1 Corinthians 12:18-20 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body.

First allow me to point to something obvious, the most readily identifiable parts of the body of Christ are those closest to the head. The eye, the ear, the mouth are seen to be close to the head which is Jesus Christ. We all want to be seen as being close to Christ. A personal relationship is the foundational principle of Christianity. These are the easiest roles within the body to understand how they fit within the functioning of the body.

If I were to tell you that your name is Opponens Pollicis, would you consider yourself an important part of the body of Christ? It is not a famous name. You cannot tell of your function within the body by name. What if I were to tell you that without you the thumb would become useless? That would be a tragedy. The truth is that there are many more support functions in the body of Christ than the commonly named and easily identified.

We do an injustice to the whole body to identify the eye, ear and mouth as having more value than the rest just because they are easily understood. But how does that help you understand where God has set you within the body as indicated by verse 12:18 above? Let me use the human body again as the example. No single muscle within the body performs its function alone. It is a part of a system which operates in conjunction with other body parts.

Your role in the body is discovered in fellowship.

1 Corinthians 12:22-23 Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness.