ROMANS 12:3-8 PART OF THE BODY BECAUSE OF THE GOSPEL2015 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Romans 12:3-8 Part Of The Body Because Of The Gospel

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2015.

We're going to be in Romans chapter 12 this evening, continuing our journey through the book of Romans. And we'll be starting here looking at verses 1 through 8. And so I'd like to take a moment and read through the passage with you. Romans chapter 12 verses 1 through 8, starting in verse 1. Here's what it says.

Verse 1.

Verse 4. Verse 5.

Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them. If prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith. Or ministry, let us use it in our ministry. He who teaches, in teaching. He who exhorts, in exhortation. He who gives, with liberality. He who leads, with diligence. He who shows mercy, with cheerfulness."

here as we look at romans chapter 12 we are moving on to the application portion of the book of romans we've talked about the gospel in chapters 1 through 11 and paul's given us kind of every detail every nook and cranny from beginning to end this is the doctrine of salvation and now

connected to that. Because of the gospel, he's going to be sharing with us how it impacts our lives and how we are to live as believers in Jesus Christ, having believed the gospel message. And so this evening, I've titled the message, Parts of the Body Because of the Gospel.

You need to know that you are part of the body of Christ as a believer in Jesus. And because of the gospel, you've been given this great honor and privilege to be a member of the body of Christ.

And this is directly connected to the doctrine of salvation that Paul has been talking about in Romans chapters 1 through 11. And so just for a moment, indulge me and notice the connections, the connecting words that Paul is using here in this passage. In verse 1, he says, So therefore, because of the gospel, which is what we looked at last week as we studied verse 1 and 2.

connecting the things that he's sharing, the application to the reality of the gospel message and its impact in our lives. So he says, therefore, because of the gospel. But then in verse 2, he says, and do not be conformed.

So connecting that thought, because of the gospel, here's how you are to present your body. But also, in addition to that, he says, do not be conformed. So still connected to because of the gospel, because of what Christ has done for us, because you have believed in Jesus, do not be conformed. And then in verse 3, he says, for I say through the grace given to me.

So for, he goes on to say at the end of verse 3, God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. And so he's now continuing to connect these thoughts together. So present your body as a living sacrifice because of the gospel and don't be conformed because God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. For God has dealt to you a measure of faith.

And then he connects again in verse 4, for as we have many members in one body, and he gives the illustration of the body. Then verse 5, so we, and so he's making sure like this all applies to us and it all connects back to because of the gospel.

And then in verse 6, he says, having then gifts differing according to the grace. And so these things are all intertwined together and tied together. Paul is connecting them and making sure that we understand this is because of the gospel. And because of the gospel, we are to present our bodies to God.

We're to stop being conformed to the world, to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. And now as we go on into our passage this evening in verses 3 through 8, he's going to be explaining that attached to that is our part in the body of Christ. And I think it's interesting here as Paul is, you know, worked all this way, chapters 1 through 11, developing the fullness of the gospel message.

And then now, looking at the application, he has specific priority. Number one, because of the gospel, first thing to do, you believe the gospel. The biggest priority now is submit your body, your mind, and your will to God. That's verses one and two. First things first, you believe the gospel message, so therefore, submit your body, your mind, and your will to God.

Secondly, you got that in order. You put God in his rightful place in your life. Now, number two, Paul's exhortation is get plugged in to the body of Christ. And I think that's an interesting priority. He's going to go on and talk about other things in chapter 12 and our relationships with one another. He's going to talk about submission to authorities in chapter 13. He's going to talk about, you know, not causing each other to stumble in chapter 14. And he's going to be dealing with different elements of the Christian life. But, but,

First on the list, he says, make sure that you submit your body, mind, and will to God because of the gospel. But second on the list, which means it's a high priority, this is item number two on the agenda. Because you believe in Jesus, you

You are a member of the body of Christ, and Paul is going to be encouraging you and challenging you to make sure that you fulfill your role and do what God has called you to do within the body of Christ. And so you are part of the body because of the gospel. And there's four points we'll look at as we work through verses 3 through 8 this evening. The first point is found in verse 3, and that is that you are an equal member of the body.

You need to know that you are a member of the body, but also that you are an equal member of the body. That is, you're just as important as every other member of the body of Christ. As a believer in Jesus, you have an honorable position. You are an honorable member.

Of course, sometimes we think that we are lesser members and, you know, not to be thought of very highly or not very important to the body of Christ. And then other times, of course, we think that we are the best members that God's ever seen. And, you know, he's so grateful to us that we're part of his body. But neither of those extremes are actually correct.

were equal to the other members. And that's what we need to see. So we see this here in verse 3. It says, So Paul says, here's what I want to tell you. And I'm speaking to you through grace. And I'm speaking to everyone among you.

Here's what you need to know. Don't think of yourself more highly than you ought to think. Don't esteem yourself too highly. Because of the gospel, submit yourself to God, body, mind, and will.

And then make sure that you have an accurate view of yourself, that you don't think too highly of yourself. Now, he's going to be connecting this, as I showed a few moments ago with all the connecting words. He's connecting this to the following verses about being a part of the body of Christ and having a function in the body of Christ. And so...

