Diversity, Unity, Interdependence-1 Cor 12:12-31

• bDo you expect others to conform to your expectation?
• Or do you become upset when they don’t?
• Do you embrace others who are unlike you and will never be like you?
• Or are you critical of them because they are different from you?
• Is the church today any different from the church in Paul’s time?

We prefer uniformity, unanimity, conformity, sameness, homogeneity, sameness. We don’t like diversity, differences, differing opinions, different preferences and perspectives, challenges, or any disruption to the status quo, especially if you want control and have “your way” over others. If that doesn’t happen, you’re upset. That’s how the “strong” in Corinth maintained “their way” over others in terms of their superior wisdom/wise [sophia/sophos 28x (1 Cor 1:19)], knowledge [gnosis 10x (1 Cor 8:1)], rights [exousia 10x (1 Cor 8:9)] and spirituality [pneumatikoi 14x (1 Cor 3:1)]. After reading 1 Corinthians dozens of times over 4 decades, I never realized that Paul is in attack and diatribe mode. He is aggressive, forceful, combative, polemic, sarcastic, provocative, rebuking and ironic. Why and to whom? To the “strong” to win them for the gospel. For, they impose and enforce their way on others, and not embody and live out the gospel, which is Christ crucified (1 Cor 1:23; 2:2).

Diversity and interdependence: the body analogy/metaphor (12:12–26). Making an analogy between an organization [the church] and the human body was common in the ancient world and was ordinarily used to urge members of the subordinate classes to stay in their places in the social order and not to upset the natural equilibrium of the body by rebelling against their superiors. But Paul develops it in an unexpected direction by using the body image to argue for

• the need of diversity in the body (12:14–20) and,
• interdependence among the members (12:21–26).

The analogy is NOT to surpress subordinates but to urge more privileged “strong” members of the church to respect and value the contributions of those members who appear to be their inferiors, both in social status and in spiritual potency.

The church as one body (1 Cor 12:12-13) introduces the body analogy with a twist: “For just as the body is one and has many members, … so it is with Christ” (1 Cor 12:12b). We expect “so it is with the church.” But by identifying the many members of the church with Christ, Paul goes beyond mere analogy to make an ontological equation of the church with Christ (1 Cor 12:27). Whether the church as “the body of Christ” is a mere metaphor or a mystical reality is a false dichotomy. Certainly “body of Christ” is a metaphor. But this metaphor illumines the truth about the church’s union with and participation with Christ. The church is not merely a human organization, but is brought into being by the Holy Spirit, which binds believers into a living union with the crucified and risen Lord. We should boldly speak of such truths in metaphorical language, for there’s no other way to speak of them adequately.The basis of their unity in the one body. At the time of their conversion and initiation into the church as Christ’s people, they were all “in the Spirit … baptized into one body” and “made to drink of one Spirit” (1 Cor 12:13). The new converts were all immersed by one Spirit, and plunged into a new world of Spirit-experience. The 2 metaphors (1 Cor 12:13) refer to this same experience. “Drinking the Spirit” [contrary to Luther and Calvin] has nothing to do with the Eucharist: it’s simply that the 1 Spirit is given in overflowing abundance to everyone in the church (Jn 7:37–39). Similarly, the metaphor of being “baptized in the Holy Spirit” (Mt 3:11; Mk 1:8; Lk 3:16; Jn 1:33; Ac 1:5) contrasts water baptism. Immersion in water is Paul’s metaphorical description; his point is that the community as a whole has been immersed in the Spirit’s power.The result of immersion in the Spirit is that all have been made one. They come from different ethnic social backgrounds—Jews and Greeks, slaves and free—but are bonded together by the Spirit into one body. The old markers of identity should no longer divide the community–a fundamental aspect of Paul’s teaching about the church (Gal 3:27–28; Col 3:9–11). The closely parallel formula (Gal 3:28), also associated with baptism, includes a 3rd polarity: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female.” This may have been a traditional baptismal formula in the Pauline churches. If so, Paul alludes to it here (1 Cor 12:13) but omits “male and female,” probably intentional, for their attempts to transcend sex and gender distinctions were causing significant problems in the church (ch. 7; 11:2–16). But Paul’s major point here is that all in the church have been joined together in one body.Different gifts of different church members shouldn’t lead to distinctions (1 Cor 12:25). Paul develops the body analogy, imagining various body parts ridiculously seeking to secede from the body (12:14–26). The basic lesson is self evident with 2 related but different themes emphasized. The major theme is the necessity of diversity (12:14-20) in accordance with God’s design (1 Cor 12:18), without which the body would be grotesque and helpless, all eye or all ear (1 Cor 12:17). Thus, no member of the body (church) should ever think that he or she is worthless or unimportant (1 Cor 12:15–16) or too important (1 Cor 12:21). Each has its own distinctive purpose in the functioning of the whole. Paul doesn’t develop this but members should neither envy nor mimic one another, “desiring this man’s gift and that man’s scope” (T. S. Eliot). Each person should accept gracefully and gratefully whatever gifts God has given and use them for the benefit of the community.

