Building Our Shatterproof Church
1 Corinthians 3
vacMidway - Sep. 25, 2005
[WARNING: This sermon may not be suitable for every church’s political context.]
1) {Tell the story of a shattered church}
a) {Open illustration}
A few years ago a Godly pastor came to this city and planted a church here. He was so passionate and caring. He became the senior pastor for a while. He also had great associates. One of his associates was so gifted in preaching. His eloquence could draw a crowd. After a while, the senior pastor was gone, and his associate also left, and so the church is without a pastor.
The church board began a search committee for a new pastor. Some on the board wanted to find someone as eloquence in preaching as their last pastor, but some wanted to find someone with passionate care for the people as their church founder, and then there were some who pushed that they should invite big name preacher to pastor their church. And then there were always some idealists who said that the congregation wouldn’t really need a pastor.
At first, it was just a matter of opinions. But then people began to back their opinions with reasoning. Then philosophical and theological reasoning turns into debates. Debates became nasty. People took sides. Emotion was hurt. And before you know it, the church is on the verge of a painful split.
So much for the Vietnamese Alliance Church of Midway City!
No. It hadn’t happened to our church yet. But it could in the near future. It had happened to many churches we knew personally already. And we knew that it was happening to the Corinthian church!
b) {Bridge to text}
Paul planted the Corinthian church around 51AD. He stayed there and pastored them for another year and a half. When Paul moved on to the next destination to spread the Gospel, an associate named Apollos arrived to Corinth and taught them with great eloquence and skills. But then Apollos also moved on to spread the Gospel in the other places. Powerful men in the church rose to leadership, full of ideas but lacking godliness. These people splintered the congregation into multiple factions, each following their own “legendary leader”. Paul heard about it and wrote them:
My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.” [1Cor.1:11-12]
And here in chapter 3 of the letter, Paul started to address their undue focus on human leadership again:
When one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human? 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. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. [1Cor.3:4-7, ESV]
c) {Thesis & Tracking Points}
It is in our human nature that we want to follow someone, a visible leader. That same human nature will easily get us divided to follow men and not God.
Will that divisive nature shatter our church in the future?
Continuing our series Symbiosis – Doing Life Together, today we will look at 1 Corinthians 3 to learn from God’s Word about ways to combat division in our community:
We can build a shatterproof church by 1) growing ourselves, 2) knowing our true leader, 3) participating in ministries, and 4) watching for dangers.
d) {Prayer}
2) {Make the point(s)}
a) FIRST: We can build a shatterproof church by GROWING OURSELVES
i) {Text: Note what state the Corinthians were at}
“1But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3for 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? 4For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?” [v.1-4, ESV]
ii) {Explain}
The Corinthian were divided because they were not “spiritual people” but “people of the flesh” (or “carnal” in the KJV, “worldly” in the NIV).
What are worldly/carnal Christians?[i]
(1) Worldly Christians are prolonged babies, immature: Paul described these people “as infants in Christ”. They are babies. Just as babies have to depend on others for nurture, protection; spiritual babies have to depend on others to learn more about God. Nothing wrong with that, we all were babies at some times in our faith development. Paul recorded his interactions with the Corinthians as babies in the past: “2I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it.”
But there is a big problem if people are babies forever! In real life it is tragic if babies won’t grow normally. When the babies were first born, you would feed them on one end and clean them up at the other end. That’s OK for a few months. But imagine if that would go on for years: imagine if you have to spoon feed your teenage sibling! And clean them up at the other end! Eew! And here Paul is frustrated with their refusal to grow, even five six years after their conversion: “And even now you are not yet ready, 3for you are still of the flesh!” (Note the present tense).
As spiritual babies, people want to take more than give: “I didn’t get anything from church!” “No one care about me!” “They didn’t meet my needs!” It is fine to feel that way at first, but if you are here for a few years and still feel that way? It is time to grow up and face the popular church growth slogan: “It’s not about you!”
(2) Not only just childish, worldly Christians are also “Wimps in the Word”. Paul wrote that they can only digest “milk” and not “solid food”.
