For the past three days, I have had a toothache! Each day the pain has become worse than the day before. Finally, today I was able to get an appointment to see my dentist. The mere thought of getting to see a dentist today made my mood better. The pain is still there but I see a resolution to the pain in sight. This reminded me of how one little part of the body can control you. I was reminded of Paul’s letter to the church at Corinth. In I Corinthians chapter 12, he is concerned about how they viewed spiritual gifts. He wanted them to understand that one gift did not take president over another, each person was just as needed and important as the other.
I Corinthians 12:12 “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.”
All Christians are of the same body and the head is Jesus Christ. While each member of the body may have different abilities and attributes, they are all important to the function of the body. If one part doesn’t function properly another part has to take on an extra load. This tooth is a ridiculously small part of my body, yet it affects the rest of my body. Because of the pain, I am not able to eat as normal. Therefore, the rest of my body does not receive proper nourishment. Every member of my body suffers because this tooth is hurting. When it hurts my focus is on it rather than other members of the body that needs attention.
When one member of the body of Christ hurts, we should all hurt. Paul instructs us in Galatians 6:2 we are to bear each other’s burdens. We are to have compassion for the hurting member. The quicker we take care of the hurting member the sooner the body can begin to function normally. If we ignore the hurting part of the body, it only gets worse, or it heals improperly. Just like a tooth that is not taken care of or ignored, we may lose it completely. This happens far too often in the body of Christ. Each of us has a role to play in the body, and while we may lose a part and replace it with another, the body will never be the same.
Galatians 6:2 “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
In Acts 10:34-35, Peter is speaking to the Jews. He is explaining to them that God is no respecter of persons. No one person is more important to God than anyone else. We tend to think there are important parts to the body of Christ, but others as dispensable, but God does not think that way. In John 3:16, “God so loved the world,” that includes everyone no matter the age, race, abilities, or positions in society. He sent His Son to die for ALL. The value He places on each of us is the life of His Son. He died for the unwanted aborted baby, the vilest sinner, the mentally handicapped, and the greatest humanitarian. Each one is so different from the other, yet equally precious to God.
Act 10:34-35 “Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.”
We need to continually be reaching out to members of the body of Christ. While this tooth looked perfectly fine on the outside it was infected, and the infection was growing on the inside. Too many members of the body hurt silently. No one seems to be taking the time to get to know them. On the outside, they look fine, but many are infected with pains from their past, fears for the future, or a lack of knowledge as to how they are to function in this new family of God. We have all been guilty of getting so excited when someone accepts Jesus as their Savior, but not excited enough to treat them as an authentic member of the family. We are guilty of allowing others to slip away without being noticed.
As the deceased Paul Harvey would say, now we have “the rest of the story.” I went to my dental appointment, but I was too late to save the tooth. Because I didn’t take care of the tooth properly for years, it is now gone forever. Yes, it will be replaced with a false one, but it will not be the same. Because of my lack of paying attention to the original tooth, I not only have suffered from much pain, but it has also become an expensive process. I can wish I had reacted differently in the past, but it won’t change what has happened. People are like the tooth; someone may come along to fill their duties and responsibilities in the body, but it will not be as God originally intended. Just like my tooth that was extracted, when people leave there will be scares, and there will be an empty space.
So how do we avoid the loss of body parts? We must see each member as important as any other. We must go out of our way to take care of them, showing love by opening our lives to them and taking an interest in their lives. Don’t overlook anyone, and don’t think your interest won’t make a difference. We are to be selfless children of the Most High God, not selfish. We are to treat other brothers and sisters as family, a healthy family, not a dysfunctional one. Look around the next time you are in church. Take note of those who are missing. If you see someone you don’t know or someone you rarely speak to, make a point to speak to them before they leave. If you wait, they may be like my tooth, gone forever.
