Since you are in Christ and the Holy Spirit is in you, you are no less than your brother and sister in Christ. Paul, continuing the use of the human body illustration, mainly addresses those who feel that they are substandard and unimportant in these verses. Apparently, the more sensational gifts (such as tongues) had been glorified in the Corinthian congregation, making those who did not have them feel inferior.
First, one cannot because they are dismissed and shunned, say, “Because I am less-than, I do not belong to Christ’s body.” (14-16) Jesus knows what it is like to be rejected and scorned by his own people. He was a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering. (Isaiah 53:3) Even though you are ready to walk away, he will never abandon you as an orphan. “Surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age,” he promises. (Matthew 28:20)
Second, God’s wisdom for the church includes design diversity. The gifts he gives coincide with the diversity within his body, which is his church. (17, 20) As the human body must have diversity to work effectively as a whole, so the members of Christ’s body have diverse gifts, the use of which can help accomplish Christ’s united purpose.
Third, God gives each child a good and proper gift. Once the child recognizes and accepts that gift and learns the skills needed to exercise that gift properly, they will find satisfaction and blessing when they exercise that gift properly. God arranges the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be (18). When we are in the right place using the gift given, we will be one with that place.
Fourth, though Christ’s body parts have different functions, we are interconnected. We are designed to work together, each doing our assigned duty. Next to us and connected to us are other parts that work in conjunction with us. We need to recognize that we work with others, depend on others in Christ, and are blessed by what they do and who they are. Many parts exist, one body working together, each in their unique way to help the whole body (19-20). We should not expect others to be like us. We should not shun others because they are not like us.
A stained glass window has many individual, colorful shards. Individually, they have beauty. Collectively, they form the image of Christ crucified, buried, and risen from the dead.
