Spiritual Leadership
1 Corinthians 4
Most American Christians are soft. Our crosses are pretty jewelry, not instruments of brutal death. They warmly decorate our houses rather than warning of suffering. Particularly in the suburban Bible Belt, our versions of Christianity depict sanitized pictures of the American success story. We see good Christians as well-educated, smart, economically upper-middle class, and well-regarded in the community. Certainly we would expect these traits of church leaders. In fact, in many circles, the Pastor is expected to exemplify such traits: to be a pillar of the community, to drive a nice car (but not too nice), to dress well, to be educated and respected. Some groups put The Pastor on a pedestal as God’s annointed, a spiritual super-star to be admired and honored. In our passage today Paul sarcastically shreds this un-Christlike view of leadership. If you thought Paul was tough in chapter three when he called the Corinthians, “spiritual babies,” tighten your seat belt, because in chapter four he harshly lampoons them with biting, sarcastic irony.
We are studying Paul’s letter to Christians in ancient Corinth, a place of materialism, sexuality and conflicting religious traditions, much like us today. What they thought was wise, ends up being foolish. Paul takes us to deep roots of our faith to show us how to live for Christ in a corrupt culture. Fundamentally we are to live out our identity in Christ.
The problems they faced, we face in our lives today. Their city valued wealth and status, and the church followed its culture. Secular standards of leadership and success overshadow biblical ones. We grow up learning to take credit for and even advertise our accomplishments in education and employment through resumes and job evaluations. Not surprisingly, such advertisements carry over, consciously and unconsciously, to the Christian life, as we take pride in spiritual accomplishments. Churches boast about their size, their buildings, their programs or presence of Christian celebrities; which is itself a bit of an oxymoron. I’m not sure the concept of “celebrity” fits with a cross-shaped life. We all recognize the trappings of personal or organizational success. However nicely it was done, the Corinthians were bragging about their favorite leader and saw themselves as spiritually successful.
Strap on your seat belts, your views of leadership and spiritual success may be challenged. What we are about to see in 1 Corinthians chapter four directly counters most perspectives on success, including some “Christian” views. Remember Paul is writing to the churches in Corinth to correct their distorted views of maturity and spiritual leadership.
Open your Bible to 1 Corinthians chapter four. In applying this text, I encourage you to identify both with Paul as a leader and with the Corinthians. Do not let the word “leader” take you off the hook as if these biblical truths do not apply to you. They do. In the chapter Paul paints three images of spiritual leaders. His point is that we can view spiritual leadership as God does by seeing leaders in three vivid images: as stewards for God, as fools for Christ and as spiritual fathers. In the first image Paul paints, we are stewards of God.
Stewards for God
Follow with me as we read in chapter four verse one. Please note the use of the words “entrust” and “trust” which refer to stewardship. Paul ended chapter three saying no more boasting about human leaders; now he shares the right way to view leaders.
This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. 2 Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4 My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God. 1 Corinthians 4:1-5.
Biblically, leaders are to be servants of Christ. This word for servant originally described slaves who rowed in the lower tier of a ship. It came to designate anyone in a serving position, thus the word conveys humility.
Notice an important clarification: Paul is not the servant of the Corinthians, but of Christ. He is God’s servant. In your life, remember that you ultimately work for Christ. Yes, you may work for TorchMark or Toyota, but above the company, you serve Christ. As a mother you serve your children, but deeper, you serve Christ. As a leader of a Life Group, you serve the members, but more importantly you serve Christ. Although you pay my salary at Christ Fellowship, I do not ultimately work for you, but for Christ. Of course, this means that each of us must answer to Christ for how we are serving.
The second image in verse one is the dominant one: we are stewards. Paul says we have been entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed and those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. The words “entrust” and “trust” come from the Greek words for steward and stewardship. In those days, a steward carried delegated authority and responsibility for overseeing a household or business by generally running it, but only within guidelines agreed by the employer or the head of the house. We have been entrusted by God with the authority and responsibility for the “mysteries revealed.” What are those? This is the gospel of Jesus Christ, his cross and resurrection, not foreseen in earlier times. Thus, the image of a steward conveys delegated responsibility and accountability. We have the authority and responsibility to live and share the gospel of Jesus Christ. A leader is a steward for God, specifically of the gospel entrusted to us. By implication a steward must prove faithful.
so be faithful
The implication Paul draws is quite clear: so be faithful. It’s important to note that Paul does not say the steward must be successful, but rather faithful. The word for faithful includes the ideas of trustworthy and reliable. And to what or to whom are we to be faithful? Ask yourself what we have been entrusted with. The Gospel. We must be faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ: to live it, to speak it, to be formed by it. Notice all the typical measures of leadership success that are not mentioned: how big is your Life Group? Business? Bank account? House? How many followers do you have on Twitter? How many friends on Facebook? Now, how do you know if someone else is being faithful? Do you know all the circumstances in their life? Do you know their heart? So naturally, Paul draws the implication: so don’t judge.
so don’t judge
Verse three is one of Paul’s most liberating statements. He says I care very little if you are judging me. I don’t even judge myself. The point is not that he does not pay attention, but that in comparison with what God thinks about him, the opinion of other people does not matter. Even his own opinion of himself is not so important compared to God’s opinion.