Throughout the New Testament “milk” is used to mean that first preaching of the Good News of Jesus Christ. It is the message of the evangelist and the missionary that calls for a response of repentance and faith. It is the first and very important word. In the same way “solid food” is understood to symbolize that teaching which moves beyond our conversion and expands the implications of the gospel to every area of life.[ii]
Billy Graham said, “I envy the work of the pastor. I’m called to preach the gospel and to ask for that first decision for Christ. But the pastor has the privilege of relating all the teachings of the Scripture to that convert as he grows.” Dr. Graham was making the same distinction the biblical writers made.[iii]
Here are some examples:
* Christ died for my sins: that is milk. We died with Christ to sin: that is solid food
* Knowing about the gifts of the Spirit: that is milk[iv]. Knowing the better gift of them all which is love. That is solid food[v].
* Looking forward to the victory of God in eternal life: that is milk. Looking forward to the victory of God in our life here and now: that is solid food.[vi]
* Learning more about God’s Truth with people: that is milk. Loving more of people with God’s Truth: that is solid food.
(3) How do you know a person is a childish, worldly Christian? By their actions. Paul pointed to the evidence: “there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? 4For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?”
But some crafty worldly Christians may even have a “spiritual” outward appearance (and they may even think of themselves as “spiritual”)[vii]. The distinctive mark is that deep down internally: their thinking and actions are prompted by the flesh! That’s what the word “of the flesh” here means, “Exactly like those who are who of fleshy nature, the worldly people”[viii].
When you and I called Jesus Christ our “Lord”, it means that He supposed to be the leader and the controller of our lives. When we believe in Jesus, it also means that we can trust in Him enough to follow what He taught. But if our thinking and actions are not prompted by God, and we keep follow the prompting of our own fleshly desires, we won’t grow and continue to be a baby, childish Christian, who are behaving exactly like people in the world who don’t have God.
iii) {Illustrate of How babies would fight and divide}
Put a bunch of two-year-olds into a room without any adult supervision, and you will be sure to have a mess on your hands. The dispute about “My dad is better than your dad” will lead to “My dad can beat up your dad” and eventually fights will break out among them. Even their dads were best of friends in reality.
Here the Corinthians were divided between the faction of Paul vs. the faction of Apollos. Ironically neither Paul nor Apollos was there. Talking about a bunch of immature babies! So, what would happen if we have a church full of immature Christians? Division will take place, even without any human leader inciting it!
iv) {Apply: build our spiritual motives}
First, we build our spiritual motives.[ix] Make sure that our actions are not motivated by our old fleshy nature, but instead our thinking and actions are in line with God’s instruction. The more mature people we have, the more solid our church will be in the future.
b) SECOND: We can build a shatterproof church by KNOWING GOD as our TRUE LEADER
i) {Text: Note how Paul feel about himself or Apollos}
“5What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.” [v.5-9, ESV]
ii) {Explain: KNOWING our HUMAN LEADERS is NOT the true LEADER, Jesus is the head of his body, the church}
First of all, Paul asked, “What then is Apollos? What is Paul?” By asking “What” rather than “Who”, Paul focuses on the place or position to which the Corinthians’ leaders have been elevated, rather than upon the personalities of each. “To what position or place have you assigned your leader?”[x]
And he responded “Servants!” It was the term for busboys and waiters of our days. Then he didn’t add, "Those WHO guide you into the Faith," but "through whom YOU believed;" again attributing the greater share to [the Corinthians], and indicating by this [that he and Apollos are] the subordinate class of [the Corinthians].[xi]
Notice his humble attitude toward the leadership concept. Jesus contrasted biblical leadership with worldly leadership this way: “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant” [Mark 10:42-43]
To be sure, many church leaders today think that they are the brain of the church, the mind of the church, dare I say, the head of the church. Some of the greatest conflict in churches stem from leaders who were so authoritative that they think who disagrees with them is disagreeing with God. On the opposite end of the spectrum are those leaders who think they are the “feet” of the church. They just hold everyone up, and let every one “walk” on them and really only respond when told by someone else to get moving. Instead of leading the body, they would carry its weight. And over time, the lack of direction and vision from the leaders result in a stagnant church that is always "putting their feet up" or a frustrated church which can’t seem to go anywhere.[xii]
If the church is the body of Christ, then the head of the church must be Christ. Our founding pastor always expounded this point whenever he spoke: “People might say, ‘I go to Muc Su Dai’s church.’ Or ‘I go to Muc Su so-and-so’s church.’ No, it is God’s church!” The church does not belong to a particular leader. The church belongs to you, all of you. And the job of the leaders, as Paul pointed out here, is to serve you (not fulfill your every wimps), but serve you in your serving God.