Here's where I make that point. You are an equal member of the body. Don't think too highly and think that you are the most valuable member of the body. And of course, don't go to the other extreme and think that you are a valueless member of the body, but you are an equal member of the body of Christ. So he says, make sure you don't think of yourself too highly. Now, what does it look like to think of yourself too highly than you ought to think?

Of course, there's a variety of things that we could think about in relation to, you know, esteeming ourselves too highly. But talking about this connection to the body of Christ, in verse 4, he's going to go on to say, "...for as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we being many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another."

So he's, again, connecting this thought. Don't think of yourself too highly because you are a member of the body of Christ. And so here's what it looks like when we think of ourselves too highly. Maybe one example is that we are disconnected from the body. When we think of ourselves too highly, we are not connected to the body of Christ in the way that God has called us to be.

Because, well, we have some variety of reasons that we might come up with, but we are busy. We have a lot of important things to do. Those people are not really worth our time. You know, we can come across in a variety of ways, but the end result is that we're disconnected from the body. So we're not engaged with the other believers that God has called us to be engaged with because we think too highly of

of ourselves. We think higher than we ought to think of ourselves. Another way that this manifests, I think, is not serving the body. So we might be connected. We might be, you know, discussing or in conversation with or knowing or in, you know, the presence of other believers, but we're not engaged in doing anything. We're not actually serving the body of Christ. We're not ministering to people or meeting their needs, but we're not actually serving the body of Christ.

Again, because we think too highly of ourselves. Now, as we talk about the body of Christ this evening...

There's two ways that you can look at and understand the body of Christ. We have the universal body of Christ. That is, every believer in Jesus Christ is a member of the body. And so as we talk about the body of Christ, we can be talking about all believers worldwide throughout all history and those that are to come, that we are collectively the body of Christ.

But then, of course, we see the scriptures use the body of Christ as a reference to local individual gatherings of believers or a local church. And so Paul writes to the Corinthians and he says, you are the body of Christ and members individually.

And so we can look at the body of Christ and understand it in both contexts. And I think it's important to point that out because as we talk about the body of Christ this evening, I want to make sure that we understand that when I'm talking about fulfilling your role and you're a member of the body of Christ, it doesn't just pertain to things that happen at this church or events that we host or things that we do, but it's your interaction with believers that

in the work of God or your place in the work of God, in the kingdom of God. And so you have a place. You're a member of the body of Christ. You have a place in the work of God and you're part of his plan for raising up and building up and encouraging and strengthening other believers. God wants more from you than for you to just manage your own spiritual walk.

So for you to take the approach of, you know, well, I'm just going to focus on me. You know, I just need to make sure I have a good prayer life and I need to make sure I read the Bible and I need to make sure I'm okay with God and I'm not rebelling against him and I'm not living in sin and I'm managing my spiritual walk. God wants more from you than just that.

He wants more from you than just ministering to your own family. Well, my focus is, you know, I just need to make sure my family's doing good, that they're provided for, that they're healthy, that they, you know, know the things of God. And that's really important. And it is important. Both of those things are essential. Managing your own spiritual walk is essential. And ministering to your family is essential. But God wants more from you than that.

God has a place for you in his work. Beyond the scope of just your own personal walk with the Lord and beyond the scope of your own family, he has a place for you in his work in what he desires to do amongst believers around you. And when I think of myself more highly than I ought, well, I find myself too busy to be part of the body.

I'm too busy because I'm so important because I've got these things going on because I have these responsibilities and my priorities are demonstrating that my heart's out of line with what God wants from me. God wants more from you than just your own personal walk and you ministering to your own family. He desires for you to fulfill your role in the body of Christ, to fulfill your place in the work of God.

If you're not interested in serving the body, serving other believers around you, there's a good possibility you think more highly of yourself than you are.

It's a good possibility that your esteem of yourself is out of whack. It's out of line. Or, you know, maybe you're not willing to serve so few, you know, like, well, I'll serve. But, you know, it needs to be something, you know, where it's not just like a couple people, you know. So, you know, can we get a bigger crowd going, you know, on a Wednesday nights? Because I've got a good message, you know, but, you know, there's only a few of you. So why don't we just pack up and go home?

you know, because I'm more important, you know. It's not worth my time to share with you guys, you know. Let's pack out the room and then it'll be important enough that I can share, right? It's evidence, right? I think more highly of myself than I ought when I have that mentality, when I'm not willing to serve even just one person that God brings to me. And so Paul says, because of the gospel,

And he's going to be connecting this to the point that we are members of the body of Christ. Because of the gospel, make sure that you don't think of yourself more highly than you ought. Now, if you go back and consider the gospel of Romans 1 through 11,

But accurately understanding the gospel really helps us not to think more highly of ourselves than we ought, right? Because it shows us we are deserving of God's wrath. We are deserving of God's judgment. Everything is about grace. It's just believing and receiving what God has done for us. It's not anything that we can earn or merit. And so it does a great job of helping us not be too proud and not to be so consumed with ourselves. And yet, as believers, we often get things distorted sometimes.

we get out of line in regards to the gospel, and we begin to esteem ourselves too highly. Paul goes on in verse 3 to say, but instead think of yourself, or to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. So don't think too highly of yourself, because it will interrupt and disrupt your engagement with the body of Christ. And so instead think soberly,

The word soberly, it means to be of a sound mind, to be in one's right mind. It means to have self-control. So catch yourself is the idea. When you get inflated in your own head, catch yourself. Have a sound mind. Recognize, you know, I'm thinking too highly of myself. And he says, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. You see, we need balance, right?