We must be careful not to take Paul’s point to an illogical conclusion. We are to be discerning today. His point is that we should not declare a final definitive verdict on another servant of Christ in terms of how faithful a servant they are. This does not mean that we are to make no judgments. In the next chapter Paul will say we should judge those inside and in chapter six that we are to judge disputes in the family. The point is to avoid the fault-finding judgmentalism that assumes you know as much as God knows, especially about matters of the heart. You do not know anyone’s motives. We are not to be critical fault-finders or judgmental. When we do exercise discernment about a leader, we must be aware that our view is limited and fallible. Only God knows all the circumstances and the motives. We are not to judge who is the more faithful servant of Christ. For instance, once I was accused of not having Christlike love and of being self-serving. Those are motive issues that only God can really know. The only judgment that counts is the final one. We do not need to judge because the Lord will judge one day.
because the Lord will judge one day
And in this verse, who is the Lord? The Lord is Christ who is coming back. When he returns he will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and expose the motives of hearts. Then all the facts will be known and all motives revealed. God knows the hidden motives of our heart even more than we do. On that day we will each receive praise from God for our faithfulness to his gospel that he has entrusted to us as servant-stewards.
In some churches, there are people constantly examining the pastors and often on the wrong grounds, usually on more secular standards: how they speak, dress, how professional they are, too polished or not polished enough. The Corinthians wanted charismatic leaders who were impressive. God says what matters is being faithful to the gospel and he will judge that. So ask yourself, are you judgmental? Are you being faithful?
Who are you? You are a steward of God, that’s the first image Paul paints. The second image comes in verses six to thirteen where Paul shocks us with his biting, sarcastic irony. I find this section the most challenging to me personally. Not only are we stewards for God, but we are also fools for Christ.
Fools for Christ
Frankly, I do not aspire to be a fool; in fact, just the opposite. Brace yourself for this section. Are you ready? Let’s start in verse six.
6 Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, “Do not go beyond what is written.” Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower of one of us over against the other. 7 For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?
8 Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! You have begun to reign—and that without us! How I wish that you really had begun to reign so that we also might reign with you! 9 For it seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like those condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings. 10 We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! 11 To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. 12 We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; 13 when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment. 1 Corinthians 4:6–13.
Let’s walk through the text a line at a time. In verse six Paul indicates the problem: that they are getting puffed up and for wrong reasons. In verse seven he skewers them with three rhetorical questions, making the point that God gave you everything you have received so don’t boast and compare.
God gave you everything you have received
So don’t boast and compare
The three questions anticipate the answers “no one,” “nothing,” and “no good reason.” Who makes you different from anyone else? In English we might say, “Who in the world do you think you are, anyway? If the first question marks the Corinthians as presumptuous, the second marks them as ungrateful. What do you have that you did not receive? Nothing. So why you do you boast is if you did not receive it as a gift? Instead of offering humble thanksgiving for gifts God gave them, the Corinthians have allowed the gifts to become a sign of status and a source of dissension.
This is an invitation to experience one of those rare, unguarded moments of total honesty, Why in the world would you get puffed up like the proverbial frog in Aesop’s Fables over gifts you were given? All is from God’s grace. Nothing is deserved, nothing earned. When we understand grace we can live from a posture of unbounded gratitude. As a parent, it makes you sad or mad when you give a gift to your child in hopes it will bring them joy, and then you see them use your gift to gloat over their brothers or sisters. Look what I have. Mine is better than yours. The Corinthians’ boasting and comparing are sure signs that they have missed the gospel of grace. When we understand the gospel it has a leveling and humbling effect. When we understand the gospel of grace we are emptied of pride and filled with gratitude. No one has a reason to boast in anything except the Lord himself. From verse eight to verse thirteen Paul turns the heat up to full blast. The bottom line question is this: Are you rich kings who have it all or poor scum who suffer?
Rich kings who have it all or poor scum who suffer?
Should spiritual leaders aspire to be rich kings who have it all or to be poor scum who suffer? Honestly which would you rather have? And how do we evaluate leaders? This is an admittedly difficult text to hear well in the contemporary church, especially in Western cultures. Pray for the Holy Spirit to help you hear what God is saying.
