When a colleague called in sick due to extreme pain, everyone at the office was concerned. After a trip to the hospital and a day of bed rest, he returned to work and showed us the source of that pain—a kidney stone. He’d asked his doctor to give him the stone as a souvenir. Looking at that stone, I winced in sympathy, remembering the gallstone I had passed years ago. The pain had been excruciating.
Isn’t it interesting that something so small can cause a whole body so much agony? But in a way, that’s what the apostle Paul alludes to in 1 Corinthians 12:26: “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it.” Throughout chapter 12, Paul used the metaphor of a body to describe Christians around the world. When Paul said, “God has put the body together” (v. 24), he was referring to the entire body of Christ—all Christians. We all have different gifts and roles. But since we’re all part of the same body, if one person hurts, we all hurt. When a fellow Christian faces persecution, grief or trials, we hurt as if we’re experiencing that pain.
My colleague’s pain drove him to get the help his body needed. In the body of Christ, another person’s pain ignites our compassion and moves us towards action. We might pray, offer a word of encouragement or do whatever it takes to aid the healing process. That’s how the body works together.
By Linda Washington
REFLECT & PRAY
How might God use you to bring peace and hope to those who are struggling or suffering in your local church family?
Heavenly Father, please give peace to those who are persecuted or in pain. Your family is my family too.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
In 1 Corinthians 12:14–26, Paul uses the imagery of the human body as a picture of the family of believers, the church. In Ephesians 1:22–23, the apostle again uses the body to portray the church, but this time with an important addition. Jesus Himself is the Head of that body. The illustration that works so beautifully in 1 Corinthians 12 takes on added clarity with the reminder that the body works, moves, and functions under the leadership and guidance of the Head.
Bill Crowder
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