1 Corinthians 12:12 (NLT)
The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ.
Two Approaches, One Goal
Have you ever felt like your approach to serving God is very different from everyone else? There are some things in life that Melissa and I approach in vastly different ways. Let me share a personal story that hammers this point home. A few years back, we found ourselves in the midst of remodeling our kitchen. And man, did our styles clash! I always want to get the job done as quickly as possible—give me a sledgehammer and let's get cracking! Literally! We were removing the tile from our kitchen floor, and as I grabbed my sledgehammer, I told everybody they should back up. There I was swinging like a madman, tile shards flying everywhere, putting divots in our walls, dust billowing in a thick little cloud—but progress, oh yeah, I was making progress.
Lessons from the Kitchen: Speed vs. Precision
As I stopped to catch my breath and looked around my heart swelled with pride at all the progress. Just then Melissa stepped forward with a little squirt bottle in her hand. She begins to spray the tile floor with water. In my loving yet frustrated way I ask, “What are you doing?!” In her patient, loving way, she answered, “I’m wetting the tile to keep the dust from filling the rest of the house.” In my hyper-focused adrenaline rush, I never stopped to consider the rest of the house. As I looked up and into the living room, I could see a dense cloud of dust making its way through the rest of the house.
And as I looked back, I saw that Melissa had meticulously soaked the next tile. She had a small pry bar and was methodically and carefully popping the next tile out of its place. Was her way slower? Absolutely! Cleaner? No question. Safer? Without a doubt. Better? Well, yes, but it was 10 times slower! The hurry up monster inside of me was yelling in my head, “What are we doing? We've got a kingdom to build here, let's get cracking!”
The Body of Christ: A Symphony of Gifts
So I stepped aside and occupied myself with other things until she reached the last stubborn corner. The last few squares of tile wouldn't budge! This was my moment to declare victory, as the sledgehammer was summoned. For the next 60 seconds, it sounded like Armageddon exploding in our kitchen, but when the dust settled—literally—a hunk of our door and my leg were missing, but so was the tile!
You see, the sledgehammer and the squirt bottle are living, breathing illustrations for how the Church, as the body of Christ, operates in the Kingdom of God. Just like Melissa and I each had our own methods, the body of Christ is made up of very different individuals with unique gifts, talents, and approaches. We have sledgehammers who go in swinging, full of passion and zeal, and ready to take on the world to see the Kingdom of God spread. We also have squirt bottles who bring a much-needed perspective of patience, precision, and discernment. We all need one another, and we need all the gifts that exist between these two extremes. There is a wide range of gifts, making the Church very diverse and multifaceted in spreading the Kingdom of God.
Just like our physical body can't function if every part does the same thing, the body of Christ is dependent on how unique and different each member is. The beauty of the Church is in its diversity—the various speeds, the different gifts, the unique perspectives—all coming together to make a unified whole. This reminds me of Romans 12:4–5 (CSB), “Now as we have many parts in one body, and all the parts do not have the same function, in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another.”
As we earnestly seek first the Kingdom of God, let's remember the valuable lesson from the kitchen remodel. Sometimes the sledgehammer is needed to do what it does best, and other times, the squirt bottle is the hero of the day. Both are invaluable in their own right, serve a purpose, and are essential for spreading the Kingdom. If our churches were all made up of sledgehammers, we would lack the discernment and precision that the squirt bottle brings. 1 Peter 4:10 (CSB), “Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.”
As we move forward as the body of Christ to see the Kingdom of God spread in and through the world around us, let's celebrate each other's strengths and understand that our differences all work together for the unity of the Body. So whether you're a sledgehammer, a squirt bottle, or somewhere in between, keep in mind that God has gifted you and given you a role in the body of Christ that is valuable and much needed in spreading His Kingdom here on earth.