We, Being Many, Are One

“…so we, being many, are one body in Christ…”
Rom 12:5

There is such an amazing diversity in the body of Christ!  We are many yet one.  As our Lord described the kingdom of heaven in Mt 13:47, he said it was like a dragnet that was “cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind”.  Do you know how many species of fish there are in the ocean?  Scientists say there are about 15,000 known species, but because so much of the ocean is unexplored, they estimate it’s probably 20,000 or more!  That’s quite a variety!  The Lord compares that variety to His church, the diverse group of people caught by the Gospel net!

The children of God come in every color, shape, and size.  One brother the other day was relating to me how he was snagged by that net in the fourth grade.  I know another man who was saved a couple of years ago in his 50’s!  You may be a young, seemingly innocent, Samuel, living among the priests in the temple and hearing the voice of the Lord, or you might be old like king Manasseh, more wicked than all your predecessors and living in captivity when God quickens your heart!.  Whether an Ethiopian eunuch, growing up outside of the law and the customs of God’s people, or a Pharisee of Pharisees, so heavily steeped in religion you don’t need a Savior, God is still able!  He saves out of every tribe, tongue, people, and nation! (Rev 5:9)

We have all of that great diversity within the church, but God simply sees them all as “good” in Mt 13:48.  We need to see one another that way, my brethren, and appreciate the role of each member of the body!  In both passages that focus on this diversity–in Rom 12 where are text is from and then also in 1 Cor 12–we are reminded to not exalt ourselves and to love and appreciate one another. (See Rom 12:3, 9-10; 1 Cor 12:4, 20-21, 25-26) In fact, right after the diversity chapter in 1 Cor 12, we have an entire chapter on love!

Why would God organize His word that way?  Since we do come from different tribes, we’ve got different customs, characteristics, mannerisms, etc., and we’re going to be tempted to divide the body by getting into our own little like-minded groups based on our backgrounds.  Christians, don’t sweat the small stuff!  I hate to see Christians measure other Christians by their non-biblical customs.  Don’t do it!  God’s formed each member in His spiritual body for His glory and for the good of the entire church.  It is because we are different that we are so effective!  Just because He’s made you more like a lung that’s focused on air, don’t try to convince that brother who functions more like the heart to do the same.  What happens when air gets in the heart?  It’s lethal!

We are diverse, but we must be united as one.  What a miracle God has performed in putting us together!  Thank God for one another, brethren, and “walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with [that literally means “putting up with”!] one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Eph 4:1-3)

Jamie

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