One, But Many

“For the body is not one member, but many.” I Cor 12:14

"On a hunting trip, I stepped off a cliff and hurt my foot. When I went to the doctor, I asked him how many bones were in the foot. He told me that there were 27. I said, "I think I hurt all 27 of them!" “No” he said, “You hurt only one.” Now I tell you, I may have hurt only one of them, but my whole foot was painful. When one member suffers, they all suffer." – Dr. J. Vernon Megree

We are different, we are one. There is diversity, but there must be unity!

So with that backdrop, Paul gives us four principles concerning diversity...
The body performs many functions
One member does not constitute a body. An arm, by itself, is not a body. Neither are members, dissected from each other, a body. To be a body, all the members must function and be organically related to each other. Thus, all Christians should not expect to have the same gift.

Each function is important
No member should belittle his importance just because he cannot do the functions of other members. Neither can a foot be a hand nor an ear an eye. This inability does not remove its membership or functional necessity within the body. Thus, a member should not covet the function of another.

Each function must be performed
If all members performed only one function, then other necessary functions would go undone. A body consisting of only an eye or an ear would be a monstrosity.

God assigns each function
God decides what each member will be, when he will function, and where. God framed the human body by giving it two eyes in the front of the head and two ears on each respective side. So it is with the true church. God sovereignly gifts believers and assigns them special functions.