Renewal of Community: Many Members, One Body
Epiphany 3 reflection on 1 Corinthians 12:12–31 for Peace Lutheran Church, DMV
Epiphany is the season when Christ’s light reveals what we often overlook. It’s not just about star‑led journeys or wise men kneeling at a manger. It’s about illumination—God shining light on who Jesus is, and in turn, shining light on who we are. And sometimes that light reveals things we’ve forgotten: our identity, our purpose, and our belonging.
Paul’s words to the Corinthians speak directly into that moment of revelation. He writes to a church that is gifted, passionate, diverse, and—like many communities in the DMV—struggling to understand how all the pieces fit together. Some believers felt invisible. Others felt superior. Some gifts were celebrated; others were dismissed. The church was a body, but it was a body with strained ligaments and numb limbs.
Into that tension, Paul offers a vision of renewal.
A Body Remembered
“You are the body of Christ, and individually members of it.”
Paul doesn’t say, “Try harder to be a body.” He doesn’t say, “If you get along, then you’ll become a body.” He says, “You are.”
Identity first.
Grace first.
Belonging first.
This is the foundation of Christian community. We don’t create unity; we receive it. We don’t manufacture belonging; we discover it. We don’t earn our place; we are placed—by the Spirit, in baptism, into a body that is larger than our preferences, our personalities, and our past.
In a region like the DMV—where people move in and out, where neighborhoods shift, where cultures intersect, and where stories collide—Paul’s vision is a gift. It reminds us that the church is not held together by zip codes or backgrounds or political leanings or worship styles. It is held together by Christ, the head of the body.
The Lies That Fracture Us
Paul names two lies that threaten the health of the body.
1. “I don’t belong.”
The foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong.” The ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong.”
We know this lie well. It sounds like:
“My voice doesn’t matter here.”
“I don’t have the gifts others have.”
“I’m too old to contribute.”
“I’m too young to be taken seriously.”
“I’m new—I should stay quiet.”
“I don’t fit the mold.”
This lie grows quietly. It grows when people feel unseen. It grows when gifts go unrecognized. It grows when the loudest voices dominate the room. And when this lie takes root, the body suffers. A body cannot flourish when parts of it feel numb or disconnected.
2. “You don’t belong.”
The eye says to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head says to the feet, “I don’t need you.”
This lie is louder. It shows up in:
dismissing someone’s perspective because it’s different
valuing certain ministries over others
assuming some gifts are more “spiritual”
treating some people as essential and others as optional
believing the church would run smoother if everyone thought like us
This lie fractures community because it elevates some and diminishes others. It creates insiders and outsiders. It turns the church into a hierarchy of worth instead of a body of grace.
3. The lie of comparison
Comparison is the silent killer of community. It turns gifts into competition. It turns service into performance. It turns ministry into measurement. Paul refuses to let the Corinthians rank their gifts. He refuses to let them turn the Spirit’s work into a talent show.
And he refuses to let us do it too.
A DMV Example: The Neighborhood Group Chat
If you’ve ever been in a neighborhood group chat—Nextdoor, WhatsApp, or the HOA email chain—you’ve seen this dynamic play out. These groups start with good intentions: sharing resources, alerting neighbors, building connection. But it doesn’t take long before the same patterns emerge:
a few voices dominate
some people never speak because they feel they have nothing to add
others speak too much because they believe they have all the answers
misunderstandings escalate quickly
people forget they’re talking to actual neighbors
the community becomes divided instead of strengthened
The problem isn’t the platform. It’s the human tendency to forget we belong to one another.
Paul sees this in Corinth. We see it in our neighborhoods. And yes, we see it in the church.
The Means of Renewal: Christ, the Spirit, and the Father
Paul doesn’t leave the Corinthians in their brokenness. He offers a path toward renewal.
1. Christ holds the body together.
“You are the body of Christ.”
Christ is the head who unites us. Christ is the head who directs us. Christ is the head who nourishes us. Christ is the head who refuses to let any part be discarded.
When we lose our way, Christ centers us. When we forget each other, Christ remembers us. When we fracture, Christ mends.
2. The Spirit gives gifts for the common good.
The Spirit distributes gifts “as the Spirit chooses.” This means:
no gift is accidental
no gift is inferior
no gift is unnecessary
no gift is self‑generated
no gift is for personal glory
The Spirit equips the church not for competition but for collaboration. Not for hierarchy but for harmony. Not for individual achievement but for communal flourishing.
3. God honors the overlooked.
Paul says God gives greater honor to the parts we tend to ignore.
This is radical. This is countercultural. This is divine design.
The parts we think are weaker are indispensable. The ministries we think are small are essential. The people we overlook are the ones God highlights.
4. A renewed community is a healing community.
“If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one is honored, all rejoice together.”
This is the heartbeat of renewed community:
we carry each other’s burdens
we celebrate each other’s joys
we show up for each other
we refuse to let anyone suffer alone
we refuse to let anyone rejoice alone
This is not sentimental. It is sacramental. It is the Spirit’s work among us.
A Metro Moment
Every now and then on the Metro, you see something that restores your faith in community. Someone drops a bag, and strangers help pick it up. Someone struggles with a stroller, and people hold the escalator. Someone looks lost, and a commuter points them in the right direction.
In those moments, the Metro becomes more than transportation. It becomes a body—brief, diverse, imperfect, but real.
That is what the Spirit does in the church. The Spirit turns strangers into siblings. The Spirit turns gifts into service. The Spirit turns suffering into shared compassion. The Spirit turns honor into shared joy.
What Renewal Looks Like at Peace Lutheran
As Epiphany light continues to shine, what does renewal look like for us?
1. Seeing each other with renewed eyes
Not as competitors. Not as categories. Not as roles. But as indispensable members of Christ’s body.
2. Honoring the gifts among us
The ones up front and the ones behind the scenes. The ones that speak loudly and the ones that whisper. The ones that shine and the ones that steady.
3. Suffering and rejoicing together
Checking on each other. Praying for each other. Showing up for each other. Celebrating each other.
4. Resisting the lies that divide us
“I don’t matter.” “You don’t matter.” “My gift is better.” “Your gift is unnecessary.”
5. Letting Christ repaint us
Renewal is not something we manufacture. It is something Christ gives. It is something the Spirit breathes. It is something the Father delights in.
The Mural and the Body
A neighborhood in Southeast DC once repainted a faded mural. As people worked—scrubbing, priming, tracing, filling in color—something unexpected happened. They learned each other’s names. They shared stories. They remembered they belonged to one another.
When the mural was finished, an elder said, “We didn’t just repaint a wall. We remembered who we are.”
That is what Epiphany does. That is what Paul’s vision does. That is what the Spirit is doing at Peace Lutheran.
Christ is repainting us. The Spirit is renewing us. The Father is honoring us.
We are the body of Christ—many members, one body, called to shine together.
May we live as a renewed community, revealing Christ’s light in the DMV and beyond.
