Author: Rev. Lek Aik Wee

Why should the foot feel itself a lesser member of the body just because the foot is not the hand? Worse, the feel itself not a part of the body? Each has its own unique function in the body. What the foot can do, to enable the body to experience movement, the other functions of the body cannot do. It is important that the body has different members performing differing functions, each contributing to the well-being of the whole. None should feel belittled because it is unable to perform the function of another part of the body.

William MacDonald observed well, “Without a variety of members you could not have a human body. There must be many members, each one different from the others, working in obedience to the head and in cooperation with the others.” The diversity of function ultimately engages the body to proper functioning. Each vital to the well-being of the entire body.

he Holy Spirit indwells all believers in Jesus Christ. The action of the Holy Spirit coming to indwell a person thus baptising such a one into the body of Christ, the family of God. This Holy Spirit marks out every child of God and incorporates him or her into the family of God, which is described here as one body. It speaks of unity and it speaks also of diversity. Many members yet one body in Christ. The societal distinction of race and social status by no means prevents any from entering God’s kingdom. All are within the reach of God’s love.

Woolvard summarized well, “This verse forms an excellent three-part summary of the rest of the chapter. (a) The human body is a unit (cf. v. 13 on the unity of the body of Christ). (b) The human body has many parts, with a necessary diversity in its members (cf. vv. 14-20). (c) The parts of the human body work together as one, with a dependent mutuality as each part fulfills an important function (cf. vv. 21-26). Likewise the body of Christ has a diversity of parts functioning together (vv. 27-30).”

Hendricksen observed well, “No one in the Christian community receives all the gifts and no one is without a gift. Paul asserts that the Holy Spirit allocates them to each person in the church, to the one this gift and to another that gift. The Spirit neglects no one, so that the totality of talents in the church constitutes a rich reservoir of ability and proficiency.”

The tongues refer to known languages. The interpreter is given the ability by the Holy Spirit to understand and rightly convey the meaning of the spoken message. This gift enabled the church to receive God’s message for them even though there was a language barrier between the speaker and the congregation.

The ability to speak in a foreign language is given as a supernatural gift of the Holy Spirit to those who have no knowledge of the language prior to their bestowment from God. It was given as a temporary sign-gift to authenticate the message of the gospel before the Scriptures were completed.