A ONE-MAN BAND

1/17/15

14 For the body is not one member, but many. 15 If the foot says, 'Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,' it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, 'Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,' it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. 19 If they were all one member, where would the body be? 20 But now there are many members, but one body. 21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, 'I have no need of you'; or again the head to the feet, 'I have no need of you.' 22 On the contrary, it is much truer that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; 23 and those members of the body which we deem less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, 24 whereas our more presentable members have no need of it. But God has so omposed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked, 25 so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
Our human bodies are made up of various parts and each part becomes indispensable and needed for us to function. While some have managed to maintain their existence in this life without an arm or a leg or both, their mobility has become greatly hampered. The same is true of those who have lost their eye sight or their hearing. It is true that when one loses the ability to see that their other senses then become heightened, but they are still impaired.

God has given each of its members in the body of Christ different gifts and functions. Each one has a part to play and is needed in order for the body to function properly. Just like our human frame when we lose an arm or a leg, the spiritual body of Christ is hampered in its ability to function properly in this world. While the eyesight of the prophetic is needed in order to "see" what lies ahead, without those who "walk" out these things, the overall plan suffers lose.

It's easy to think that one has all the answers, but they would be severely mistaken to think this way. Those who govern know this to be true, for one with true leadership skills knows that a job cannot be done without all its members performing at their best. A symphony cannot be played without the brass or the percussion playing hand-in-hand with the strings or the reeds. Otherwise, the sound is lost and one just hears a solo performance, or at best, a trio of some sort.

Even those who think that their job is not important become indispensable when they are gone. Those with the gift of mercy or "helps" while seemingly unimportant, are thrust to the front of the class when needed. When a job needs to be done and they are not there, then someone else who is ill-equipped has to step forward. Those with compassion for the many who suffer with grief or loss, care in a way for those ones, that the preacher may well not know what to do. Again, when each one does their part, then the overall plan can be achieved.

Just like a car that starts in the morning on a cold, frosty morning, without the ignition, it simply would not turn over. Once it moves down the road and one of the tires becomes flat, it cannot move any further. Each part again is needed for it to function properly and to get to its destination. The body of Christ again, is like that car where each system and part is needed in order for it to run well and properly.

Find your place and do your best to fulfill it. Don't think that you aren't needed for without you, the rest of the body would suffer loss. Don't think that you can do it all alone. For a one-man band may have several instruments at their disposal, but the sound that it produces will come out sounding dissonant and chaotic.

Stephen Hanson