The Judgment That Matters

Reading:  1 Corinthians 4:1-5
    
    Rather than venerating men like Peter, Paul, and Apollos (1 Cor 1:12), Paul wants the Corinthians to “regard us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God”(1 Cor 4:1).  Both of these relationships—servants and stewards—imply that these men will have to answer to their master for their actions.  “Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful”(1 Cor 4:2).  A steward is one who is given authority over another’s money or possessions and expected to discharge his master’s will.  A “faithful” steward is one who pleases his master and proves himself trustworthy.

    So who determines how well a servant or steward is doing his job?  Certainly not his fellow-servants.  “But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court.  In fact, I do not even judge myself.  For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted.  It is the Lord who judges me”(1 Cor 4:3-4).  The Corinthians have been judging Paul and Apollos and Peter by their own criteria of spirituality and wisdom; Paul says that their judgment “is a very small thing” that does not move his needle.  Yet Paul acknowledges that even his own self-judgment is not the standard; he is not conscious of unfaithfulness but knows he is not his own judge.  There is one judgment that matters:  “it is the Lord who judges me.”  The point?  “Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.  Then each one will receive his commendation from God”(1 Cor 4:5).  Jesus’ judgment includes hearts and secret things.  Let’s wait for the judgment that matters.

    Paul is not saying that we should never judge or evaluate ourselves and others.  We will see that shortly (1 Cor 5:3, 12-13, 6:1-5).  When others are sin, Christians should be able to tell and act accordingly.  The judgment described here is criticism of how other Christians discharge their duties, live out their faith, and present the gospel.  Rather than criticizing and separating, let’s wait for the judgment that matters.

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One Thing to Think About:   What does Jesus think about my choices?

One Thing to Pray For:  The patience and grace not to judge my brothers in matters like these
 

All Things Are Yours

Reading:  1 Corinthians 3:16-23
    
    Paul wants the Corinthians to see the magnitude of the problem their divisions create.  “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?  If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him.  For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple”(1 Cor 3:16-17).  The “you”s here are plural; Paul is looking at the church as a whole as the temple in which God’s Spirit lives.  In the days of the Levitical priesthood, it was a grave offense to defile the temple and contaminate the place of God’s presence.  Yet the Corinthians’ allegiance to men is destroying God’s temple, incurring the wrath of God.

    So Paul gives three exhortations.  “Let no one deceive himself”(1 Cor 3:18) that his following men is an innocent practice.  “If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise”(1 Cor 3:18).  The Corinthians seem to have a problem overestimating their own wisdom and importance (1 Cor 8:1-2, 12:21) and Paul stresses that true wisdom comes in humility rather than pride.  “So let no one boast in men”(1 Cor 3:21).  All of this focus on which teachers are worthy of our allegiance is misplaced.  Why?  “For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s”(1 Cor 3:21-23).  Rather than being “of Apollos” or “of Paul,” the truth is that Paul and Apollos belong to them!  They are servants of God’s people (1 Cor 3:5), not leaders and not to be glorified.

    “All things are yours” is a sweeping, mind-bending statement.  God has made his people the object of his love and favor.  He has cleansed us from sin and revealed his mind to us, giving us teachers to guide and build us.  But other things are ours too:  “the world or life or death or the present or the future.”  God will make all these things “work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose”(Rom 8:28).  We don’t need special status or special connection to people; we already have all we could ever need in Christ.

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One Thing to Think About:   Am I confident that “all things are mine” in Christ?

One Thing to Pray For:  Respect for God’s people and their unity
 

Building on the Foundation

Reading:  1 Corinthians 3:10-15
    
    Paul flips metaphors from gardening to building.  “According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it.  Let each one take care how he builds upon it”(1 Cor 3:10).  Just as he “planted”(1 Cor 3:6) by initially teaching the gospel in Corinth, so he also has laid the foundation of Jesus (1 Cor 3:11).  Now the Corinthians continue to grow as others come and teach them, which Paul describes as building on the foundation.  There are a variety of materials available for use in such buildings—“gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw”(1 Cor 3:12)—and some will fare better than others.  Paul is arguing that every teaching has an impact in building strong, faithful lives—or weak, fragile lives.