We can't go to the one extreme and say, I'm too important to spend my time or my energy serving others or that person or those people. We also can't go to the other extreme and say, I don't need other members. We can't go to another extreme and say, the body can't survive without me because I'm so important that if I wasn't around, the body just wouldn't survive. All of those are out of

of line with what God says about us. We need to be sober, to be of a sound mind, to be able to think clearly about ourselves. My favorite definition of humility is having an accurate view of yourself.

I like that definition of humility. It's not, you know, talking bad about yourself or, you know, thinking that you don't, you know, have any value at all or anything like that. It's an accurate view of yourself, viewing yourself the way that God views you. And that is what we are to have. We're to have a sober mind, an accurate view, a clear view according to God's perspective on who we are and what we are in his kingdom.

Notice he says that God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. That word dealt, it means to divide, to separate into parts, or to cut into pieces, to distribute. So if you think about a card dealer, right? So the card dealer is dealing out the cards. Now, the cards that are being dealt are part of a deck of cards. So you have a deck of cards where you're

All the cards coming together into one thing is a deck of cards. Now, if you have cards that are missing, it's an incomplete deck. But when all the cards are there, you have the deck, you have the whole. But then the cards are dealt to the players of the game, let's say, okay? So the cards are dealt. And so each person has particular parts of the whole. They have particular parts of the deck, okay?

And this is the idea that Paul is saying here. God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. Again, thinking about the example of the body of Christ, we have been given each one a particular card and we're part of the whole. And the whole can't be whole without us because we have that part that belongs to the whole. We're not independent from the rest of the deck. We're part of the deck. We have part of the deck and we belong to it and it belongs to us.

That's the picture that Paul is painting here. We're all individual pieces of a whole. Maybe a deck of cards is not the best example for you. So if we order a pizza and it's cut up into eight slices and we each get a slice. Now, that pizza is only whole when it has all those eight slices together. But in order for us to be able to partake of it,

Each of us is given a slice. And so you have your part of the whole. That's the idea. God's divided up. He's dealt to each one a measure of faith. He said, okay, here's your faith, and here's your faith, and here's your faith, and here's your faith. But you don't have faith all just by yourself and unto yourself, and it's just you and God. That's not how it works. You are part of the whole of the faith.

You're a member of the faith community. You're a member of the body of Christ. And not just a member, you are an equal member of the body of Christ because of the gospel. Now, consider this. This even applies to the Apostle Paul. You could think about members of the body of Christ and you could think, wow,

You know, the Apostle Paul, he must have been like extra important, right? Definitely more important than Rick or Harvey or Poole, right? I mean, you know, really important. He's the most important member of the body of Christ, you might think. But notice what he says in verse 3. For I say, through the grace given to me. I say, Paul says, through the grace given to me.

Now, jump down to verse 6 for a moment. He says, having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us. And there he's going to talk about the different roles within the body of Christ. And he attaches the role that you have in the body of Christ to this idea of grace being given to you.

And so here in verse 3, he says, I say through the grace given to me, he's saying, look, I have this role as an apostle to be able to say to you instruction and give you commands. I have this role through grace, that it's God's grace that is given to me, this role, this function within the body of Christ.

Now, you know what grace means. It's undeserved. It's unearned favor from God. Paul didn't deserve to have this role. He didn't deserve to write the letter of Romans. He didn't deserve any of this. But by God's grace, he had this role. Paul was an equal member of the body of Christ. It's pretty radical to consider this. He was an equal member. He wrote 13 books of the New Testament.

And he is just as much a member of the body of Christ as you are as a believer in Jesus. He was an apostle by the grace of God. He was a Christian by the grace of God. He was a Christian with a role in the body by the grace of God, the same as you and the same as me. He was not a more important member of the body than Timothy was. And he wasn't a more important member of the body than Peter was or James or John or you.

You are an equal member of the body of Christ, even equal with those like the Apostle Paul. God wants more from you than just managing your own spiritual walk. He wants more from you than just ministering to your own family. Both of those are essential, but they're not sufficient. He wants you to be engaged in his work in the lives of the believers that he's placed around you. Going on to point number two, we're now going to look at verse four.

Point number two is you have a unique role in the body. So not only are you an equal member, but you have a unique, a distinct, a particular role within the body of Christ. Verse four says, for as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function. So we are one body, but we have many members and all the members are

perform different functions. Paul loves this illustration of the body. He used this frequently in his letters to describe our part in the kingdom of God and in the work of God. It was an illustration he used repeatedly, and it's very effective at demonstrating how you and I are part of the work of the kingdom of God. And so you can look at your own body and

And the point that Paul is making here is we have many members in one body. So you look at Jerry and you see, well, Jerry's not just one big hand. He's not just, you know, an elbow. He's not just a knee or an eye or a mouth or an ear or a bald head. You know, he's more than that. He has all of those things, but he has all of those members joined together into one body, right?