Dripping with ironic sarcasm Paul says in verse eight: you have all you want already! Good for you! You are rich. You are kings. I wish we could be kings with you! Paul attacks not just their pride, but also their distorted view of spirituality. Just as they thought they were mature, but were spiritual babies, just they thought they were wise, but were really foolish, so now Paul says you think you have all you want, when you should hunger for God. You think you are rich kings when you are like the foolish king in the children’s tale of the emperor’s new clothes, who paraded around naked without even being aware of it. This text reminds me of the letter Jesus wrote to the church in Laodicea where he said:
17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. Revelation 3:17.
They have twisted God’s gifts into causes for pride. They think they are so spiritually advanced for wrong reasons. Too often we glamorize following Christ. We glamorize Christian celebrities. Material wealth does not indicate spiritual maturity. Being respected, a clever speaker and having lots of followers does not mean you are faithful to the gospel. A lack of suffering does not mean you are on the right path; in fact, it is potentially just the opposite.
Verses nine and following are shocking. Paul contrasts the Corinthians misplaced boasting in their relatively prosperous conditions that they think reflect God’s blessing in comparison with suffering for the Gospel as a more accurate measure of faithfulness. Which picture better fits with Jesus’ own life?
The Christian life is not a fast track to glorious success, but a slow path through difficult suffering. Difficulties in this life are not a detour for Christ-follower, but the main highway. Paul sharply contrasts a theology of success with a theology of suffering, a theology of pride with a theology of the cross. Paul says in Philippians 3:10 that he wants to know Christ and the fellowship of his sufferings.
In verse nine Paul paints a contrasting and gruesome picture. He and the other leaders are on display as prisoners of war, dragged through the city as defeated and disgraced losers, who at the end are executed in the arena in front of a jeering crowd as a pathetic spectacle. Then he makes three vivid contrasts that recall his discussion in the first three chapters. Paul says: we are fools, but you are wise; we are weak, but you are strong; you are honored, but we are dishonored! From these three contrasts, Paul lists six difficulties that the stewards of the Gospel suffer: we go hungry and thirsty, we’re in rags, brutally treated, homeless, and must work hard in manual labor. Jesus ended his life thirsty, in rags and beaten. What a massive contrast to the Corinthians who are supposedly well fed, rich and reigning as kings. This is the way of Jesus: to suffer.
Finally Paul concludes with the earthy language. Imagine an ancient city with dirt streets and animals everywhere without sanitation systems where street scum stuck to the bottom of shoes. Paul says we are the scum of the earth, the filth that you scrape off your shoe. We are the garbage of the world. If I were on a men’s retreat, I might elaborate.
That is not what I aspire to be. Paul took seriously that he was to share in the sufferings of Christ and he welcomed it. While I want to identify with Paul, I find myself more much like the Corinthians. As people living in wealthy suburban Collin County, are we not much more like the Corinthians than we dare admit? We are rich and successful on any global measure of material prosperity. And we mistake that for God’s blessing; worse we mistake that for spiritual maturity. People even preach health and wealth gospels that teach that if you faithfully follow God, he will make you rich.
Another pastor named Kenneth Chafin wrote in reflection on this passage. “As I read Paul’s description of his sufferings, I wondered how many people would be faithful to Christ today if there were the possibility of that cost. Then I remembered that in many parts of the world today there are Christians who can identify with what Paul experienced. When these modern fools for Christ’s sake visit the United States, they are sometimes offended by both the materialism and the spiritual pride they observe. They want to say to us, “What do you have that you did not receive?” As Jon Ewton said last week, we have seen pastors in Uganda who come much closer to what Paul describes than any pastor I have ever meet in America. My first response is to under-estimate an uneducated, black Ugandan man with one set of torn clothes, with dirt on his body from working in the fields to scrape out a living, and thick scars on his arms. Then I find out that he is a pastor who has led hundreds to Christ under very difficult circumstances. I shut my mouth and confess my shame, realizing I am the weak fool and he is the strong, Christ-like man.
Think about how we evaluate spiritual leaders. I suspect that all too often we evaluate using Corinthian, not Pauline, criteria. In doing so, we, too, have bought into the world’s view of what it means to be wise, powerful, and respectable, and, like the Corinthians, ignored the cross. Until we learn what it means to be empty of pride and full of Christ, we will continue to misread leadership to be status, power, and intelligence. Until then, Christians will continue to play the game of power politics, an all too Corinthian game.
Thankfully, in his third section Paul tones down the heat. His sarcasm gives way to gentleness as he paints the third image of spiritual leaders. Not only are we stewards for God and fools for Christ, but we are also spiritual fathers.
Spiritual Fathers
Let’s read the final paragraph starting in verse fourteen.