The interdependence of the members of the body (12:21-26). The apparently “higher” members (eyes and head) cannot scorn the hands and feet, without whom they’d have no power to act (1 Cor 12:21–22). Different church members need one another. Paul draws a subtle conclusion: “the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable” (1 Cor 12:22). The hands and feet are hardly “weaker” than the eyes and head. So Paul’s word choice is pastoral for those who think they’re strong and knowledgeable and who exalt themselves above those whom they regard as “weak” (8:7–13). Paul uses ironic inversions of this theme (1 Cor 1:27; 4:10; 9:22), associating weakness with the cross and his own apostleship. Here he asserts that the (apparently) weak have an “indispensable” role in the life of the church and that the strong ignore them at their own peril.More kudos to the less honorable. The social class tension between strong and weak is further elaborated (1 Cor 12:23-25): members considered “dishonorable” or “shameful” (metaphor–sexual organs) must be treated with greater respect is a joke and an effective point. The high-status look down at their lower-class members in the faith, like an embarrassment, but they must be “clothed” with dignity and honor, just as the strong must accommodate their behavior for the weak (8:7–13; 10:28–29a), as Paul himself did (9:19–23; 10:31–11:1). In the body metaphor, Paul goes even farther to validate the legitimacy and importance of these weaker and less honorable members: not only are they indispensable to the healthy functioning of the whole body, but God arranges the body in a way that gives greater honor to those who might be despised (1 Cor 12:24).Differences shouldn‘t lead to division (schismata-1 Cor 1:10; 11:18; 12:25). God arranges the body/church as an organism where diversity is essential. Differences should lead to the members’ caring for one another (1 Cor 12:25). Paul relates this back to his appeal for unity–his dominant theme. “Dissension” (1 Cor 12:25) exposes their conflict over the manifestation of spiritual gifts (ch. 12-14). Paul’s vision is for a unified church, where all the members graciously share one another’s sorrows and joys (1 Cor 12:26). With the body metaphor, everyone knows how a pain in the ankle or finger can absorb the entire body’s energy and attention. That’s how the church should be, for that’s what it is: the body is diminished and pained by the suffering of any of its members. The same principle applies when honor is shown to any one member: the body celebrates it together. Giving honor to “the inferior member” (1 Cor 12:23) is an implicit exhortation. The more honorable church members should rejoice in showing honor to the less honorable (1 Cor 12:26), rather than expect to be honored or to demand being honored.Application: Gifts and offices in the church (12:27–31a). “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it” (1 Cor 12:27). This makes explicit the figurative meaning thinly veiled in 12:14–26. The spiritual gifts and offices “in the church”  (1 Cor 12:28) are representative, not comprehensive. The 1st 3 (apostles, prophets, teachers) is a hierarchy of authority (Eph 4:11). The order of these gifts plays in the construction of the church: the apostle 1st founds the church, prophets and teachers follow to continue instructing the community (3:5–14). [More on prophets and prophecy in ch. 14.] The rest of the list (miracles, gifts of healing, assistance, direction, tongues) are not in any hierarchical order. The inclusion of “ability to help others or power to guide them” (1 Cor 12:28, NEB) shows Paul broadening the range of the Spirit’s activity beyond the showy supernatural manifestations that they prize. Tongues is last in the list—to show that it’s only one among many gifts appointed by God in the church. The rhetorical questions (1 Cor 12:29–30) in Gk are such that each expects a self-evidently negative answer: “Not all are apostles, are they?” etc. No 1 person has all these different gifts, and no 1 of these gifts is exercised by everyone in the church. Diversity in the church is both healthy and necessary.