There's many members in one body. And so there's this contrast that he is showing, this kind of difference that's there. There's variety, great variety, but then at the same time there is unity. And it seems to be like opposing thoughts. How do you have such variety, so many differences, and yet unity and being one unit? How can there be many and at the same time be one?

And so Paul here is making that point with our own body saying, look at yourself. You have many members. You have many different parts to your body, but they're all joined together and collectively you are one body. And in the same way, we are in Christ. We are many members, but we are collectively joined together to be the body of Christ.

Now, again, we can look at that in reference to the universal body of Christ, all believers, but we can also use that and consider that in the context of the local gathering of believers, living water. We are many members, and yet we are one body. You have an equal share in this body. You have an equal share in this work of God that God is doing. Not only do you have an equal share, but you have a unique role.

I like what Dave Guzik says about this. He says, Many members, one body. And if we go too far emphasizing one side to the neglect of the other, it's an error. It's a mistake.

We need to find the balance and recognize unity should not be promoted at the expense of individuality. That is, in order for us to be united...

You have to think the way that I do. You have to talk the way that I do. You have to dress the way that I do. You have to walk the way that I do. You know, that we just get rid of all the individuality. Get rid of all the differences and the variety. And let's all be exactly the same so that we can be united. And Dave Guzik says, that's too far. That's an error. There needs to be variety. There needs to be differences. Yes.

And Paul is expressing this here, again, by looking, having us look at the body. We have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function. So not only do I have different members of my body, but my elbow operates differently than my hand and my elbow operates differently than my knee and then my ankle and then my calf. And you get the point. Not only do we have a variety of members, but they all have different functions.

Even when they do similar things, they do those similar things differently. The word function, it describes something that needs to be done, some type of business or transaction or action that needs to take place. And so we have many members, but all of these members do distinctly different things. Different functions are performed. Now, as we consider this in the context of the body of Christ,

You can understand it's very easy for us to think that everyone should do the same things that we do, right? And some of that is appropriate because we get passionate, we get excited about certain things that we're doing, and then, you know, we want everybody else to experience those same blessings of engaging in those activities. But sometimes we get skewed in our understanding and we think everybody's supposed to pray as much as I pray, right?

Or everybody's supposed to pray the same way that I pray. You know, that they should have the same method. They should have the same formula. They should have the same amount of time. They should feel the same about it. Everybody should feel about prayer the way that I feel about prayer. But we forget the body has many different members with many different functions. It's appropriate. It's appropriate.

for prayer to be an emphasis for some members and less of an emphasis for other members. Now, again, understand I'm not saying, you know, when there's people who aren't supposed to pray, you know, we're all called to pray, but we fulfill that. We fulfill that role in different ways, and God calls us to different types of actions, right?

We can, you know, get on the idea that, well, everybody should witness as much as I do or the way that I do or the formula that I use. You know, everybody should approach it this way. You got to do the good person test first and make them understand the law. And then once they understand the law, then you can teach them grace. And then others come and say, no, you need to make sure they understand the love of God and start there. And, you know, and there can be a big push that this is the way it has to be done.

But there's great variety in the body of Christ. There's many different functions. And it's okay for one person to have this type of emphasis in evangelism and another person to have an emphasis in evangelism, but a different technique, a different method of performing that, and so on and so forth. We could talk about, you know, the way that we serve within different ministries. We could talk about all kinds of different aspects of ministry.

ministry in the kingdom of God, but hopefully you get the point. All the members do not have the same function. We're not all supposed to do all the same things exactly the same way and have the same emphasis and have the same, you know, ratio of time and preparation and performance and all of that. It's meant to be different. All believers are not supposed to be exactly like you. All living water rights are not supposed to be exactly like me. We're all supposed to be different and

And you're not supposed to be exactly like somebody else. And so if you start thinking, well, you know, I guess I'm just not that valuable and not that important because I don't have a prayer life like Harvey has, or I can't commit this kind of time to studying like Pastor Pule studies, or I don't have this type of personality, or I don't have this type of that, or this type of that. And I think, you know, I'm not like them, so I can't be a real valuable member. But

No, but God would say, you have a unique role in the body. You're not meant to be exactly like somebody else. I would ask you to consider, has God ever made one kind of anything? I can't think of anything. I've been trying to think all day. Is there any example in all of creation? Has God made only one kind of anything? So for example, you could think about dogs. There's more than one kind of dog, right? You have your classic chihuahua.

You have your Labrador, golden retriever, your pit bull. There's great variety. And then you mix them and you have even greater variety. There's all kinds of different dogs. Is there one kind of cat? No. There's a multitude of different kinds of cats. How about trees? Is there one kind of tree? No. We have palm trees. We have sycamore trees. We have oak trees. We have fruit trees. And then amongst the fruit trees, we have all kinds of different types of fruit trees.

