"Church," in Jesus' conception, indicated a gathering of people, living in proximity to one another, engaging in discussion, collaborating on behalf of a community, working out the teaching of Jesus in all walks of life. Jesus' church was comprised of people who had accepted the efficacy of his sacrifice in repentant faith. They were to demonstrate a unique sort of unity that pointed to the diverse yet unified nature of their God. 1 Corinthians 12 uses the metaphor of a physical body, comprised of many interdependent parts, to describe the diversity and unity of the church - the body of Christ.
The individualistic lenses through which modern Americans view life limit our ability to see the reality and significance of the body. We tend to ask how the whole can benefit the individual rather than how the individual's attachment to the whole enriches and strengthens the body and the individual parts of which it is comprised. The body of Christ is as real and as significant now as it was in the first century. We can acknowledge this reality and cultivate it for the good of many or ignore it to our harm.
