you belong and are needed
Immediately following Paul’s heartfelt appeal for those who belong to Christ to worship through chasing after holiness, to be distinguishable from secular pursuits, to live a life sacrificed for the redemption of others, his audience was ushered into a call for sincere multifaceted unity within the body of Christ. He not only instructed the Church to accept other believers as equals, but he also called for each to actively engage with other believers. It was previously claimed that the instructions from the appeal at the beginning of the twelfth chapter to “not be conformed to this world” were not rooted in the pursuit of self-oriented piety but rather in an effort to present evangelistic holiness; and, this is true. We, the children of God, can never obtain for ourselves a righteousness greater than the gift of which Christ has clothed us—His renewal of us is sufficient. Again, the appeal of the twelfth chapter is directly linked to the evangelical heart of the eleventh chapter; we, as a community devoted to Christ, must race after a displayed transformation of heart and character in order to make a lost and legalistic world jealous of the gifts of the Gospel. Likewise, as seen in the next passage (the topic of this conversation), this transformation and renewal also incorporates our understanding of community.
“For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.” (Romans 12:3)
The secular ambitions of mankind have proven throughout history that there is an innate desire to create hierarchical states of utilitarian significance within which we clawingly contend to achieve lordly rank. Said in another way, the worldly perspective is that “all animals are equal. But some animals are more equal than others” (George Orwell, Animal Farm). Without a heart surrendered to God and a will postured to the Kingdom of Heaven, we make distinctions of perceived usefulness and worth: some are to be respected and heard while others are to be merely tolerated, some are to be entrusted and empowered while others are to be encouraged to remain silent, some are to be uplifted while others are to be overlooked. This was the way of Rome. This is the way of the world. And, to assume that such a worldview has not remained within the ranks of the Church would be an error.
Paul’s ecclesiastical instructions to the saints in Rome demanded the destruction of hierarchical distinctions. The call of “do not think of yourself more highly than you ought” (Romans 12:3b, NIV) is a remarkable dismantling of arrogant pride that is spoken nearly within the same breath of worship as the sacrifice of self; the church in Rome was led to not conform to the worldly patterns of self-oriented piety and ambitious self-promotion. And, this is the ministry that Paul stated at the beginning of the letter that he longed to bring: “I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine” (Romans 1:11-12). Through all of his letters, Paul was entirely oriented toward the power of the Gospel to reconcile mankind to the Father and unite the people of God as beloved family; his letter to the Romans is no exception. To further this point within this correspondence, he moved from a call to unity encompassed by humility to a metaphor of the physical body; this was, in fact, almost the exact same conversation Paul provided to the Corinthians. To the highly influential church in Corinth, Paul argued that we, the Church, are reliant upon unity just as the physical human body is dependent on each of its members; moreover, this necessity for the corporal valuing of individual members, as argued in both letters, includes the incorporation of spiritual gifts.
“For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them.” (Romans 12:4-6b)
“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” (1 Corinthians 12:4-7)
“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many.” (1 Corinthians 12:12-14)
While there is variance between the letters in regard to the length of the arguments, the consistency of the messaging is obvious. His letter to the Corinthians went on to include the ridiculousness of even considering amputation based on notions of assumed hierarchical status. We are, instead, to value each brother and sister in Christ as being essential to our wellbeing both personally and communally.
No one in Christ should experience being ignored, stepped on, betrayed, disregarded, undermined, undervalued, humiliated, belittled, pushed aside, or unappreciated within the Church. Such experiences are the consequences of a world still steeped in sin, of a Church still not perfectly transformed out of a secular worldview. If your story includes any of these experiences, or the like thereof, within the Church (assuming you’ve sought an honest and gracious perspective of your experiences), please, forgive; then, reengage. The teaching is clear: you belong and are needed. Christ died that you may belong, and, without you, a vital seat at the table is empty. While the Church may be capable and laboriously limping along with the exclusion of some members, without genuine appreciation and inclusion of all men and women of faith, the Church will never run and thrive.
It should also be understood that this belonging is not meager sentimentality. Our membership into the body of Christ is empowered by the giftings of the Holy Spirit. In this, the imagery of the physical body is perfectly fitting. Each component is crucial for the provision of balance, strength, function, capability, coordination, etc. Each provides. In the same way, our inclusion in the family of God brought with it bestowed giftings uniquely distributed to the saints that we might be individualistic vessels of the power of the Spirit abiding within us.
“If prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.” (Romans 12:6c-8)
Again, this is a message that Paul had already provided to the church in Corinth.
“For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.” (1 Corinthians 12:8-11)
The difference between the passages, aside from the variations of the identified gifts, is simply in the focus. For the Corinthians, Paul emphasized the beauty of their diversity, the diversity of their spiritual giftings and the roles in which each member plays within the Church, and the need to maintain unity in the Holy Spirit—it is important to note that Paul did not call for unity for unity’s sake; rather, the call is for unity by the same Spirit (we are to live together in agreement with Christ and His Gospel by the working of the Holy Spirit—the teaching is not permission to create superficial cohesion and particularly not a false understanding of unity by a different spirit contrary to God). In Romans, the emphasis of the teaching was on the use of the gifts in our engagement with the other members of the body; we must be active participants in the Church, not bystanders: “let us use them” (Romans 12:6b).
The spiritual gifts specifically identified in Paul’s letter to the church in Rome included prophecy, service, teaching, exhortation, generosity, zeal, and mercy. And, in this passage, there was no priority listed for the gifts in the text; again, the emphasis centered on, first, not considering oneself haughtily and, second, to engage in the actions of the Church. There was some repetition from Corinthians, but the list was not exactly the same; the gifts listed in Corinthians included wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, tongues, and the interpretation of tongues. Paul did indicate to the Corinthians that there were higher gifts (1 Corinthians 12:31a) specifically prioritizing teaching over tongues (1 Corinthians 14:19). However, despite small variances, the emphasis from both letters, Romans and Corinthians, was not deluded; we are to embrace the diversity of giftings and roles, not forbidding the movement of the Spirit, with no believer considering himself better than another but rather clinging to the necessity for the union of faith through the Holy Spirit. Paul instructed the church to desire gifts that uplift other believers while also teaching that the lesser gifts, such as speaking in tongues, should not be restricted (1 Corinthians 14:39).
Through Paul, the message is clear. All believers are in this together; we need each other; we need everyone to get involved and act as vessels for the power of the Spirit. You belong; and, you are not only welcomed but needed. More than that, you are not only needed but specifically and uniquely empowered. And, again, all of this must be understood as being directly connected to Paul’s evangelistic heart.
What is the Spirit leading you to do? If you’re waiting for permission, consider it granted! The Church should not contain gatekeepers restricting the anointing of the Spirit but should rather be saturated with fellow brothers and sisters of faith encouraging and supporting the movement of God. To where and what is He leading you? Go, and do!