Is there one kind of vegetable? No, you have broccoli and carrots and all kinds of different variety. Is there one kind of metal? No, you have iron, you have silver, you have gold, you have platinum, all these different types of metal. Is there one kind of rock? I mean, if you think there was one kind of something, rocks would be pretty simple, right? But no, there's all kinds of different rocks.

granite and limestone and so on and so forth. One kind of sand? No, there's all kinds of different sands. How about stars? Are they all the same? No, there's different kinds of stars. You have the dwarf stars, then the giant stars, and in the dwarf stars, you have different kinds of dwarf stars. You have the yellow dwarf stars, dwarf stars like our sun. You have the red dwarf stars. You have giant stars that are red or blue or super giant. How about our solar system? Is

All the solar systems in the universe exactly like ours? No, there's different kinds of solar systems. How about our galaxy? No, there's all kinds of different galaxies. Has God ever made only one kind of anything? Everything has variety. Everything has all kinds of different shapes and sizes and colors and performances and functions. And yet they're all interacting and contributing and working together together.

to deliver this world that we live in and walk in and breathe in. There's all kinds of variety in God's creation. And the same is true in the body of Christ. You are part of the body of Christ because of the gospel. And we have many members in this one body, but none of us have the same function. We don't look exactly the same. We have a unique role in the body of Christ. And

Because God loves to create with endless variety. And we'll look at some of those roles in verses 6 through 8 as we get to that. But here, let's just take a moment to appreciate the beauty in God's design. There's great beauty in the variety that God has established in all of creation and specifically within the body of Christ. And so you're not meant to be like everybody else. You're not meant to be exactly like the person next to you.

You're meant to be different. You're created different. You have a unique role in the body. Moving on to point number three, now we're going to look at verse five. Here we see you need the other members of the body. So not only do you have an important part of the body or an equal member of the body, not only do you have a unique role in the body, but you also have a dependence on

on the other members of the body of Christ. In verse 5, he says, so we, being many, are one body in Christ and individually members of one another. And again, Paul is using us as an example. He's saying, look at your own body and look how we have many members, but we are one body. And then so he says, so we, being many, that is, we believers are many, and yet we are one body in Christ. And

We are individuals, but we are individually members of one another. And so there is this balance between the two. Again, Dave Guzik says, we err when we neglect either aspect. Unity should never be promoted at the expense of individuality, and individuality should never diminish the church's essential unity in Christ. So we need to make sure that we don't

promote unity, that we don't lift up unity so high that we diminish individuality. We're all meant to be different. There is meant to be variety, and we do things differently. But we shouldn't go too far to that extreme to say we're all so different that we can't be united. No, that's the point. We all have these amazingly different functions, and there's this great variety between us. But yet when we bring us together, we become different.

the body of Christ in its fullness. And so there's this unity that we have together. There's this oneness that we have. And so although we have variety in what we do and exactly how we do it and the different emphasis and approaches and methods that we use, God works all that together and he connects us all together as believers so that we form one body, that we're united together in

doing the work of the kingdom of God. So we, being many, are one body in Christ. He brings all the diversity and variety into this beautiful unity. And again, your body demonstrates this. Your body demonstrates the beautiful unity, even though there's great diversity. You have your different members.

And they're different shapes and sizes, but they're united together. And your different members have different types of movements and functions, but they're united together. And you have different senses, but those senses combine together and work together to complement each other, to provide you the full experience of what it means to live.

And you have the different systems of your body, the internal organs, and they all function together. They do vastly different things, but they work together to provide you that one experience of what it means to live on this earth. Now, our physical body is united by our head.

Our brain. It's what gives the instruction to the different pieces, to the different extremities, and teaches our hands, and tells our hands where to go, and our elbows, and when to bend, and when to, you know, extend, and so on and so forth. For us as the body of Christ, we're united by Jesus. Paul tells us in Colossians chapter 1 verse 18 that Jesus is the head of the body, the church. The church is the body of Christ. Jesus is the head.

He's the one who gives to us the instructions, where to move, when to move, how to turn, how to bend. He's the one who unites us together by speaking to us, instructing us, and giving us our marching orders. Now, the body of Christ is more than just about working together, more than just about unity. Paul also goes on to make the point that we belong to one another.

There at the end of verse 5, he says, and individually members of one another. We are members of one another. Now the one another describes that relationship that we have between us. But to say that we are members of one another, we're not just members of the body of Christ. We're members of one another.

That there's this sharing that we have of our life, of our eternity. We are interdependent. No believer is dislocated from the body of Christ and no believer is dislocated from other members. We are members of one another. We have a part in each other's lives and we have a part in each other's eternity. This is pretty incredible to think about.

You have part of me for eternity. Part of my eternity is dependent upon you. Now, I'm not saying my salvation is dependent upon you, but what I experience for the rest of eternity, you have a part in that. And I have a part of what you experience for the rest of eternity.

What I experience in this life in fulfilling the role and the calling that God has given to me is partially dependent upon you and your part in the kingdom of God and the work of God. And vice versa. There's this interdependency that God has created. We are members. We are individuals, but we're also members of one another. God has linked us together permanently.

so that we cannot experience the fullness of the Christian life without each other. We can't experience the fullness of eternity that God has in store for us without each other. We need one another. We need those other members that God has connected us to. Consider this quote from Thomas Constable. He says, "...all the members belong to one another."

There is mutuality in the church. As members of one another, we cannot work independently effectively. Each member profits from the contribution of every other member too. There's this mutuality between us. My growth is dependent upon your growth, and your growth is dependent on my growth. We can't be effective all by ourselves. We can't grow all by ourselves. We can't fulfill what God has for us all by ourselves.