“But eagerly desire the greater gifts” (1 Cor 12:31a) is a surprise. Throughout ch. 12 all members should prize a diversity of complementary gifts and be content with the particular gifts allotted them by the Spirit. Why does Paul suddenly rank some gifts above others and tell them to strive for them? This unexpected advice is similar to the clear directive of 1 Cor 14:1–a continuation of the same theme: “Eagerly desire [zloute, same verb (1 Cor 12:31a)] spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy” (1 Cor 14:39a). One who prophesies is “greater” than the one who speaks in tongues (1 Cor 14:5). This explicitly elaborate the meaning of 1 Cor 12:31a. Paul regards prophecy as better than tongues, and that all church members may rightly desire to exercise this gift (1 Cor 14:31)–explained in ch. 14, after an excursus characterizing the spirit in which all the gifts are to be exercised.REFLECTIONS. How can the challenge of 1 Cor 12, with its familiar and obvious message speak to us?

1. The church is a charismatic community. The gifts of the Spirit must be used for the benefit of the community. With the twin themes of diversity and interdependence, different individuals with different gifts must be balanced to address the needs of the particular local congregation for the common good (1 Cor 12:7, 25, 27). Churches more susceptible to the “Lone Ranger” Christianity need to hear the appeal for interdependence emphasized, while others, more inclined to press for conformity, may need to hear of diverse gifts within the body of Christ. The image of the body of Christ provides a goal and vision for authentic community with both great individual freedom (12:14–20) and powerful interpersonal sharing and support (12:21–26).
2. The privileged are bound in one body with the weak is the underlying concern of the whole ch. Reading between the lines, Paul writes to correct the behavior of the haughty whose undisciplined flaunting of spiritual gifts causes the weaker less honorable members (1 Cor 12:22–23) to feel despised / ostracized from the body for not having the same exalted spiritual experiences (1 Cor 12:15–16). Likely this reflects the same social and economic differences with the lawsuits (6:1–8) and abuse of the Lord’s Supper (11:17–34). To overcome this sad division (schisma, 1 Cor 12:25) in the church, they must see themselves joined together as one body with concern for each other’s peace and wellbeing, especially from those in the upper social structure and with the most impressive spiritual gifts. “From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required” (Lk 11:48). The holders of power are enjoined to receive and honor the weaker members as their peers in the body of Christ, to “have the same care” for them that they have for themselves, and to share in their joys and sufferings (1 Cor 12:25–26). A conversion of the imagination will be necessary for those in a position of power and privilege to truly see themselves as bound together with the weaker members of the body. Such a conversion for the church is the aim of 1 Cor.

In the lectionary, on the Third Sunday after the Epiphany in Year C, 1 Cor 12:12–3la is linked with Lk 4:12–21. This connects the workings of the Spirit in both texts: the Spirit not only empowers Jesus’ ministry of good news to the poor but also shapes the body of Christ in which the distinction between slave and free, the barrier between privileged and poor, is broken down.