I will speak more on that in the next point, but let me pause for a moment to apply this truth.
iii) {Apply: Build our humble attitude }
We build our shatterproof church by having a proper attitude toward our human leaders. Our tendency to expect too much from a leader is wrong. According to the latest survey from Gallup, the number one reason for people joining a church is because “they like the pastor” (55%). The number one reason for leaving a church other than relocation is “disappointment with the pastor”[xiii]. Why are we following human instead of following God?
We should not exalt any leader over the church. Apollos may preach better than Paul, but Paul might care for them better that Apollos[xiv]. Each leader might have some specialties. “Paul planted and Apollos watered”. But all leaders are “nothing” in the scheme of God, even if they have the degrees and titles, even if they excel in the work God gave them to do.
But we should not be disrespectful to the leaders either. The word of God gives us this guideline: “Remember your leaders, who spoke the Word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” [Heb.13:7] Remember them and appreciate the work they do. Follow their faithfulness from observing “their way of life”.
Many of you here today are also in various leadership positions at this church, so let us imitate Paul’s lifestyle here: He was not flattered because someone starting a church with affiliation to himself, and he was not upset because people following some other leaders either. He treated Apollos as partner, they “are one” in God. He even discussed with Apollos about the situation at Corinth and urged Apollos to go there to heal the church [1Cor.16:12].
Like wise, people in leadership positions should remember that we are “nothing”. We should not dare to take any part in cutting up the body of Christ, the church. Keep in mind that we are on the same team, and always keep communication open with each others.
I myself have made this vow openly to the other pastors and leaders of the church here that I will not shatter up the church of God: “In the worst case scenario, I may be removed from ministry by this church, or I may resign. If I leave, I will leave alone. I won’t start a new church, so I won’t take anyone with me. I will not ripping the body of Christ apart by taking people out of the church.”[xv]
But building up a shatterproof church is not just the responsibility of the people who has some leadership positions only; it’s for everyone here.
c) THIRD: We can build a shatterproof church by CONTRIBUTING to the MINISTRY
i) {Text: Note who were supposed to build upon the foundation Paul laid down}
“10According 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. 11For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13each 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. 14If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. 16Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” [v.10-16, ESV]
ii) {Explain}
Paul said that our foundation is Jesus Christ, but who was supposed to build on top of that foundation? Every single one of us: “Let each one take care how he builds upon it.”
But what are we building on it? God’s temple: “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” Notice that the “you” here is plural, y’all like they say in the south. So what Paul is talking about here is not some sort of personal character building so that each of us will be more like Christ, but it is the building of the community because we are the temple and God’s Spirit is in our midst!
iii) {Illustrate}
We all are contributors to this community of God. Even inaction is also an action. Everyone burns calories here. If you just sit there, you burn calories; if you reach over and shake someone hands, you burn calories. But what will your calories burn at church accumulate into? One day all your calories will be evaluated by God. Will it be a big fat butt, or will it be a swollen rugged hand?
Even people who burn the same amount of calories in church may not get the same reward. Only the first three types of material: gold, silver, precious stones survive the fire. Wood, hay, straw materials may be artsy but they won’t be accepted by God. Two teachers teaching the kids: one teaches to express her love of God and the other teaches to impress God with her love, who would be rewarded? Two ushers greetings new people every Sunday morning: one out of obedience and the other out of convenience, who would be rewarded? Two members find seats at the church potluck, one looking for the familiar friends to talk to, the other one looking for any new faces, who would be rewarded?