We need others and they need us. God has designed us to be tied permanently together. We are members of one another. You are a part of the body of Christ because of the gospel. By believing in Jesus Christ, you've been made a member of the body of Christ, which means that you have just as important a place and a position in the kingdom of God as all other believers. You are an equal member of the body.

But it also means you have a unique role in the body. You have your particular functions that God has called you to perform. And he's created you and designed you to do those things. And so who you are and your personality and your background and your history and your experiences and your passions and your excitements, all of those things tie into who God has created you to be so that you can fulfill your unique role in the body of Christ. But also don't forget, you need all the other members of the body.

Don't think of yourself higher than you ought to think you don't need other members, that you can survive, you can do well on your own, and you can grow and be all that God wants you to be on your own. None of us can afford to be disconnected from the other members. You will never experience all that God wants in your life if you're not connected to one another, to the members of the body of Christ, where he has connected you, where he has placed you.

None of us has the right to be disconnected because we belong to the other members. So not only do we need the other members, but we don't even have the right to say, you know, I'm just going to write off. I've had too many bad experiences with all those Christians. And so I'm just going to, you know, do my own thing. Just me and Jesus. That's all I need. You don't have that right. Not that God takes away your free will. You have the freedom to choose.

But you don't have that liberty. You'll be held accountable for that. We don't have the right to disconnect because we belong to the other members. We belong to one another. Other members will always be lacking as long as you are disconnected. As long as you're not fulfilling your role in the body of Christ and doing the things that God has called you to do, the members that God has designed to be around you are always going to be lacking your

place, your functions, the things that God has equipped you and called you to do. You are part of the body because of the gospel, because you've believed in Jesus. So you have equal membership. You have a unique role, and you need the other members in the same way that the other members need you. Finally, as we look at verses six through eight, here we have point number four, and that is fulfill your role in the body.

Fulfill your role. In verse 6, he says, So Paul says we have gifts. As members of the body of Christ, you have gifts. We have gifts that are different.

Again, different functions. As he's talking about gifts here in verse 6, it's the same as what he's talking about in verse 4 as functions. And I usually like to use the word roles. It's your role in the body of Christ that he's talking about. And we all have different roles in the body of Christ. And the role that we have, the role that I have, the role that you have is according to the grace that is given to you.

It's undeserved. It's unmerited. You don't deserve the place in the body of Christ that God has given to you. You don't deserve this unique role, this, you know, equal membership. You don't deserve this place in the body of Christ, but by God's grace, he's given to you this very particular role, this important function, this thing that is needed by the others around you. By God's grace, you

You have something unique, specific that God has designed you for. And the point that Paul makes here is since we have these different gifts, let us use them. By grace, you have gifts. You have a role. You have a function. So use the gift. Perform the function. Fulfill your role. That's Paul's main point here. Fulfill your role in the body.

You have a role by God's grace, so make sure that you do it. Now, he goes on to list different roles or different functions, different gifts that God gives to us as members of the body of Christ. These gifts, again, there are roles within the body of Christ. There's seven different ones that he mentions, but there's endless variety in how these roles are expressed in

And I'll try to give you a couple examples, but I can't give all the examples because, well, there's endless variety. In the same way that there's endless variety of dogs or stars or trees or vegetables, you know, there's just endless variety of how these things are expressed today.

by the different members. It's the beauty of what God's designed for us to be different, to work differently in different contexts and situations, but then to be united as the body of Christ. And so we'll touch on these briefly about what these different roles are. But again, the main point is, whatever your role is, fulfill it. Make sure you do it. In verse six, he says, if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith.

So if your role is prophecy, then make sure that you prophesy. That's Paul's exhortation. That's Paul's instruction. So what is this role of prophecy? The role of prophecy is when God gives you the role of delivering the right word at the right time to the right person. Of course, we often connect prophecy to the idea of telling the future, but that's not directly what prophecy is. Prophecy is speaking forth from God.

Now, many times the prophets of the Old Testament talked about the future because that's what God was speaking forth through them. The main reason why he was giving them prophecy was connected to his rebuke of them and calling them to repentance so that they would know when these things came to pass that God truly was God and that they should repent and that they should do the things that God had called them to do.

So prophecy does not have to be, and I would say even for us today, it's not about telling the future. It's about delivering a word from God. And it could be to an individual or it could be to a group of people. But the role of prophecy is an important role within the body of Christ. And some of you perhaps have been given this role. And so then your responsibility is to make sure that you spend time with God, that you hear from God, and then that you are faithful to

to deliver the word that God gives to you to the people that he sends you to address. If prophecy, then prophesy. Make sure you fulfill your role. Sometimes it's hard to fulfill that role because we're scared and it's, you know, difficult to talk about some things that God wants us to talk about. But listen, the body of Christ needs you. Fulfill your role in the body. And if your role is to prophesy, then prophesy. Going on into verse 7, he says, or ministry.

Let us use it in our ministering. So the role of ministry, what is that? This is when God gives you the role of serving with compassionate love to meet needs. The role of ministry can be fulfilled in a variety of ways. It's meeting needs. Sometimes needs are met by prayer. Sometimes the need that people have is they need to be prayed for. And you can minister to them by praying for them.

in person praying with them or praying for them, or worlds apart praying for them. You minister. You're expressing compassionate love to meet the need of prayer that they have. Or it could be a hamburger that they need. And so with compassionate love, you meet the need. You give them a hamburger. It could be a clean sanctuary that they need. And so with compassionate love, you clean the sanctuary. It could be a tire that needs to be changed.

