God designed and intended His kingdom to exist and function as a community. The first century church as a community utilized its human resources. It did not "manufacture spiritual clones." Peter, Paul, Barnabas, John Mark, Dorcas, Lydia, Philip's daughters, and Eudoia were distinctly different persons with different backgrounds and different abilities and gifts. Faith in the Christ did not homogenize them. Entering God's kingdom did not make them identical. Baptism into Christ did not create "new creatures" who performed identical functions.

God's purposes for His spiritual community were accomplished when individuals used their uniqueness to benefit the entire Christian community. This is clearly obvious in the epistles. Remember that the epistles were written to Christian communities (congregations) in different places. Consider these scriptures and note the obvious.

Consider again Paul's use of the body illustration in Romans 12:3-8 to emphasize the reality of community among Christians.

1. Verse 4: a body can perform different acts and functions because it is composed of distinctly different parts that have diverse functions.

1. A body exists as a body because the different parts with diverse functions cooperate harmoniously to meet the needs of the whole.
2. If the diversity of the parts and their functions is destroyed, the body ceases to be a body.
3. The same reality is true in a community (the point of Paul's illustration).
4. People exist as community when the community is composed of diverse individuals with different abilities who harmoniously cooperate to meet the needs of the whole.
5. If this diversity of individuals and function is destroyed , the community ceases to exist.

2. Verse 5: if the parts of the body do not belong to each other, the body is doomed. If those within the Christian community (congregation) do not belong to each other, the community is doomed.

3. Verse 6: Does the individual within the Christian community decide for himself or herself the gift he or she possesses? Explain your answer.

1. What individual responsibility does each person in the community have regarding his or her gifts and abilities?
2. Stated as a practical understanding, what does that mean?

4. Note the diversity of gifts and the admonition regarding the use of each gift.

1. What should the person whose gift was prophecy do?
2. What should the person whose gift was serving do?
3. What should the person whose gift was teaching do?
4. What should the person whose gift was exhortation (encouragement) do?
5. What should the person whose gift was giving do?
6. What should the person whose gift was leading (giving aid) do?
7. What should the person whose gift was showing mercy do?

5. Today's congregation urgently needs to be a community that creates opportunities for and gives encouragement to each member to use his or her gift effectively. We desperately need to learn to utilize our human resources. Failure to do so creates enormous burdens on a few, enormous frustrations for those who want to function, and enormous neglect of those who are never utilized.

Consider again Paul's use of the body illustration in 1 Corinthians 12 to emphasize the reality of community among Christians.

1. Verses 4-6: The same Spirit, the same Lord, and the same God, produce what?

2. Who works all things in all persons?

3. Verse 7: Why does each Christian receive from the Spirit, the Lord, or God a different expression of the Spirit?

4. Verses 8-11: List the different ministries that the same Spirit gave to different persons for the common good of all.

5. Who determined what ability was provided to what person?

6. Verse 13: What natural, unavoidable diversity among Christians is noted?

7. Verse 18: Who positioned members in the body as He desired?

Consider Paul's point about diversity in the body to Christians in Ephesians 4:11-16.

1. Note in verse 7: as a matter of grace each person received his ability according to the measure of Christ's gift.

2. Verse 11: What did "He give" different persons to function as?

3. Verse 12: Give two reasons for the existence of these functions.

4. Verse 13: These diverse functions had what four objectives in the Christian community?

5. Verse 14: If these functions served God's intended purpose, what would not be true of those Christians who existed as community?

6. Verse 15: If these functions served God's intended purpose, what would be true of those Christians who existed as community?

7. Verse 16: When this diversity functions as God designed and intended, how will the body be effected?

If our dedication to being God's church as He designed it is sincere, seeking to restore the simplicity of worship is inadequate and insufficient. Worshipping God as He wishes to be worshipped is only one function of the Christian community. To assume that appropriate worship makes us God's community is a false assumption.

David Chadwell

Christians Nurturing Christians Study Guide (lesson 10)
Wednesday evening Bible class, Summer Quarter 1999
West-Ark Church of Christ, Fort Smith, AR

Copyright © 1999
Permission is granted to freely copy and distribute with text unchanged, including author's name.

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