868 1 Cor.12.12-31 Jesus' Salad Bowl
1 Corinthian • Sermon • Submitted
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- When Ros & I were in NZ in 2003, we visited a town called Arrowtown, not far from the picturesque town of Queenstown in the Sth Is.
- Arrowtown was a famous Gold rush area in the late 19th C.
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- I read in the museum there that the Chinese were able to work together to build a little dam so they could pan the river for Gold.
- Now the Europeans admired them for this, though they could never emulate it, because they couldn't work together.
- The Chinese knew the meaning of community, whereas the Europeans were more individualistic & were too worried that one of them might end up with more than the other, so they plugged along each on their own
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- This is what the apostle is trying to convey - The group, the body, should be the concern of the individual
- The gifts of the Spirit are given for the edification of the body
7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
- We should all know what an “edifice” is, don’t we?
- If you were to observe a huge splendid building, you might say, “what a magnificent edifice” - meaning an impressive building
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- The word edification means “building” or “to build up”
- The role of each of us in the church is to contribute to the building up of the whole church – the building up of one another
- That we might grow in our understanding of God; in our godliness; in our morals; in our discernment; in our service for Christ
- As Paul says to the Ephesians…
15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.
- Today, we look at Paul’s teaching on the spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit has apportioned to each of us & how we can work together as members of Christ’s body – His salad bowl!
1. Sharing the One Spirit & the One Body
1. Sharing the One Spirit & the One Body
- The apostle starts with making very clear, the foundation of all the spiritual gifts
- That foundation is the one Holy Spirit who dispenses each of the gifts
- He is one Spirit & there is one body – the body of Christ
- We may be many but still belong to the one body
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- That oneness began when we became a Christian – when we were baptised into Christ & received the Holy Spirit
13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
Q. Does the latter part of this passage remind you of a similar passage in the NT?
- Word association is not always a good way interpreting a passage of Scripture because the context could be very different, but I think this one is of considerable help to us
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
- Here, Paul emphasis’ the place of faith in Jesus as opposed to the limitations of the law
- Everyone can come & be part of the body of Christ, the church
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- I remember the account of the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:28ff) who was on a chariot reading the scroll of Isaiah & he invited Phillip (the evangelist) to come up onto the chariot to explain to him the meaning of the passage he was reading
- Phillip preached Jesus to him & they came upon some water & the Ethiopian said, “what (or is there anything that) prevents me from being baptised”
- Of course, in the OT, the fact that he was a Eunuch meant that he was prevented or excluded from the assembly of God’s people
1 “No one who is emasculated or has his male organ cut off shall enter the assembly of the Lord.
- However, in Christ, he was fully welcomed – so nothing prevented him from being baptised
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Q. What do we have here then, in 1 Cor. 12:13?
Q. Do we have 2 baptisms? One of water & one of the Spirit?
- You might say that it is only talking about Spirit baptism, but that ignores the fact that this is speaking here of conversion
- If you don’t have the Spirit, you can’t be a Christian
- The apostle knows of only one, not two, baptisms
5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
The separation of Spirit baptism and water baptism into two distinct events is one of the most serious and far-reaching doctrinal errors ever introduced into Christendom – Jack Cottrell1
- However, Paul’s emphasis here is on the work of the Spirit
- There is only one baptism, but two aspects to baptism:- the outward aspect & the inward aspect
- Baptism of the outward – in water & of the inward, the Holy Spirit
- But note carefully here, the apostle says “we were all baptised”, & “we were all made to drink of one Spirit” - meaning in the past
- All of them were baptised in water & received the Spirit
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- Now I wish to diverge here for a moment because it is important to cover more ground here before we move on
- John the Baptist made a prophecy that distinguished his work from the coming of Jesus – he insisted – “I am not He” (Acts 13:25)
- The fulfilment of John’s prediction occurred in the early church starting on the day of Pentecost & concluding with John’s disciples in Acts 19
- This will be helpful in understanding the place of tongues in the early church & also with the Corinthian obsession with this gift
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- I would argue that no one is now, technically, “baptised in the Spirit” since John’s prophecy of baptism in the Spirit has been fulfilled
- I didn’t say the Spirit is not with us & in us, but that John’s prophecy of the church’s “baptism in the Spirit” has been fulfilled
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- All through Acts we see the unique way that God had molded the church together from all backgrounds – Jews, Samaritans, Gentiles & the travelling or even missionary disciples of John the Baptist – bringing them all into one church of Christ
- The speaking in tongues that accompanied all these events (these different people groups) became the confirmation, predominantly for the Jews, that God had accepted people other than the Jews into Christ
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- The baptism of the Spirit, then, was a fait accompli – that is, an accomplished fact!
