1 Corinthians 12:12–31

Introduction

1 Corinthians 12:12–31: In today’s reading, the apostle Paul compares the body of Christ to a human body. Each part of the body refers to individual members of the church, but all are united in one body in Christ.

Today’s Key Verse: 1 Corinthians 12:27

All of you are Christ’s body, and each one is a part of it.

Read

¹² Christ is like a single body, which has many parts; it is still one body, even though it is made up of different parts. ¹³ In the same way, all of us, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether slaves or free, have been baptized into the one body by the same Spirit, and we have all been given the one Spirit to drink.

¹⁴ For the body itself is not made up of only one part, but of many parts. ¹⁵ If the foot were to say, “Because I am not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” that would not keep it from being a part of the body. ¹⁶ And if the ear were to say, “Because I am not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” that would not keep it from being a part of the body. ¹⁷ If the whole body were just an eye, how could it hear? And if it were only an ear, how could it smell? ¹⁸ As it is, however, God put every different part in the body just as he wanted it to be. ¹⁹ There would not be a body if it were all only one part! ²⁰ As it is, there are many parts but one body.

²¹ So then, the eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” Nor can the head say to the feet, “Well, I don’t need you!” ²² On the contrary, we cannot do without the parts of the body that seem to be weaker; ²³ and those parts that we think aren’t worth very much are the ones which we treat with greater care; while the parts of the body which don’t look very nice are treated with special modesty, ²⁴ which the more beautiful parts do not need. God himself has put the body together in such a way as to give greater honor to those parts that need it. ²⁵ And so there is no division in the body, but all its different parts have the same concern for one another. ²⁶ If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts suffer with it; if one part is praised, all the other parts share its happiness.

²⁷ All of you are Christ’s body, and each one is a part of it. ²⁸ In the church God has put all in place: in the first place apostles, in the second place prophets, and in the third place teachers; then those who perform miracles, followed by those who are given the power to heal or to help others or to direct them or to speak in strange tongues. ²⁹ They are not all apostles or prophets or teachers. Not everyone has the power to work miracles ³⁰ or to heal diseases or to speak in strange tongues or to explain what is said. ³¹ Set your hearts, then, on the more important gifts.

Best of all, however, is the following way.

Reflect

Reread verses 27–31. What special abilities or responsibilities are described? How do people with various spiritual gifts enhance the work of the church? Where do you see this happening within your community of faith?

Pray

Holy Spirit, open my heart to your spiritual gifts and fill my life with love, joy, and peace, that I may carry out the work of the church, reach out to others, and strengthen the body of Christ. Amen.

And now, join us in thanking God that people who have experienced devastating loss here in the United States are receiving hope and comfort from God’s Word. Holy God, thanks to the generous support from Bible-A-Month Partners, thousands of copies of Restoring Hope Bibles and Beyond Disaster Scripture booklets have been shared with people who experienced hurricanes in the southeast last fall and wildfires in the Los Angeles area this past winter. In addition to this spiritual aid, the Bible Society was able to partner with relief agencies in delivering your Word along with boxes of life-saving and essential aid to disaster survivors. We continue to pray for those who are still trying to recover from catastrophic loss and devastation and praise you, Lord God, for your life-sustaining Word. Amen.

Tomorrow’s Reading

1 Corinthians 13:1–13: The apostle Paul teaches about love.