A Scriptural Call for Renewal . . .
THE
WISDOM OF GOD’S ARRANGEMENT
But as it is, God arranged the organs in the body,
each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single organ, where
would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.—1
Cor. 12: 18-20.
A
careful, truth-seeking reading of 1 Corinthians 12 will go far in
teaching us the nature of God’s community. It shows us that it
is both the weak and the strong, the immature and the mature, the
less gifted and the highly gifted that make the church what
God wants it to be.
Notice
the emphasis on the sovereignty of God in the apostle’s
thought: “God arranged the organs in the body, each one of them
as he chose” (verse 18) . . . “God has so adjusted the
body, giving greater honor to the inferior part” (verse 24) . .
. “God has appointed in the church . . . (verse 28). It is
clear that the church is according to God’s own arrangement. It
is ours to admire its wisdom as well as to enjoy its benefits.
Elsewhere the apostle tells us “that through the church the
manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the principalities
and powers in the heavenly places” (Eph. 3: 10). This is to say
that the angels bear witness to God’s wisdom as manifested in
His plan for man in the church.
This
wisdom is especially evident in God’s raking account of the
psychology of man. Not only are man’s spiritual needs cared for
in the community of God, but it is intended that he be nurtured in
such a way that his own individual differences are recognized. God’s
arrangement is that each child in His family be cared for in view of
his own particular needs. And so the Father deals with each of us
separately, providing us with such gifts suitable to our own
disposition, though always in keeping with the needs of the whole
body of believers.
Paul’s
logic is persuasive: “If the foot should say, ‘Because I
am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ that would not
make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say,
‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,’
that would not make it any less a part of the body.” (verses
15-16)
The
fact is simple. God has made some of us ears, others of us feet, and
still others of us eyes. And some of us are the less comely parts or
inferior members. But in His wisdom God bestows more honor upon the
inferior parts “that there be no discord in the body.” It
is all so arranged that each member is well aware of his dependence
on all the other members, and so they have the same care for all
alike. “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one
member is honored, all rejoice together.” (verse 26)
It
is like the quarterback on a championship football team, who, while
he is the focus of most of the attention, realizes that he is merely
a part of a well-designed arrangement. It would be folly for him to
suppose that he could do anything at all without the proper function
of the less prestigious members of the team.
In
football the purpose is to win and it takes “the proper working
of each part,” just as it does in God’s community. But in
the church the purpose is greatly different. It is not success as
measured by any worldly standard. It is not a job in image building.
It is not even a smooth running program that is the objective. It is
rather to accomplish what an organism is supposed to accomplish: the
welfare of that organism. As the apostle puts it: “The holy
body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is
supplied, when each part is working properly, makes bodily growth and
upbuilds itself in love.” (Eph. 4: 15) The apostle makes it
clear that the function of the body has for its purpose the
edification of all the members.
The
beauty in all of this, as well as the wisdom, is that God deals with
each of us as a loving Father, directing our way in a manner best
suited to our individual needs. It is good that we are not all mouth?
It is also good that God does not bestow on us those gifts we
think we should have. It is especially good that God has arranged
for us to be different from each other in such a way we can
complement each other, thus fulfilling one another’s needs.
This
should be a source of great comfort to us. Surely we would be on a
collision course if it were up to us to direct our own way and
determine our own gifts. And yet we so often attempt this very thing.
It is folly for us to suppose that God will deal with all his
children in the same way, that He will bestow on me the same gift he
gives to another. One becomes a free man to the extent that he is
willing to accept God’s plan for him. He is also free when he
allows a brother to be different from himself.
There
is wisdom in the dictum that each one must do his own thing, so long
of course as this is within the will of God. But we must be mature
enough to realize that each one must interpret for himself what God’s
will is for him. It is this “To each his own” idea that
Paul speaks of in Rom. 14:5: “Let every one be fully convinced
in his own mind.” It is the own that should be
emphasized: in his own mind. In this way Paul spares all of us
the rude task of judging our brothers. We don’t have to do so,
and we should not do so. “Who are you to pass judgment on the
servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or
falls.” (Rom. 14:4)
Ah,
the wisdom in all this. It is the same wisdom that teaches us that
one man’s food is another man’s poison. It would be a
tragedy if we were all alike, and it is nearly a tragedy when we
endeavor to make ourselves alike. It would not do for all of us to
have the same gifts, and we well nigh undo ourselves when we seek for
such sameness.
This
is why we should not be disturbed if some among us begin to speak in
tongues or show other manifestations of the gifts of the Spirit as
described in the scriptures. We do not have to belabor the point that
God does not deal with His children in such ways today. It is
enough for us to accept the fact that God has not dealt with us in
such a way. We should recognize that He just might deal with some of
His children in such a way. After all, the Bible does say: “To
one is given various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation
of tongues.” Why do we trouble ourselves in trying to explain
this away. Even if we think we have done this, we are still left with
the dear brother who is speaking in tongues!
Let
him speak in tongues. Or to use the apostle’s language: “Do
not forbid speaking in tongues” (1 Cor. 14:39) He is not our
servant. We do not have to give an account for him. It is before
his own Master that he stands or falls. If tongues are edifying to
him, if they make him more spiritual and fulfill his needs, then let
us praise God for it and leave him with his gift, while we go merrily
on our way trying to handle English the best we can.
It is a precious truth for us to learn that God deals with His children in different ways, just as earthly fathers do. What God does with one man might be inappropriate for another. It is a wise father that knows his own son.—the Editor