August 19
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ONE BODY WITH MANY PARTS
A poem by ILMA
The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body
So it is with the body of Christ; some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles
Some are slaves, and some are free; but we’ve all been baptized into one body
by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit though it has different parts.
If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,”
That does not make it any less a part of the body but contributes to the whole
And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,”
Would it diminish its role make it any less a part of the body?
If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear?
But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants
How strange a body would be if it had only one part!
The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.
Some parts of the body that seem weakest are actually the most necessary
The parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care
God placed the body so we care more for those parts that have less dignity
All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it.
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MEMORY VERSE
All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. – 1 Corinthians 12:27
Read: Corinthians 12:12-27
This illustration of the body of Christ in this message of Paul to the Corinthians is a good reminder how all those who committed to Christ is part of one big church, which is the body of Christ. Some Christians isolate themselves from the other parts of the body when in fact, we are all members of this one body and we all need to live in harmony and not comparing each one of us from the rest. We all have a role to play.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it important to know role and purpose you are made to function in his body?
• Why should we not isolate ourselves from the other parts of the body?