up and speak, and
that looks like they’re bringing a big piece, but it’s just one piece. Some of the pieces on your car that you will
never see are the most important piece, amen?
You don’t have to know anything about automobiles to believe that. Some of the pieces in the church that you
don’t see are some of the most important parts, also. I’m here to tell some of you that you’re
important. I came to tell somebody
today, “Your gift is needed in the body of Christ.” I came to tell somebody today, “Just because
you stand up front where everybody can see you, and you screech into the
microphone, you’re not more important than somebody else.” 1
Corinthians 12:10-11 … the selfsame
Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will… Don’t be jealous of someone else’s
gift. Embrace the gift that God’s placed
in your life. Maybe there’s someone here
today, that gift that the Holy Spirit spoke to you about in your life? Embrace it.
Maybe Brother Kenneth called someone else to do that, and you think,
“Well, I’m never gonna get called on.” Embrace
that gift. How long was Joseph away from
his dream? Some of you are called to
greatness and the devil has just about got you fooled into thinking that you
will never amount to a hill of beans. You’re
going to get there one day, and you’re going to hear, “Well done, thou good and
faithful servant,” because in the day that you were supposed to stand up, you stood
up for the glory of God. Whether it’s a
Macedonian call, or a “As for me and my house…” or Meshach, Shadrach, and
Abednego saying, “We are not careful to answer thee, O King…” There is a moment in time when what you bring
to the potluck is more important than anything else at that very moment. Amen?
I came to tell somebody today, “Don’t give up; your best days are right
around the corner.” God’s got something
great for you. Somebody say amen. 1
Corinthians 12:12 … the members of
that one body, being many, are one body… Remember the context here: Paul was writing to a church that had a lot
of things right, but they had a few things wrong. They needed a tune-up. Is it possible I came here today because
somebody here needs a tune-up? You say, “Oh,
not me, Pastor, I’m perfect!” Then you’re
exactly the person I’m talking to! Because
I’m perfect, and even I know I’m not perfect.
1
Corinthians 12:13 …by one Spirit are we
all baptized into one body… And he goes on to taka about the
parts of the body. We’ve talked about
football—the analogy being, get out of the stands and onto the field. We’ve talked about the potluck, and bringing
our best dish, and not just a bag of chips, because you can make something
better than that. Now I want to help
somebody to see their place in the body of Christ. I want somebody to look at these words
together, see the sense of it, and see your place in the body of Christ. 1
Corinthians 12:14-15 For the
body is not one member, but many… Some of you came to church today
thinking that you are not of the body, but you are. Maybe you’re a foot, and you look at the
hand, and think that the hand gets seen,
and people don’t usually see the foot.
He said, if the foot shall say, because I am not the hand, I am not part
of the body, it’s still part of the body.
It’s still needed. He goes on to
say in verse sixteen: 1
Corinthians 12:16-17 if the
whole body were an eye, where were the hearing?... That’s what the ear has to say to
the eye sometimes when it looks like the eye has a bigger role to play… You
know what, Sometimes my wife will say to me, “Peter you’ve got beautiful blue
eyes. I love them.” We’ve been married thirty-seven years, and
not once has she said to me, “Ooh, I love your ears.” Imagine how lonely my ears feel. I’ve got as many ears as I do eyes, and not
once has she looked into my ear and said, “Aah!” My lonely lobes. Are you with me? Some of you feel like a lonely ear that never
gets recognized. I know it seems way too
easy for me to say these words since, right now, I’m the one being recognized. I know I’m the man with the microphone right
now, but those aren’t my words; those are the words that Apostle Paul wrote to
the church in Corinth. He told them that
they all matter to the body of Christ.
Stop thinking that you’re more important than someone else; stop
thinking that you’re less important than someone else. You are needed in this body! Amen?
And every one of us have human qualities; we get our feelings hurt. Anyone here ever get your feelings
hurt in church? It wasn’t nearly as unanimous
as I thought it was going to be. Let me
tell you story about myself: I one time asked, in a message, if I had ever
offended anyone to the point where you thought about leaving the church because
of the offense that I brought into your life?
I thought there would probably be ten or fifteen hands. Every single person in the sanctuary raised
their hands; there were people that came in off the street to raise their
hands. People I had never met came in to
raise their hands. I may have
exaggerated that a little bit, but I have to admit, at the time I thought, “Did
y’all understand the question?” The reality is, we’re in this thing
together, and we need each other. Can
you say amen? You matter in the body of
Christ. 1
Corinthians 12:18-25 … those members of
the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary… That’s up to us, saints. That’s what we’re supposed to be about. That’s what we’re supposed to do. That’s what we’re supposed to be. Don’t ever underestimate what you bring to
the body. If God has dealt with you
about a gift that has gone dormant, let today be the day that you say that you’re
going to wake it up. I’m going to read
the rest of this chapter in just a minute, but, before I do, I want to
encourage you to receive all that God has for you. Somebody here today, maybe several of you,
you know the gift that God has placed in your life—maybe a word of prophecy
that God has spoken to you of and made it undeniable—but you know the gift in
your life, and you know you’re not living in the fullness of your calling. It’s a very personal thing; I’m not calling
you out, I’m asking you to call yourself out. Are you with me? If you know you’re not doing everything you’re
supposed to do, if you’re bringing chips to a potluck when you really ought to
be bringing something special, because you have something special to bring. Amen?
