GIVE

Sermon Guide

Making Sense of Church
Week 11 | The Body

Teaching Text

1 Corinthians 12:12-27

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

Sermon Recap

This Sunday, Pastor Sam Gibson concluded our series on Making Sense of Church with a teaching on the Body of Christ, from 1 Corinthians 12. The Body is filled with people who are baptized by the same Holy Spirit, no matter our gender, culture, race, or any other identifiers. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer says, "Christian community is not an ideal we have to realize, but rather a reality created by God in Christ in which we may participate." We are called to love, serve, and participate in the Church, where Jesus gets all the glory.

There are some practices that defile the whole Body that we must be aware of. These include: sexual immorality; division and disunity; false teaching; unforgiveness and bitterness; neglecting one another; and worldliness and idolatry. Our personal walk with God and our secret lives affect the corporate Body in ways we may not even consider. Instead of allowing our private lives to defile the Church, we must seek to restore it. The Body can be restored in many ways, the main one being beholding Jesus, who should always be at the center, individually and corporately. We can also step into love and humility, follow sound teaching, pursue forgiveness and reconciliation, show honor to each other, and live with wholehearted devotion, by offering all of ourselves to Jesus.

What we do will either defile or restore the Body, particularly in the spiritual realm. Fortunately, we all have access to the same source—the one Spirit in whom we were all baptized and given to drink from. The Spirit's primary role is to reveal Jesus and align us under His headship. By this same Spirit, we are also refreshed and renewed, freed and transformed, and made each day to look even more like Christ.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  • What is your favorite Thanksgiving dish?

  • Ask someone to read 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 out loud. Then, ask the following questions:

    1. What words, images, or phrases stood out to you in this passage?

    2. What do these verses tell us about God's intention for the Church?

LEAN IN | THE NINE DISTINCTIVES

Disciple the Deficits

    • Why do you think confession (to God and others) is so difficult for many of us? What lies or fears keep people hiding their sins? Conversely, what have you experienced when you brought a sin into the light – how did it feel afterward?

    • Mulholland’s quote talks about confrontation at our points of unlikeness to Christ. Take a quiet moment and ask the Holy Spirit: “Lord, what is one area of my life that is least Christ-like right now?” (It could be an attitude, a habit, a relationship, etc.) If you’re comfortable, share that with the group. What might “confrontation” by the Spirit look like for that area (e.g., conviction through Scripture, a believer challenging you)?

    • How can we cultivate a culture of grace in our group so that confession is seen as normal and met with loving support rather than judgment or gossip? What ground rules do we need (e.g., absolute confidentiality)?

    • James 5:16 associates confession with healing. In what ways can unconfessed sin make us “sick” (spiritually, emotionally, even physically), and how does confession bring healing? Have you ever experienced healing or freedom through confessing to a fellow believer and praying together?

  • 1. How does your experience of real Christian community differ from the idealized version of it?

    2. What is a specific strength or gifting you have that you know is meant to build up the Body?

    3. Pastor Sam said our secret life affects the Body more than we think. What does this mean?

    4. Pastor Sam listed a few ways the Body is restored. Do you have any specific examples of seeing restoration in action?

    5. How can we give Jesus full headship in our CG, in our church, and in our lives?

  • Allow space for people to publicly confess sins that may be defiling the Body. After each person shares, corporately say "The blood of Jesus cleanses you." Encourage and love one another, as this may be a challenging exercise for some. End by praising God, worshipping His name, and thanking Him for the gift of His Body.

  • As a group, review a set of accountability questions (like the ones provided at the end of this booklet). Which questions do you find most challenging or relevant personally? How can we incorporate these questions into our times together in a way that doesn’t feel like a legalistic drill, but rather a genuine tool for growth and honesty?