14 I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. 15 Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. 16 Therefore I urge you to imitate me. 17 For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church. 18 Some of you have become arrogant, as if I were not coming to you. 19 But I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. 20 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. 21 What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod of discipline, or shall I come in love and with a gentle spirit? 1 Corinthians 4:14–21.
The very fact that he has to say he is not shaming them shows that he is clearly aware of the force of his words. Paul’s heart is to warn them as a loving dad, giving correction as a caring father. Paul emphasizes that he alone is their dad. In our day we might say you have hundreds of teachers in your life, but only one dad. Because Paul started the church you can imagine his love for them. He was deeply invested. I can relate. His tough words are motivated by the love a good dad has for his kids. Paul’s top concern is the gospel, his singular passion. The gospel is the message of life in Jesus Christ. It is also my top concern. Have you trusted in Jesus Christ? He is the way to life now and forever. If you have not trusted in Jesus, I urge you to do so today. Then Paul wants the Corinthians to live the gospel, to follow Jesus. So he says to imitate him, remembering the ways of Jesus that he showed them.
So imitate, remembering the ways of Jesus shown to you
Paul tried to exemplify Christ by his life, not just by his teaching. A good dad does that for his kids, to be a model and an example of what it means to be faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Corinthians are to follow Paul as he follows Christ. This means they are to drop their search for status and instead embrace the way of the cross, which may look foolish, weak and dishonorable in this world. They should be faithful as servant-stewards of God, avoiding judging others, but waiting for the Lord’s judgment. They should recognize that everything they have comes from God’s grace, so they should give up pride for gratitude. They should be fools for Christ, accepting suffering as the way of the cross. This is a high bar. Can you confidently ask people to imitate you? Would you want your kids to imitate you? Your co-workers? Can you say to people in your Life Group, that they could take their cues from your life? The point is not to be perfect, but generally speaking, are you living a life that is faithful to Jesus? Are there others in Christ Fellowship who you want to imitate? Paul concludes with a final warning. He says shall I come with a rod or in gentleness?
Warning: shall I come with a rod or in gentleness?
The choice of how he comes to them, he warns, is theirs. Some of the trouble-makers have been talking big. Paul says some of you have been arrogant as if I were not coming. Dad is coming. Moms, have you ever said that to your kids? Your dad’s coming home. You better get it together.
Paul will find out if they are just full of hot air or if they really are spiritually mature. Are they showing the power of the Spirit who transforms lives or are they just talking a big game? Talk is cheap. In the Bible Belt lots of people talk a lot about faith, but that’s all it is—talk. They may know all the right words to say, but their lives don’t reflect God’s power. Paul says that the Kingdom of God is not just spiritual talk, it is to be lived. There is a big difference between knowing the right words and living them.
Paul’s final words are once again strong and fatherly: What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod of discipline, or shall I come in love and with a gentle spirit? Must I come as a father who has to discipline? Or will you allow this letter and Timothy’s coming to correct your thinking and your behavior? For us, Christ is coming back. Will we remain immature or will we grow in Christ? Paul wants to come in gentleness, but if must bring a rod of correction, he will, because the gospel of Jesus Christ is at stake. We can view spiritual leadership as God does by seeing ourselves in three vivid images: as stewards for God, as fools for Christ and as spiritual fathers. Spiritual leaders are to be faithful stewards for God, suffering fools for Christ and loving spiritual fathers, so we are to not judge them, but to suffer with them (rather than boasting), and to imitate them as they follow the ways of Christ (so they do not need to discipline us). Today, what is the Spirit of God saying to you through his Word? As we have considered deep roots of our faith, how is God growing you? How could you be a fool for Christ?
Footnotes:
Blomberg, Craig L. The NIV Application Commentary from biblical text…..to contemporary life: 1 Corinthians. Grand Rapids. Zondervan, 1995. Pp 98-99
Blomberg, Craig L. The NIV Application Commentary from biblical text…..to contemporary life: 1 Corinthians.
Grand Rapids. Zondervan, 1995. Pp 89-90
Fee, Gordon D. The First Epistle to the Corinthians. Grand Rapids. Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1987. Pp 170
Fee, Gordon D. The First Epistle to the Corinthians. Grand Rapids. Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1987. Pp 170
Fee, Gordon D. The First Epistle to the Corinthians. Grand Rapids. Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1987. Pp 171
Fee, Gordon D. The First Epistle to the Corinthians. Grand Rapids. Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1987. Pp 181
Chafin, Kenneth L. Mastering the New Testament: 1, 2 Corinthians. Word.
1985. Pp 65
Witherington, Ben III. Conflict & Community in Corinth: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on 1 and 2 Corinthians. Eerdmans. Grand Rapids, 1995. Pp 150
Keener, Craig S. 1-2 Corinthians. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, 2005. Pp 47
