The Body of Christ

What it means

As the body is one and has many members, so also is Christ, for in one Spirit we were all baptised into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, bound or free. Paul is answering a church that ranked its members.

Why every Christian should know it

It makes unity a fact to live up to rather than a goal to achieve. You did not join the body by choosing it; the Spirit placed you in it.

Cross references

• 1 Corinthians 12:14-27
• Romans 12:4-5
• Ephesians 4:4-6

Pray it back

Lord, you placed me in one body. Cure me of comparing and of standing apart.

What it means

Consider how to provoke one another to love and good works, not neglecting to assemble together, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. The word behind provoke is strong; it means to stir someone up.

Why every Christian should know it

It gives gathering a purpose beyond attendance. You come to stir others toward love, which is a reason to be there even on a week when you feel nothing.

Cross references

• Hebrews 10:23
• Acts 2:42
• 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Pray it back

Father, when I gather with your people, make me useful to them and not only fed.

What it means

Speaking truth in love, we grow up in all things into Christ the head, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together, grows as each part does its work. Growth is described as something the whole body does together.

Why every Christian should know it

It answers how a church matures: truth spoken in love, by ordinary members, over time.

Cross references

• Ephesians 4:11-14
• Colossians 2:19
• 1 Peter 4:10

Pray it back

Lord, let me speak truth in love and do the part you gave me.