Theme: 2011 - A Year of Maximum Impact
Weekend Music links on iTunes: Time Has Come - Hillsong, Happy Day - Jesus Culture, 'Til I See You - Hillsong, How He Loves - David Crowder
Read: I Corinthians 12:14-27
Think: Have you ever had a broken bone? I remember having my arm in a cast after a bike accident when I was 12 years old. It slowed me down most of that summer, I must admit. But I still took my arm with me everywhere I went. I never really considered trying to survive without it. My arm is part of me, and I valued it even when it was broken.
Part of the goal Pastor Ben laid out for us last weekend is to have a heart of compassion for others. We’ve looked at a couple of ways that we can think of our relationship to each other as Christians. We can see ‘Christ in others’, and be moved to treat others as we would treat Jesus. The ‘Christ in me’ approach has each of us allowing God to make us more like Christ, and acting toward others as Jesus would act. As we finish off the week, there’s one more perspective to consider – call it ‘Christ in us’.
The idea is that we are somehow united so that we don’t exist solely as individuals, but as parts of a greater whole. In the scripture reading for today, Paul uses the analogy of a body to explain how Christians are related to one another. We are not a bunch of bodies working together, but a single body. Each part needs all of the others. Paul is quite specific that ‘those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable’ (v. 22). The seemingly weaker parts aren’t just OK to have around, they are absolutely necessary to the functioning of the whole body. I nurtured my broken arm because it was part of me. When we see that God wants everyone around us to be part of the same Body of Christ of which we are a part, the compassion we desire will come naturally.
Do: Could you get through your day wearing earplugs or a blindfold? Just as you need every part of your body, you need the Christians in your life. Who have you been neglecting or taking for granted?
Pray: Lord, I understand this Body of Christ idea in an abstract way, I guess. But I’m having a hard time seeing how it affects my daily routine. I ask You to show me more clearly how it looks for me to be part of the Body together with those around me. Teach me what to think, feel and do. Amen.
The eDevotional is written each week by a team of volunteers from Timberlake Church.