- That God had accepted all the various people groups of the world into the one body of Christ, was witnessed to by their speaking in other tongues
- The hard-headed Jews struggled to come to terms with this
- But we have a fascinating account of Peter’s testimony, at the Jerusalem council, of his meeting with Cornelius the Gentile
15 “And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as He did upon us at the beginning. 16 “And I remembered the word of the Lord, how He used to say, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 “Therefore if God gave to them the same gift as He gave to us also after believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” 18 When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, “Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life.”
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- On one level, we can see that tongues was a sign of the baptism of the Holy Spirit which, as a sign mostly for the Jews, is no longer necessary because of the fulfilment of prophecy
- The unity of the church is obvious to all – especially the Jewish Christians – that God accepts into His kingdom, all people who turn to Jesus Christ
- On another level, the Spirit is now with & in the church – the Spirit is present corporately & received by individuals
- As a person comes to Christ & is baptised - immersed in water - in His name, God grants to that person His promised Holy Spirit that has already been poured out upon the church
2. Many Parts to the Body
2. Many Parts to the Body
- After establishing that all Christians share in the one and same Spirit, Paul moves on to show that although we are all apart of the one unit, one body of Christ, that there are a variety of spiritual gifts given to a variety of people
- I don’t have the unique gift that God has given to you to play your part in the body of Christ just as you are not me
- But the point here is that we are all one, but play different roles & have different “flavours”
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- I’ve used the analogy of a footy team before & it is a fitting analogy
- If only half the team are contributing, then you’ll never be a winning team
- You can’t expect one player to carry the whole team & no one player can win the game for the team
- Just as I cannot be the church on my own or you on your own
- We need each other
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- Nor, can some of the team bench half the team because they don’t think they come up to scratch – while the opposing team have a full team – you can never win
Q. What happens then, when the church gravitates to having only half the team involved in living for the kingdom?
- That church or churches will be stunted – it will dwindle away
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- Now in saying this, I hope that you are not thinking complaining thoughts
- Complaining is the opposite of what the apostle is driving at
- Our biggest problem is a lack of humility
- The willingness to serve even if you are alone in that caring service or activity
- John McArthur, some time ago, addressed the problem of reckless faith – faith that was being displaced by Self-love, self-esteem, self-worth, self-fulfilment, self-actualisation
- That their lack of discernment lead them into these selfish fetishes troubled him no end. He wrote...
Modern evangelicalism, enamoured with psychology and self-esteem, has produced a generation of believers so self-absorbed that they cannot be discerning. People aren’t even interested in discernment. All their interest in spiritual things is focused on self. They are interested only in getting their own felt needs met. (MacArthur in “Reckless Faith”)
- In other words, if there is nothing immediately in it for me, I’m going to pack up my bags & go somewhere where I can be served & don’t have to contribute
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v.18 says that God has arranged the members & their gifts in the body just as He desired
- Just as our human body requires all of its parts to function correctly, the body of Christ requires all of its members to function correctly
- THE BELLY AND THE MEMBERS [Aesop’s Fable’s]
The Members of the Body rebelled against the Belly, and said, “Why should we be perpetually engaged in administering to your wants, while you do nothing but take your rest, and enjoy yourself in luxury and self-indulgence?’ The Members carried out their resolve and refused their assistance to the Belly. The whole Body quickly became debilitated, and the hands, feet, mouth, and eyes, when too late, repented of their folly.
- Try functioning without your stomach, or liver or kidneys!
