We have made a mistake in communicating that church is here to meet your needs
Romans 12:3-5 NIV
[3] For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. [4] For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, [5] so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
We need each other.
Romans 12:6-8 NIV
[6] We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; [7] if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; [8] if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
Our focus is not to be ourselves
Romans 12:10 NIV
[10] Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.
There are specific attitudes we need to have which have not been normal in churches over the last 50 years.
Romans 12:14-18 NIV
[14] Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. [15] Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. [16] Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. [17] Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. [18] If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
This is a development of what Paul had written a couple of years earlier in 1 Corinthians
1 Corinthians 12:12-14 NIV
[12] Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. [13] For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. [14] Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
1 Corinthians 12:18-20 NIV
[18] But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. [19] If they were all one part, where would the body be? [20] As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
Again Paul makes clear we are to identify deeply with each other and recognise our need for each other
1 Corinthians 12:18-20 NIV
[18] But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. [19] If they were all one part, where would the body be? [20] As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
It is becuase of 1 Corinthians 12 we need 1 Corinthians 13
1 Corinthians 13:4-8 NIV
[4] Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. [5] It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. [6] Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. [7] It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. [8] Love never fails.
As far as you are concerned… the purpose of the church is to help you grow up and become more like Jesus
Ephesians 4:11-16 NIV
[11] So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, [12] to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up [13] until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. [14] Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. [15] Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. [16] From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
The real purpose of the church, though, is to make God’s wisdom known.
Ephesians 3:10-11 NIV
[10] His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, [11] according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We Bless the world when we do the hard work to be one, but not the same
John 17:20-23 NIV
[20] “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, [21] that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. [22] I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— [23] I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
Small Group Questions
- When you hear the statement “church is here to meet your needs,” what feels true about it, and what feels off?
- In Romans 12:3–5, Paul talks about “sober judgment” and belonging to one another—what do you think that actually looks like in real life?
- Where do you find yourself drifting toward independence rather than recognising your need for others? What’s underneath that?
- Looking at Romans 12:6–8, which gifts do you tend to use… and which do you tend to rely on others for? How does that shape your view of community?
- “Honor one another above yourselves” (v10) sounds simple—but where is that hardest for you right now?
- Which of the attitudes in Romans 12:14–18 feels most unnatural or confronting for you? Why do you think that is?
- Paul connects being one body (1 Cor 12) with needing love (1 Cor 13). Where have you experienced the tension of community being both good and hard?(You might even say—this is why love has to be more than words .)
- If the purpose of the church is both your growth (Eph 4) and God’s witness to the world (Eph 3, John 17), how might that reshape what you expect from church this week?