And so with compassionate love, you change the tire. Or groceries that need to be carried. Or hair that needs to be combed. Or whatever the case. It's any type of ministry. Any type of need that is there. And God has those who are given that role of ministry. That they just meet needs. It might be a great variety of needs. Or it might be a specific kind of need that God calls you to meet. But if that's your role in the body, the point is, he says...

Well, do it. God's given you the gift of ministry, so use that gift and minister. Serve, meet needs, fulfill your role in the body of Christ. And you might think, well, I don't know of any needs. Well, then open your eyes, look around, and ask God to show you. He'll show you there's plenty of needs. We're not lacking needs. Even in a small congregation like ours, there is plenty of room for needs to be met. There are more needs than we can meet.

But supernaturally, God enables us to meet one another's needs. We'll also hear in verse 7, he says, he who teaches in teaching. So there's the role of teaching. Now, teaching is when God gives you the role of instructing in doctrine, in truth, and in practice. So it's a little bit different than prophecy because prophecy is speaking forth a word from God. Teaching is about, well, teaching. It's about defining. It's about instructing.

Here's what we believe. Here's why we believe. Here's why this is the truth. And here's why this is not the truth. And then here's how to practice those things. Here's what this looks like in real life. Now, again, these roles can be expressed in endless variety. That is, you can have the role of teaching and fulfill this role by spending time with someone one-on-one. And you can teach them things of God. You can teach them the word of God. You can teach them

how to be the man or woman of God that God has called them to be. You can use one curriculum or another curriculum. You can use this Bible, a book of the Bible, or that book of the Bible, and this variety. You can also fulfill this role of teaching by preparing lessons that you give to two-year-olds and three-year-olds. And if God's given you that role of teaching two and three-year-olds, you have a very different role than meeting with another adult one-on-one. It's going to look radically different.

The words you use, the illustrations you choose, the way that you describe, the way that you define, it's going to be completely different. There's going to be great variety, but it's the same type of role. It's teaching. And you can move up through the different age levels. And there's a need for teachers for all the different age levels, from two and three-year-olds all the way up to adults. The role of teaching is an important role. And if you have that role, make sure you fulfill it. Get engaged.

Teach those who need to be taught. Going on into verse 8, he says, he who exhorts in exhortation. So here we have the next one, which is exhortation. This is the role where God gives you the role of coming alongside of people to comfort and encourage them to obey and trust God. Exhortation is a cool gift, and it's one of those that I don't think that I have, but I enjoy it when other people have it. You know, when they come alongside and they're just like,

You're just suddenly refreshed. You're able then to go forward in things where you were once fearful. You have a newfound trust in God because they've been ministering to you. They've been encouraging you. And exhortation is the idea of coming alongside of someone to help them go forward, to help them take steps of faith, to help them explore all that God has for them. But it can also be a role that is used to bring comfort to those who are

falling down, discouraged for those who are hurting deeply. The exhortation comes alongside to help lift them up, to bring them back from the depths of despair, to help bring them forward in all that God has for them. And again, this role in the body can be expressed in a variety of ways. It can be expressed individually. I think Barnabas very clearly had this role, right? He was

His name actually wasn't Barnabas, but they called him Barnabas. It literally means son of encouragement because he was just an encouraging guy. He would come alongside people like he did with Saul of Tarsus. And he fulfilled his role coming alongside of Saul of Tarsus. And because of that, as Barnabas fulfilled his role, Saul of Tarsus was transformed into the Apostle Paul.

And he was used by God powerfully in Paul's life to develop him, to bring him forward to all that God had for him. Or you could think about Priscilla and Aquila. I guess they may be, I'm thinking about it in my head, off the top of my head. So they more had the role of teaching, right? They brought in Apollos and they instructed him more fully in the way of the gospel. Again, these things can be expressed individually or God may want to use you to bring exhortation to groups of people.

And it might be youth group, or it might be a senior home, or it might be a workplace, or it might be expressed through the leading of worship. Endless variety. God may give you the role of exhortation. And if that's your role, if that's your gift, then use it and exhort the body of Christ.

Well, moving on and still in verse 8, he who gives with liberality. So the role of giving. This is when God gives you the role and resources to meet physical, practical, or financial needs. This is a role that is important, that you see needs that need to be met. And maybe there's some practical things similar to ministry. But in ministry, you're giving of yourself, and it's your time, and it's your energy. Where it's giving is you're giving of resources.

where God's given you extra groceries and so you give the extra groceries, where God's given you extra money and so you give the extra money, that you meet those needs with the resources that God has given to you.

And again, this can be expressed in the children's ministry where, hey, you know, God's put on your heart. You have the role of giving, and so you provide snack. Or it's expressed individually, one-on-one, as you see needs of individuals, and you go and you help them. You meet their needs. You bless them with this gift of giving, with this role of giving. Thinking about the miracle that God did just a week or two ago with providing carpet for our sanctuary.

