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1 Corinthians 12:12
ESV For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
NIV Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.
NASB For just as the body is one and yet has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ.
CSB For just as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body--so also is Christ.
NLT The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ.
KJV For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.

What does 1 Corinthians 12:12 mean?

Paul has written much about the body of Christ in 1 Corinthians. Now he uses the illustration of a human body to show how Christians, each with their individual spiritual gifts, are intended by God to work together.

Every human body is one thing, one body, one person. This is true even though the body is made up of widely different parts or "members." Each part of the body contributes to the overall functioning of that body. Paul says the same is true of the body of Christ. Each believer is one member of Christ's "body" on earth. Each of us is defined by the spiritual gifts given to us and the service they allow us to provide to the church.

This is a key teaching in Christianity. Fellow believers are equally valuable in the eyes of God, and in their contributions to the function of a healthy church. While it's true that some have more "honorable" roles—a concept Paul will discuss later—that does not make those roles more meaningful.
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