Today we continue studying the book of 1st Corinthians
Last week we read that the Church of Corinth was struggling with a problem of division. People where tearing the congregation apart by choosing factions. Chapter one addresses this issue. Chapter 2 talks about the importance of the preaching of the gospel and the wisdom that God gives us by his Spirit.
Today we're going to study this book even deeper as Paul exposes the reason why there where divisions in the Church and establishes the need for Apostolic Authority as the way to re-establish order in the Corinthian Church.
1 Corinthians 3
1 But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.
2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready,
3 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?
4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?
5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each.
6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.
A. Spiritual people versus People of the flesh
Paul is not very polite as he addresses the problem and calls things by their names. He tells the congregation that they are:
1. People of the flesh
2. Infants in Christ
When a Christian is born again receives spiritual nourishment on the Word of God. As a baby is first fed with milk and latter in life as the baby grows starts eating solid food. Paul is telling the Christians of Corinth that their normal development stopped and they remained as spiritual babies instead of allowing their spirit to develop to maturity.
Christian service is about partnership and not rivalry! Church is not a place to attend but a place to serve. We have too many Christians that “attend” to services but do not serve the Lord.
B. The Apostle builds a foundation then others build upon it
1 Corinthians 3
8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor.
10 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.
11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
The foundation which is Jesus Christ is established by Apostolic authority. The Church is then called to built upon it.
This statement is not a doctrinal issue but a practical matter. There are plenty of situations in which a Church can have the wrong foundation.
Examples:
- Churches with a fellowship foundation. Everything they do is centered in social events, dinners, tea parties, fellowship retreats, small group gatherings with the purpose of fellowship, etc.
- Churches with a "Bless me" foundation. All the activities are centered in receiving and getting. Receive the anointing, receive the gifts, receive prosperity, receive encouragement, receive deliverance. People are not encourage to give anything else than their money to support the ministry.
- Churches with a leadership foundation. Everything they do is centered in promoting the leaders
C. Tested by fire - God tests to approve and not to condemn
Paul then warns that their work for the Lord will be put to the test. After Abraham had walked with God for over 50 years, he was tested to go to a higher level. "After these things, that God did test Abraham" (Genesis 22:1). God still had lessons to teach him. There is a principle of approval. God did not test Abraham to break him, but to approve him. The Underwriters Laboratory tests thousands of products to demonstrate that they are good and durable.
1 Corinthians 3
12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 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.
14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
We read that God's reward is given after the test of fire. What is this test of fire?
Hebrews 12:29 "for our God is a consuming fire."
Deuteronomy 4: "For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God."
God is a consuming fire. Paul tells us that there are two different kinds of things that will be touched by the fire. Some things will be consumed and they disappear, a second group will resist the fire and will remain.
Only God can judge us righteously but our work for the Lord is many times judged by the Church. My question is, "How can you judge what you don't know? How can you evaluate what you don't understand?"
I have listened to people very proud for what they did in the past. Let me tell you that if you started a prayer group and it was great 5 years ago but it doesn't exist today, that work didn't pass the test of fire.
If you brought 10 people to the Church but none of them is here today your work didn't pass the test of fire.
If you did a great thing for God but all you have is a book full of pictures to remember and that ministry is over now the test of fire burned the building and there is nothing left that you can boast about. Remember that Paul is teaching us to boast in the Lord.
Will our work be judged as gold, silver and costly stones, or is it wood, hay or straw? God will judge our work one day and he will reward us according to the quality of what we do for him.
Our Salvation is not put in doubt but our reward is.
15 If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
Like people running away from a burning house some Christians will not loose their salvation but God's reward will be completely lost when the test of fire is missed.
Matthew 6:4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
God is secretly watching everything we do! The Holy Spirit is here to Kindle the fire in our hearts and all things that don't matter will be consumed by his Holy fire.
Endurance is a quality that God expects us to manifest. If you go to an IKEA store you will find somewhere in the chair department a glass box with what is called the durability test. They have a mechanism that simulates someone sitting on the chair and they say the chair was used 10 times a day for 10 years and it’s still like new in its original shape. The furniture at IKEA was never meant to be as sturdy or as high quality as the good old teak or oak furniture that the older generation has probably been accustomed to. Let’s face it, it’s cheap quality but they want to sell it by showing how durable it is.
2 Timothy 4:7 Paul says “I have fought a good fight, I have finished [my] course, I have kept the faith”
Someone posted a very funny picture on the internet called “The real IKEA durability test” were a dog is chewing one of those chairs and it didn’t pass the test. In our lives we will be put to the test and many times we think we are faithful and ready to endure anything but God will sometimes allow us to go through hardships in order to help us to become approved. His intention is not to see us failing the test of fire but he always help us to learn our lessons and to endure our trials through faith.
D. God will destroy whoever destroys his Church
Paul finishes this part of the letter to the Corinthians by giving them a very severe warning.
The Church doesn't belong to a group of individuals or to an organization. We are God's temple and childish behavior, factions and divisions bring severe consequences to those that think that can destroy the work of the Lord.
1 Corinthians 3
16 Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?
17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.
Some people apply this verse to an individual saying that we are the temple, but in fact what the Bible is saying is that "The Church" and not an individual is God's temple. Of course that we could say that God chose to abide in us but this is not what the Bible is talking about. The Church belongs to the Lord and if you do anything that brings division, tears apart or hinders the life and progress of the Church God will destroy you.
The ESV Bible commentary says the following, "The one who destroys God's temple (in this context, the church) is not part of God's people and so faces eternal destruction on the final day, just as God eventually destroyed the Babylonians who had destroyed Solomon's temple."
By other words if you cause divisions in God's Church you may get along and survive here on earth but you will not go to heaven even if you were baptized and have a membership card in your pocket.
Arrogance is at the root of the divisiveness in Corinth. The Corinthians need to learn that they ultimately belong to God, not to the leader who baptized them ( 1:13–17 ), who was himself only fulfilling God's purposes ( 3:7 , 11 ; 4:1 ). They should, therefore, boast only in God ( 1:29 , 31 ).
Webster’s Dictionary defines arrogance as an attitude of superiority manifested in an overbearing manner or in presumptuous claims or assumptions
Proverbs 10:17 People who listen when they are corrected will live, but those who will not admit that they are wrong are in danger.
Today we have an opportunity to receive correction from God and decide to boast only in the Lord.
1 Corinthians 14:20 Brothers and sisters, don't think like children. When it comes to evil, be like babies, but think like mature people.
Arrogance brings destruction and arrogant people will not pass the test of fire. We are God’s temple and it is vital for our salvation that we remain humble and open to be shaped by the Holy Spirit into the men and women of faith that God wants us to be.
In the book of Judges chapter 7 Gideon asked the people “Anyone who trembles with fear may “turn back” and leave Mt. Gilead.” 22,000 left. After a few other tests only 300 remained. Some Christians are constantly asking God for more affirmation of his will. They are afraid to do anything for the Lord, fearing it might be wrong. God give me a sign, just one more sign. However the Lord will not answer to people that cause divisions, are arrogant and fail the test of fire. You and I need to ask ourselves- Is my relationship with God producing fruit?
Let’s renew our vows today and boldly tell the Lord that we are ready to obey His will. God loves you, the test is part of life’s schooling process. Let us submit, learn and pass the test.
