“God’s purpose was that the body should not be divided but rather that all of its parts should feel the same concern for each other. If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts share its suffering. If one part is praised, all the others share in its happiness” (1 Corinthians 12:25,26).
What if . . . your friend wins the geography bee, your classmate gets picked for select soccer, your uncle wins the lottery? You’d be jealous right?
Now, what would happen if . . . your friend trips and falls on the way back from the bee, your classmate gets kicked off the soccer team, your uncle loses all of his money? You’d probably breathe a sigh of relief and think, “I’m glad that didn’t happen to me.”
Everyone would understand your reaction. Well, everyone except God. In God’s family we make up a body, a body that is so connected to each other that it changes how our brains work. It changes how we react. With Christ’s body, when one person wins, we are thrilled for that person. We hug her, tell her how happy we are for her. When someone is hurt, we feel his pain. We hug him and support him however we can.
We don’t do this, though, because we are nice people. We do it because, with the Holy Spirit living inside of us, we can’t help ourselves. We love each other because we are family—and that’s what family does.
