Some churches have several dominant personalities in leadership positions – even if they are not officially leaders. Sometimes diversity causes frictions between these people and others that erupts into sparks of distention. I’ve seen it happen many times in the various churches I’ve been a part of. Sometimes these frictions are over what is most important in a church or how it is to operate. In most cases those butting heads are following their own hearts and truly believe in what they propose as being most important and what everyone should focus on.
What is often overlooked is that our diversity is often our greatest strength. 1 Corinthians 12 puts it this way:
“4 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.” (NKJV).
How the Spirit works through each member will be different, but it is the same Spirit.
This chapter goes on to compare the body of Christ to a human body: a diversity of parts, each with a specific function, and it asks, “17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? 18 But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” (NKJV).
In the same way, each of us, members of the body of Christ, has our own gift, talent, or ability. Everyone has something to contribute even if it seems a small thing to us. As long as we all contribute in our own way, the body remains healthy and active. It’s only when we turn into dead tissue that a real problem develops. Do your part, even if that is only smiling at people, yours may be the only smile some people see all day.
