I am a Part of the Body of Christ

“Now eagerly desire the greater gifts.”

1 Corinthians 12:12-31 has four parts.

Part 1: The Body and Water (vs. 12-13)

• The Body: Christianity is the most diverse movement on the planet.
• The Spirit is Water to This Body: The body of Christ (Christian community) needs the
• Spirit of God in the same way the human body needs water.
• We are in the Spirit and the Spirit is in us.
  • We are immersed in the Spirit.
  • We drink the Spirit like water.

Part 2: The Holy Spirit redeems how we relate to ourselves (vs. 14-20)

• To know God we must know ourselves. To know ourselves we must know God.
  • That’s a reality articulated long ago by both St. Augustine and John Calvin.
• Paul is bringing into focus how we relate to ourselves, because how we relate to ourselves plays a big role in how we participate in the body of Christ.
• If we are not able to be present to ourselves (i.e. who we are and how we’re actually doing), we will not be present to others in the way God created us to be.

Part 3: The Holy Spirit redeems how we relate to each other (vs. 21-26)

• The gospel transforms our understanding of who is worth our time and energy. It transforms how and why we value people.
• When we draw near to the Spirit, acknowledging the Spirit’s presence, and intentionally “drinking” the spirit, we become more attuned to what the Spirit is doing, which allows us to participate in the body of Christ in substantive ways.

Part 4: As the body of Christ, we collectively desire the greater gifts (vs. 27-31)

• This is not about each individual desiring the greater gifts. This is about the body of Christ as a community desiring the greater gifts.
• The gifts of the Spirit are able to manifest most fully when the persons of a community are surrendering to the discipleship and intimacy of the Spirit of God, which transforms how we relate to ourselves and others.
• By desiring the greater gifts, we are collectively seeking, receiving and celebrating what God chooses to do through others and ourselves. We can learn to desire and celebrate a manifestation of the Spirit’s power, even when it means we are being challenged by it.

1. What is it about the gospel that has made Christianity the most diverse movement on the planet?
2. What are the implications of us knowing that the Holy Spirit is all around us, connecting us? How does that change our behaviors?
3. What does it mean to “drink” the Spirit? Why is that important?
4. In what ways does the Spirit of God want to redeem how you relate to yourself?
5. In what ways does the Spirit of God want to redeem how you relate to others?
6. What does it mean that God has arranged the parts of the body and put them together?
7. What would it look like for us as a Christian community to desire the greater gifts collectively?
8. What is your Spiritual gift in the body of Christ, and how can you imagine it being activated within Eastbrook Church and your community?

DIG DEEPER:

• Pray Ephesians 1:17 over yourself, family and friends, and our church body.
  • “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.”
• Pray Ephesians 1:18-19 over yourself, family and friends, and our church body.
  • “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.”
• Take the spiritual gifts/S.H.A.P.E. assessment and discover the gifts and abilities you have to contribute to the body—commit to serving in the church in a way that utilizes those gifts and fulfills a need the body has. Visit eastbrook.org/serve or your Eastbrook App!
• Journal to these prompts:
  • What is it like to be me right now?
  • How can my relationship with myself improve?
  • What role can I play in the body of Christ?