Although it's not installed yet, you can see the boxes back there. The Lord just brought someone. All the resources were there, given. It's a role that God gives. And if that's your role, then make sure you give. And he says with liberality. So all of these, you know, there's the struggle that we have with ourselves. So you can struggle with yourself and think, well,

I have the role of giving, but I'd really rather use this resource on myself. I mean, I could enjoy something far better for myself, or I could give it away. And so there's going to be steps of faith that are required in all of these roles. There's going to be denying of self that's required in all of these roles. And so we need this exhortation to be encouraged. No, no, if this is your role, then engage and operate in that role and do what God's called you to do, because

Well, the rest of the body of Christ is in need of your function in the body. Well, he goes on in verse 8 to say, he who leads with diligence. And so there's the role of leading, where God gives you the role of overseeing, organizing, or leading, whether it be ministries, events, or activities.

The idea of leading sometimes is maybe better put administration. It's the idea of organizing. You're able to put things together and line people up the way they need to be lined up and, you know, schedule the things appropriately and work all these details together so that, you know, things happen smoothly, that events function the way that they're supposed to, the way that God's called us to and so on and so forth. And there's a need for this type of leadership in all aspects of the body of Christ.

You know, there's a need for leadership, administration in working out the details of what happens when and where for the construction and the remodeling of the church. There's a need for leadership within the children's ministry and within the youth ministry and within the ministry as a whole. There's a need for leadership, you know, in the workplace and all over the place. And so this is a role that God can give to you. Now he says, if God's given you this role, then do it, lead, administrate with diligence, right?

Don't be lazy and let the details fall through the cracks, but give of yourself and lead the way that God's called you to lead. Well, finally, he says, he who shows mercy with cheerfulness. So there's the role of mercy. This is when God gives you the role of showing compassion to the broken, weary, discouraged, or those experiencing the consequences of sin. The role of mercy is much needed because there's a lot of people who are hurting and

There's a lot of people who are broken and weary and discouraged. There's a lot of people experiencing the consequences of sin. And they don't need a judge to tell them that they're wrong. They need a merciful person to express to them the love of God. And this need is in the children's ministry. You know, two and three-year-olds need the role of mercy. They need someone to express to them God's love, God's compassion. Junior high and high schoolers, they need mercy.

Listen, if we're just relying upon Jonathan and Lena to fulfill all these roles in the youth, we're giving them a huge responsibility, a huge burden. How can they fulfill all these different roles? But all these different roles are needed in the youth ministry. These different roles are needed in the children's ministry. These different roles are needed in home Bible studies. There is a great need for us to fulfill our role in the body of Christ. Don't think more highly of yourself than you ought to.

and be disconnected from the body. Don't, you know, think more highly of yourself than you want and try to do more than what God's called you to do. But instead, look at the role that God's given to you, the grace that's been given to you in this role that he's called you to. And whatever role that is, fulfill it, do it. Warren Wiersbe says, you are part of the body of Christ with a ministry to fulfill. So do your part lovingly and joyfully. That's the point.

Because of the gospel, you are part of the body of Christ. You are an equal member. You're just as important as all the other members of the body of Christ, whether you feel that way or not, whether other members of the body tell you the same thing or not. They may say, yeah, we don't need you. But that doesn't mean that you're not an equal member. God has created you to be an equal member of the body of Christ. And because you're an equal member, you have a unique role, a specific function that he wants you to fulfill.

But it's not just all about you. And it's you and your function. And you're the most important member of the body. No, you need all the other members of the body as well. You're reliant upon them. Your eternity is dependent on them. Not for salvation, but what you experience for eternity is going to be impacted by the others that God has connected you to. And so we're bound to one another. God's designed us this way. And so Paul says, fulfill your role. Whatever it is that God's called you to do.

Make sure that you do that. By God's grace, with the measure of faith that he's given to you, you trust God and do the things that he's called you to do. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for your incredible grace and mercy towards us. Lord, we're undeserving and unworthy, and yet you give us this awesome place in your work of the kingdom of God. And I pray, Lord, that you would help us to not be negligent

in the role that you've given to us. Help us not to be negligent in our relationships with the members around us that you've called us to be part of one another. You've placed us in each other's lives. Lord, help us to develop those relationships, to have those connections, not to separate ourselves, Lord, but to engage in the way that you've called us to. And Lord, that may express itself in

strong relationships here within the church at Living Water. It may express itself in strong relationships with other believers outside of Living Water in different contexts. And Lord, that's appropriate too. And so Lord, I pray that you would help us to recognize your calling and your placement in our lives, that we would be able to fulfill our role within the body, that we'd be able to function in the place where you've called us. Lord, recognizing it's not just about me and you,

and maintaining my own personal walk. It's not just about me and my family. Lord, it's about those other members that you've placed in our lives and the way that you've called us to minister to one another. Teach us, Lord, to be faithful in that. Show us, Lord, what it looks like. There's so much variety in your creation, in your kingdom. Instruct us personally, Lord, what that looks like for us. The role that you've given to us, how you want that to be expressed by us in the specific place that you've put us.

Lord, because of your gospel, your grace and your goodness to us, help us to be the members of your body that you've called us to be. In Jesus' name I pray, amen. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of his word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.