    But these verses are directed at those who teach and build on the foundation.  It is a warning that however you help build others’ lives, “each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done”(1 Cor 3:13).  Paul promises that the strength of the faith and commitment we build in others will be tested.  It is unclear if he is referring to the fire of the final judgment or the ordinary tests of life (as in Matt 7:25, 27).  When we see our brothers, bolstered by our teaching and encouragement, surviving, we “receive a reward”(1 Cor 3:14).  Meanwhile, when the “work is burned up,” we are devastated (“suffer loss”) even though we can still be saved (1 Cor 3:15).  

    All Christians contribute to the growth of our brothers and sisters, building on the foundation of Jesus.  These verses show that this is a sober responsibility.   The strength of the counsel we give, the teaching we share, and the example we set will be tested.  We long to see one another developing the strength to withstand the tests of life, even though we acknowledge that this is not our sole responsibility.  It is a call to thoughtful, careful, deliberate work with one another.

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One Thing to Think About:   Whose lives am I helping to build?

One Thing to Pray For:  The strength for myself and others to withstand the test
 

God Gave the Growth

Reading:  1 Corinthians 3:5-9
    
    Paul has come back around to addressing the Corinthians’ divisions based on which man they follow (1 Cor 3:4).  “What then is Apollos?  What is Paul?  Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each.  I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth”(1 Cor 3:5-6).  These men they are making so much of are mere “servants,” mere gardeners.  Of course those who teach us are meaningful to us because they are the ones “through whom you believed,” but we are missing the point when we honor the men.  “So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth”(1 Cor 3:7).  Who deserves praise here?  

     There is something deeper here as well.  “He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor”(1 Cor 3:8).  Even though Paul and Apollos had different roles in the conversion of the Corinthians—probably based on when they were involved in the process—they are actually “one.”  Neither is more important than the other; they are on the same team.  They are scandalized to learn that the Corinthians are pitting them against each other.  The work we do for Jesus is never about us because “we are God’s fellow workers” and other Christians are “God’s field, God’s building”(1 Cor 3:9).  Who deserves praise here?

    Gospel work is planting and watering.  We teach where we can, almost always building on someone else’s work (see John 4:36-38).  Often we do not see the results of the seeds we plant, but someone else does.  No matter our role or success rate, it is never about us.  God enlists us in his work, empowers us, places his word in our hands, works alongside us, and gives the growth.  Who deserves praise here?

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One Thing to Think About:   Why do we tend to praise men and not God?

One Thing to Pray For:  A spirit of teamwork with other believers
 

Stuck on Milk

Reading:  1 Corinthians 3:1-4
    
    After all this abstract talk about natural and spiritual people, Paul has a rebuke to give.  “But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ”(1 Cor 3:1).  Ouch!  Paul has to dumb down his words to them—the way we would talk to a young child—because they are spiritual babies.  “I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it.  And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh.  For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?”(1 Cor 3:2-3).  He continues with the metaphor of raising a child.  At some point, the child grows to transition from milk to solid foods; this is a sign of health.  Yet the Corinthians are stuck on milk, still struggling to accept and practice the simplest parts of the gospel message.  They are old enough in Christ to know better.

    Why such strong words?  Their actions are demonstrating their lack of growth.  No matter how long someone has been a disciple of Jesus, “jealousy and strife” reveal an immature, worldly heart.  When such attitudes—and the divisions they inevitably lead to (1 Cor 3:4)—surface, we cannot move on.  It is not time to study Revelation or explore the nuances of our soteriology; it is time to start living better and treating one another with love.  

    Just like we expect children to progress and mature, so God expects us to be growing.  Sometimes Christians sit in the same pew decade after decade, carefully reading the Bible and reciting the right answers, yet living in hatred, bitterness, fear, jealousy, and pride.  Something is wrong; we are stuck on milk.  Spirituality is not a matter of merely having a thrilling personal connection to Jesus.  Spirituality is a behavior:  sincere love, willing humility, and eager service.

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One Thing to Think About:   Does my behavior show that I am a spiritual person?

One Thing to Pray For:  Eyes to see my weaknesses and blind spots