ONE BODY, MANY MEMBERS

Passage: Romans 12:3-8

Key verse: 5

NIV

Humble Service in the Body of Christ

3 For by the grace given me(A) I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function,(B) 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body,(C) and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts,(D) according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying,(E) then prophesy in accordance with your[a] faith;(F) 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach;(G) 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement;(H) if it is giving, then give generously;(I) if it is to lead,[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

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Footnotes
  1. Romans 12:6 Or the
  2. Romans 12:8 Or to provide for others
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

Gifts of Grace

3 For (A)by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you (B)not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, (C)each according to (D)the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For (E)as in one body we have many members,[a] and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, (F)though many, (G)are one body in Christ, and individually (H)members one of another. 6 (I)Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if (J)prophecy, (K)in proportion to our faith; 7 if (L)service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; (M)the one who leads,[b] with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with (N)cheerfulness.

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Footnotes
  1. Romans 12:4 Greek parts; also verse 5
  2. Romans 12:8 Or gives aid
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

1. Don't think of yourself too highly (3-5)

Following Jesus is personal, but the Christian life is not a one-man show. Each believer is a member of the Body of Christ. Each of us must put down roots in a particular Christian community. Each of us must recognize his own unique place in the Body of Christ, and we must recognize the unique and precious place of each of our coworkers and sheep. If we belong to Jesus, we are members of his Body and we belong to each other.

2. Different gifts (6-8)

A gift is something we have received by God's grace. It is not ours by 'right.' We do not earn gifts. They are given to us to be used-not for ourselves, but to glorify God and to build up others. Many of the gifts mentioned here are opportunities for serving others. In some cases, the nature of the gift suggests how it should be used to serve the Body: Leaders should be diligent; giving should be generous; mercy should be shown cheerfully.

Prayer: Lord, help me to see myself and others from your point of view and live an unselfish life.

One Word: Serve the Body with your gift.