Tuesday, 23 December 2014
And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty, 1 Corinthians 12:23
Continuing with how we handle the parts of the body and the interaction between those parts, Paul now mentions an observable truth. “Those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor.” There are parts of the body which may seem less honorable than others. The ear for example may not seem to be worth as much attention as the eyes. And yet the ear may be given a beautiful gold earring to highlight it. The fourth finger on the hand may seem like an afterthought compared to the thumb, the pinky, or the middle finger. However, we tend to adorn this one with a ring of gold more often than the others.
The feet don’t shout out for much attention; they’re just feet. And yet, we may spend an inordinate amount of money on a variety of shoes to call attention to who we are. The shoes direct the eyes of others to the feet despite their otherwise plain appearance. And so it is true with members within the church. There are those who attend church, never missing a sermon. But they may be quiet and not flaunt their faithful attendance. They also may not strive to be noticed in any other way. And yet if the pastor is wise, he will call attention to such faithful attendees during a sermon, using them as examples for the others to emulate. Likewise, he may call them up for a special gift, noting their faithfulness to the church.
Paul continues with the thought that “our unpresentable parts have greater modesty.” There are those parts which distinguish us as male or female. These are covered for modesty’s sake. There are also blemishes that some carry because of sickness, wounds, or birth defects. We will often cover these from sight. In essence, we are showing honor to these unpresentable parts through their covering. Thus we are actually highlighting them through concealment. Paul will explain the result of this in the coming verse.
Life application: There is no person who is without value within the body. It is our duty to seek out the special points of each of these people and to recognize them for the value they possess. By doing so, they will know that they are of importance to us.
Lord, help me to treat each person with the importance that they possess in Your eyes. You are the Creator and You don’t make mistakes. And so, every person has dignity and value in some way. Give me discerning eyes to see this and to highlight it. Help me to recognize them as the beautiful souls that they are and to emphasize their good points to others too. This I ask so that You will be glorified though their realization that You have given them this value because of Your love for them. Amen!