- The body functions well, when ever part is a functioning part
- Where every part values each other
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Q. Are there some practical reasons for why the church lacks the loving care & concern for each other?
a. They won’t let me do what I want to do
a. They won’t let me do what I want to do
- Well, that could be a problem & Paul could have been accused of this very thing
- You see, just because someone thinks they have a gift, doesn’t give them the right to exercise that gift however & whenever it pleases them
- Again, this is more about the ego – the self – than it is an honourable desire to serve where needed
- For example, tongue-speakers in the congregation in Corinth believed it was their right to babel on regardless of who or none were being edified
27 If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and one must interpret; 28 but if there is no interpreter, he must keep silent in the church; and let him speak to himself and to God.
- That is “speak to himself & God in the mind” – Paul says to these here to be silent – can you hear the complaints
- A movement of the Spirit & he shut me down
- The key here is: “let everything be done for edification” &
32 and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets; 33 for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.
- i.e. the fruit of the Spirit governs the gifts of the Spirit
b. I’m too Busy with everything else in my life
b. I’m too Busy with everything else in my life
- Busyness can be a problem & a number of people have very busy lives
- Of course, we need to be honest in how we weigh up our life’s priorities
- Ask the right question: “Where does the Kingdom fit in with my plans”, or should the question be: “where do my plans fit in with the kingdom”?
- Now, there are many & varied ways of serving the Lord & serving others & that is for you to work through
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- Now it may be partly true that busyness can be self-inflicted
- We can spend too much time playing games, or staying up late at night watching TV & at the end of next day, we are ready to sit down, eat & veg out
- But it is true that we can spend too much wasted time on the things in the world that add nothing to the well being of the church community
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- There’s a balance that we have to keep in life, but be very careful that the balance ideal, doesn’t become an excuse for non-involvement
- Its important that we decide beforehand how we can dedicate a certain amount of effort into kingdom work
→ It may mean hospitality
→ It may mean a plethora of Christian service or help to one another
→ It might be any kind of ministry including teaching or Gospel outrreach
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→ Amy was blessed to receive food from people within our fellowship
- It was an act of loving service that recognised that new mums need help, so it really starts from thinking about the needs of others
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- Shyness or a reluctance to come forward can prevent a person from exercising their gift
- Speaking of reluctance, we have the example of Moses & Jeremiah
- Moses says that he was not a good speaker, but the Lord said to Him that He makes the lips & can work in Moses to make him competent
- Likewise, Jeremiah’ excuse was that he was just a youth
- Perhaps, we need perception to see that reluctance can have many sides – meaning that the likes of shyness or timidity are merely standing in front as a convenient excuse for an unwillingness of heart to do what the Lord wants
c. I Can’t Be Bothered
c. I Can’t Be Bothered
- To be quite honest, I do think the postmodern culture is to blame here
- We have been drowning in a sea of relativism that has caused us nothing but despair & dismay
- The world offers no hope – zilth – and since we live in the world, we feel the affects of this lifelessness in our culture
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- Break free – it is not your home & it will never be
- It is locked into a sinful, death ending cycle of corruption
- It is only by the grace of God that it still continues & that is the case because God is seeking to give opportunity for all to hear the Gospel & be saved
3. Don’t Be Jealous of Each Other’s Gifts
3. Don’t Be Jealous of Each Other’s Gifts
- Jealousy is a big deal in the church
- We like to be liked – we like to be noticed
- But understand what is happening here
- The church is one body, one team – we are all on that team
- A goal kicked by one of our members is a goal kicked for you
26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
- So the answer is to support one another
- If you feel jealous of someone else, blame God, because He is the source of their gift
- Better still, rejoice in that gift that He gave to that person
- Don’t be concerned – because He has given you a unique gift that only you have – and other people will see that
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- Satan thrives on creating ill-feelings between Christians
- When we withdraw, we’re saying we’re defeated
- I know we can get hurt, but don’t let the negative effects of the flesh mess with your mind & cause you, through your disturbed emotions, to think & act contrary to the way of our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ
The segmentation of the Corinthian congregation into cliques is the by-product of human depravity that spurs individuals to treat their differing spiritual experiences as a pretext for reinstating class divisions—now employing spiritual classifications—so as to elevate themselves over others. -- David E. Garland
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- This last section leads into what Paul calls “a still more excellent way” which is the next chapter on the place of love
- But in coming to the conclusion of this passage, I wish to deal with 2 final aspects:
1. What appears to be a ranking of the greater gifts
2. v.31 which is about the “greater gifts”
- Paul ranks here 1,2,3 apostles, prophets, teachers & then others with tongue speaking, the last
- This is not the full counter of spiritual gifts & even when many more are mentioned in other Scriptures, it doesn’t mean they are all exhausted
- There may be many more that are not mentioned
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- But these are mentioned & I think because the Corinthians themselves were striving for these particular gifts
- Imagine being a Billy Graham or a Jonathan Edwards, George Whitfield, Charles Spurgeon