After this message, you’ll never be able to look at chips at the potluck
the same way again, but if that illustration works for you, then embrace it,
because some of you aren’t bringing your best. You say, “Well, this is nice, Pastor,
you come visit us one a year, and you came to yell at us.” No I didn’t, I came to shout the Word of God
to you in such a way that you say, “Oh yeah, that’s right, I am part of this
body. I’m not supposed to be sitting in
the stands watching the game; I’m supposed to be out on the field, making a
difference.” Some of you hearing this message
today, God’s given you a dream. God’s
given you a passion. You see yourself
making a difference for the Kingdom of God. You see yourself, whether it’s teaching, or
encouraging, or ministering, or giving, or just saying a word of encouragement,
or just living your life as a silent example of just who Christ is to you, or
whatever it is, and yes, I think that those who stand up front and get
recognized—the musicians that pay the instruments or the people that stand
behind the microphone—all those things that are noticed and seen, that’s great,
but for all of us whose names will be forgotten, we’re important to the body of
Christ, too. Amen? There are heroes mentioned in Scripture whose
names we do not know. What greater
accomplishment is there in life than to do what we’re made to do? I want to do what I was made for. Foot, hand, eye, ear—I want to do what I was
made for, how about you? I want to be
the part of the body of Christ that I’m supposed to be. Yes, I can tell the story that I was the
young boy who stuttered and now I speak to people, but that doesn’t make me
better than someone who will never say a word out loud in church. Do what you’re made for, and you’ll hear, “Well
done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter thou into the joy of the Lord.” 1
Corinthians 21-30 … there should be
no schism in the body… What’s the answer to each of those
questions (“Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all
workers of miracles? Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues?
do all interpret?”)? No. It seems to be pretty much unanimous that not
everyone should have every one of these gifts.
Now, I’m going to read those questions again, and, this time, tell me if
those gifts are important to the body of Christ. “Are all apostles?” Yes (it’s important). “Are all prophets?”
Yes, prophecy is important to the body of Christ. “Are all teachers?” Yes, teaching is important
to the body of Christ. “Are all workers
of miracles?” Yes, miracles are important
to the body of Christ. “Have all the
gifts of healing?” Yes, healing is important to the body of Christ. “Do all speak with tongues?” Yes, tongues are
important. “Do all interpret?” Yes, interpretation
is important. So, not everybody should
have every one of those gifts, but, yes, the body of Christ should have every
one of those gifts. Say, “I am important
to the body of Christ. I’m going to be
the person that I was called to be. I’m
going to do what I was called to do. I’m
going to be the example that God’s called me to be. I’m going to live the life that God’s called
me to live. I’m going to let my place be
where He wants me in the body of Christ and quit trying to be here I’m not
supposed to be. I’m going to be what I
am, and be the best at it.” Remember
when Martin Luther King Jr. said, “If you’re a street sweeper, be the best.” Someone asked me a question recently,
and they’ve known me a long time, and they remember when my job was to clean up
at the end of the night in the building that we used for worship. That was one of my responsibilities, I was
sort of a clean-up guy; I was the last man out, so to speak. I don’t mean I did it alone, but that was my
responsibility, and at the end of the day, we would put everything away, and
lock it up, and that way everything would be ready to go the next time,
right? They said, “Were you happier
then, or now?” They prefaced that by
talking about all the responsibilities and challenges that I have now, but they
asked, “Were you happier then, or now?” I
thought for a moment, and I said, “Neither.”
At that time, I was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing (and I
don’t mean I was perfect; please don’t misunderstand me; I’m not saying that to
be boastful), and now I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing, so I’m equally
happy in both places. Equally happy as a
janitor and as the General Pastor? Yeah, equally happy; equally content. At that time, I felt like I was doing exactly
what I was supposed to be doing for the body of Christ, and now I feel like I’m
doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing for the body of Christ. Does that make sense? Last verse: 1
Corinthians 12:31 But covet earnestly
the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way. He goes on in Chapter 13 to talk
about love. Saints, I love worship. I love to make a joyful noise. But I also love the quiet times. I love the times when I am alone and awake (I
love the times when I’m asleep, too). I
love the times when I’m alone and awake and I just sit in communication with
the Lord. Sometimes I choose not to even
open the Bible so that I can just be still and just listen to God. Whatever it is that the Holy Spirit has
pricked your heart to do, or to do more of for His body, please do that. Ed Howes said to me today that one of the
things he appreciates about me is that I’m a good listener. It’s interesting that he should say that,
because just the other day that Holy Ghost pricked y heart and said, “Slow
down, and be a better listener.” When Ed
said that today, I said “Thank you, Lord, that’s a confirmation that I needed.” Sometimes you get busy, and—anybody ever been
busy? The Holy Ghost told me to slow
down and be a better listener, and Ed said to me that I am a good listener, so
I thank you, Lord. Pastor Davis said to
me one time, “Son, God gave you to ears and one mouth, and it would be good to
use them in that proportion.” I love
you, saints. Sermon notes by Pete Shepherd |
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