Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Bodily functions
1 Corinthians 12:22-24
… 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. (NIV 1984)
The paediatrician who looked after my son until he became a teenager is a very good doctor and he is excellent with children. He makes children feel comfortable in the clinic, and in his discussions with parents about their condition he always includes a moment where he talks to the child directly. This allows the children, who are old enough to understand, to start processing what happens in their bodies. I really enjoyed our visits.
One thing that stood out to me though was how he called body parts when he did a few general exams. He would refer to the eyes as eyes, and the ears as ears, and the mouth as mouth and so on, but when he got to the penis he referred to is as the birdie. I don’t have a daughter, so I never got the hear what he called the vagina.
People still struggle with saying the name of the “private parts” of the body. A good example of this is the buttocks. We use all kinds of words and names to avoid being thought to be vulgar. It is called the behind, the rear, the seat, the bottom, the posterior and some other not so attractive words. We, English speakers sometimes even get French with it and call it the derrière.
It’s amazing that this body part that we find so difficult to name in decent company is the source of so much fascination among men, and to some extent women, when they assess someone’s physical attractiveness. The way it goes is that the more their assets the more appealing they are.
In life, most people seek to cover their own, both literally and figuratively. The buttocks, which often is the source of attraction, especially on women, and, also, often the butt of many jokes, is also the source of embarrassing room clearing odours and loads of crap.
But, before we get distracted, let me explain my focus on the buttocks this morning. The buttocks, even when being admired, are hardly celebrated for their vital role in our daily bodily functions. Yet, if the buttocks fail to deliver the expected results the situation becomes very painful and unattractive.
We take it for granted and focus on its other attributes until and unless our bodily functions are compromised. It is interesting how most of us each treat with our own. We clean it, cover it, and see not to focus on it as much as possible. I think that the apostle Paul had some of this in mind when he was writing the passage that is our key verse today.
When Paul wrote that “the parts that we think are less honourable we treat with special honour” and “the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty” he clearly had our buttocks and genitals in mind. Paul was seeking to emphasise the vital and indispensable role of these body parts in our bodily functions. He was showing how all parts come together to make the body work.
You could be like our paediatrician and call it a birdie and like the old lady in church and not want to mention it at all but the vital role it plays in our bodily functions cannot be ignored or denied. These obvious but neglected facts cannot be overstated. The body needs all of its parts for our vital bodily functions or we’ll die.
Yet we continue to lead the church and participate in church in a disconnected way that demonstrates that we have not yet learned these simple lessons for which the human body was used, as an analogy, by the apostle so long ago. The church is not seen and treated like a body where each part is vital. So many gifted and talented people sit ignored by leadership every day.
It is also true that we sometimes only give attention to those who are gifted and talented in a particular way. For example, when the leaders of a church are gifted in music, those who have musical gifts are quickly recognised and much emphasis is placed on music to the neglect of other gifts and ministries. The same happens if the leadership is strong on teaching or some other area, they focus the church or ministry in that area to the neglect of others.
The situation is worse for those who, on the surface, seem to have no such gifts or talent at all. Recently, a lady who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder sat and explained to me her gift and call for the ministry. She explained how being disabled and differently abled has opened up a whole area of ministry for her. Many people just think that at best she is annoying, and at worse she is crazy. She sees how God has helped her understand the disease so that she could manage her life and reach out to other disabled people. She has a vital role in the body.
As times change rapidly leaders have to be deliberate about finding the place of ministry for everyone in the church. Members, equally, have to press to identify their giftings and find their place in ministry. Everyone is vital for the basic bodily functions of the church. Some at the head and some behind.
Think on these things:
- Do you play a functional role in your church?
- Can you think of how the people who do nothing in church now could find a place of ministry?
- What could your church do to ensure that more people are involved in the ministry functions?
Prayer focus:
Let us pray today that every person in our church would find a place in ministry.
In His Grace
Pastor Alex