Q. What appeals to people about these men?
- Apart from the fact that they were great orators & also great theologians, they were very popular & in demand
- As much as they would say that it was God’s work in them – true as it may be – most people cannot divorce themselves from the role & prominent position they hold
- Look at them – remembered in history – who’s going to remember most of us?
- Had crowds flocking to hear them – being in high demand would have been a very real pride challenge for those men
- The ego is not far from any of us when it comes to popularity
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- There is a matter here where Paul rightly points out that some gifts are more critical to the church than others, but only on the level of survival
- All the members of our body are necessary for the proper functioning of the body
- You might lose an eye or a leg & still survive, but if you lose your lungs or your kidneys, you won’t survive at all
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- Paul was an apostle who witnessed first hand the risen Christ & brought the Gospel to un-reached parts of the world – a vital ministry - if the word didn’t go out you & I would not be saved
- But the Corinthian church were only interested in these flashy upfront roles that gained prominence among men
- From The Babylon Bee (Satire or Sarcasm)
REDDING, CA—Unfortunate Charismatic man Robert Wade reportedly received the “totally boring” gift of hospitality as his God-given spiritual gift at a prophecy service Sunday evening.
A man with the “really cool” gift of prophecy reportedly moved throughout the room at Wade’s church and read each member’s aura to determine which spiritual gift the Holy Spirit had granted. Wade grew more and more excited as he approached, but was devastated as he learned he just had the “super lame” gift of hospitality.
“Ugh, hospitality, are you serious?” Wade said as the church prophet announced he had detected the Christian virtue as Wade’s supernaturally bestowed talent. “I was really pulling for something cool like tongues or healing.”
“Heck, I’d even take teaching at this point. This sucks,” a downcast Wade added.
At publishing time, Wade had consoled himself by focusing on the fact that he hadn’t gotten something even worse, like giving.
- We come to my last point which is about v.31 & the “greater” gifts
31 But earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I show you a still more excellent way.
- Most translations translate it this way, but there is a growing number of translators that are seeing this differently
- Here in the NASB & ESV, it is translated as an imperative – something you seek after – “earnestly desire the greater (or higher) gifts”
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- But the exact same Greek word can be translated as an indicative, meaning “you are earnestly desiring the greater gifts”
- To my way thinking, this is certainly what they were doing
- I know that it is not the common way it is translated
- But the NIV 1984 edition has this footnote here
NIV 84 footnote - Or “But you are eagerly desiring” the greater gifts
31 You ⌊only⌋ want the better gifts, but I will show you the best thing to do.
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- I will say that the main reason it is usually written as “Earnestly desire the greater gifts” is because of 1 Cor. 14:1
1 Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.
- Its hard to argue against this except for this difference
- Here he says to earnestly desire “spiritual gifts”, whereas in our passage today, it is saying “earnestly desire the greater gifts”
- In light of the context, the problem is that the Corinthians were desiring the greater gifts & rejecting the plethora of other gifts in the body that had, on the surface, little prominence – see v.24
24 which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.
- On this basis, I prefer the translation: “You are earnestly desiring the greater gifts, now I will show you a more excellent way” - & that way is the way of love
- It’s not something I’m to die over, but I thought it may be helpful for you to footnote that verse in your Bible as it really does spring board us to the next chapter which is on the way of love - the more excellent way!
1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brothers to dwell together in unity!
1 Jack Cottrell, Baptism: A Biblical Study, (Joplin, MO: College Press Publishing Company, 1989), 88.