We all building the church upon the foundation, that’s why Paul said “Let each one [of us] take care [of the] how”.
Some would object, “Well, even if I didn’t care [of the] how, it’s OK because I ‘will be saved, but only as through fire.’” To those I would ask, “How do you know that you will be saved?” Saying that is like saying, “I am staying back and face the Katrina hurricane by myself; it’s OK if I lost everything because I still have my life!”
Likewise never say, “It’s OK not to building up the church because even if the church shatter and falling apart, I still won’t be effected by it.” On the contrary, let us build our shatterproof church by participating in the ministry here.
iv) {Apply: Build our caring conducts}
In contributing to the ministry we build our shatterproof church by our caring conducts. And I mean ministry, not just church activities. What is the different between ministry and activity? The difference is the concern for the people. When people participate in the ministry (formal and informal ones), it means that people care about others in the community. And if people care, they will shatterproof the church. As people care, they would also protect the church from divisive dangers.
d) FINALLY: We can build a shatterproof church by WATCHING for DANGERS
i) {Text: Note who do you think Paul was writing these next few sentences for?}
“16Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. 18Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.” [v.16-18, ESV]
ii) {Explain}
Remember the “you” here is plural “y’all”? So, do you think that Paul was intentionally sending a clear warning signal to the people who bend on splitting the church at Corinth? After all, we all know that there is a few people always bend on destroying the church, right?
Not really. The word here is really not "destroy." We usually think “destroy” means "to eliminate or break apart." But that word “phtheiro” here is everywhere else translated in the Scriptures "corrupt." It means to damage, to injure, to harm the temple of God. (The church of God could not be destroyed, even by the gates of hell.)[xvi] Well, how do you damage the church? How do you corrupt the congregation? The answer is right there in the context. People corrupt the congregation by applying conventional wisdom in the church. In fact, much division in the church would be eliminated if individuals were not so impressed with their own wisdom.[xvii]
And the corruption/destruction of the church was so subtle because it was disguised as conventional wisdom. When you talk to people who were a part of church split, had anyone admitted that they were set out to divide the church? No one! Everyone thought that they did “what is best for the church”. The danger we need to watch for is not the danger that came from outside! What we need to watch for, is to watch our own follies stemming from our own heart. This is why Paul commanded people to examine themselves: “Let no one deceive himself!”
iii) {Apply: Build our introspective discernments}
If I interact with me and myself alone, I can easily deceive myself. You cannot see your own face. But the more I examine my life and motive in front the mirror of God’s Word; the Holy Spirit will point out to me where do we need to work on in my lives. Then I am also counting on the Godly people around me to help me seeing myself more clearly. This is why we need community, so that people can shape us as we follow God together.
3) {Conclusion}
The movie “Thirteen” retells the life story of a typical thirteen-years-old girl in LA. In one scene, the girl was depressed, so she got into a bathroom and start getting a razor and cut her arms with it and inflicted pain on herself so that she could feel better. “What!” I was shocked and could not believe what I’ve seen until someone from our youth group confirmed that it was true. This is known as “cutting”, or SI “self-injury”.
That was just baffling to the mind. Why would someone deliberately hurt her own body? What could possibly be gained by self-injury? And certainly most of us would never do such things.
But in a powerful and painful way self-injury happens regularly in Christ’s body. The Bible talks about the church as the Body of Christ. That reminds us that the church belongs to Jesus (It’s HIS body) and to all of us (It’s OUR body). The most important thing for a body is to stay connected to the head (Christ Himself). It is also important for the body to practice “self-care” or body care. Next to loyalty to Christ is love for each other. We need to be healthy so we won’t inflict injury to ourselves irrationally.
* May we build up the body by submitting to Godly motive in our personal life so that we can grow.
* May we build up the body by knowing that God is leading us so that we can have the proper attitude toward our human leaders.
* May we build up the body by contributing in ministry and caring for one another.
* And may we build up the body by continuing examine our lives in humility before God and others.
For reference notes, formatted text and comments, please go to http://i12know1stdraft.blogspot.com/2005/09/building-our-shatterproof-church.html
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