1 Corinthians 4:8-21 A Contrast of Faith

1 Corinthians 4:8-21 A Contrast of Faith

Paul makes a contrast between the Corinthians faith of the privileged and the Faith of the broken. There were some who flaunted their blessings as if they earned or deserved them. In contrast to Paul’s attitude of being poor and needy before God.

They have what they want, rich in the world and put themselves in the role of being in charge and control. They flaunted their blessings as proof that God loved them more than others.

If you want to be great you must become the servant of all. True faith and spiritual strength is not found in privilege but in need. Faith is not pushing or pulling ourselves to the top, but by lifting others up.

Do you wish to experience true faith, real spiritual renewal? It is time to tell God of your need, your brokenness.

How close to heaven can you get on your own?
The high jump! Less than 8 feet. Pole vault less than 20 feet.

“Blessed are those who are poor in spirit and hunger and thirst for righteousness.”

Came to seek the lost sheep, the lost coin, the lost people of the world.

Jesus is looking for you!

Psalm 139 :7-12 that there is nowhere you can hide or be hidden, not from God wrath, but from God’s love.

Jesus said “come to me all who are heavy burdened and I will give you rest.”

The Bible tells us a bruised reed He will not break, a smoldering wick He will not put out.”

“This little Light of mine” – you don’t have a little light all you have is a smoldering spark; you are the one Jesus has been looking for.

Don’t let your pride, your vanity, your intellect or anything else stop you. You have tried so many things that have left you empty inside, isn’t it time you gave Jesus a fair chance at changing your life? He has been looking for you, waiting for you, just call out to Him and you will see.

1 Corinthians 4:6&7 “What Is Written”

1 Corinthians 4:6&7 “What Is Written”

This couple of sentences are packed with information. In your study Bible it may say “what is written” refers to scripture, but the New Testament has not been written. So what is Paul talking about. Paul is talking about the Gospels of Mark and Luke. Luke tells us that some have written an account of Jesus, Luke 1:1-4. We know that Luke uses Mark as his base to write his account of Jesus. Luke is written before 1 Corinthians, while Luke is with Paul. So “what is written” is taking about the Gospels.

Written is important, Paul does not say what has been told you, he says “what is written”. This makes it clear that the Gospels are in writing not just passed on by word of mouth, often referred to as an oral tradition. In fact, Paul is warning them about accepting “new teachings of Jesus” that do not have the approval of one of the apostles.

One of the great problems in Corinth is the acceptance of off the wall teachings. The subjects of this letter are these false teachings. False teachings and practices the range from sex to the ministry of the Holy Spirit, from lawsuits to the Resurrection of the dead. Paul has a list of their messed up ideas and will address each one. But first Paul tells them to not add to the things that have been written, the Gospels.

People will just make stuff up, to justify their sin, stroke their ego, extort money from believers, and a whole host of other reasons. Paul urges the church to stick with what you know to be true, the Gospels.

Paul says “I apply this to me, and I apply this to Apollos”, and everyone else. We need to apply this to ourselves today. Great cults have been built on false teaching from people who say they have new teachings. Whole denominations have been led astray by false teachings. As we study 1 Corinthians we will see that most of these modern false teachings are addressed by 1 Corinthians. It seems the “New Revelations” are just the old false teachings repackaged.

As we apply this to ourselves we are to stick with what is written. The scripture we have is based the Apostle’s teaching. Books were placed in the New Testament only if their connection to the 12 Apostles could be verified. We would do well to make sure all that we learn and teach is based on Scripture. By this we mean Scripture as it was written not edited, and Scripture plainly read without special interpretations.

2 Timothy 2:15-18
¹⁵  Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
¹⁶  But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,
¹⁷  and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
¹⁸  who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some.

 

Matthew 24:21-24
²¹  For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.
²²  And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.
²³  Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.
²⁴  For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

In the history of the Church there have been many creeds and confessions to help counter false teachings. These creeds can never replace scripture.

When we do not understand something we read we go to other scriptures to get understanding.

The Protestant Reformation was based on the idea that everyone can read and understand the Bible and the Bible means what it says when plainly read.

Second when we apply this to ourselves we will avoid pride. Every preacher and teacher who is rightly teaching is giving only what they have received from God. Some may be more talented, some more understandable, some more eloquent, and some more exciting, but all can only give what they have been given.

2 Timothy 2:2
 ²  and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

2 Timothy 2:15-18
¹⁵  Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
¹⁶  But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,
¹⁷  and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
¹⁸  who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some.

People all sorts of false preachers and teachers are out there. They write books, have tv shows, radio shows, and are on the internet. 1 Peter 5:8 says ⁸  Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:15-16 ¹⁵  Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
¹⁶  You shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

 

Paul’s message to the Corinthians and to us in this passage is to stick with the Word of Truth. Study your Bible and know what it says. Avoid those who have secret revelations that are not plainly read in scripture.

1 Corinthians 4:1-5 "The Purpose of the Heart"

1 Corinthians 4:1-5 "The Purpose of the Heart"

Paul is now going back to the leadership question. Remember they are all saying “I follow Peter, Paul or Apollos”. They like how one performs their work for God and not another. They exalt one and above another. In looking at what Paul has to say about leaders we also find how to look at ourselves. We are all leaders in the church. We all have jobs to do, we have votes, and share our ideas and opinions. We are all servants of Christ and stewards of what God has given us

We know that one of the big things in this church is that they are fighting over who is greatest Paul or Apollos. What is interesting is that nowhere does Paul point out Apollos’ faults. How hard it must have been to let the new guy have control. So how does God want us to look at the leaders He sends us?

Servants of Christ. Leaders are servants of Christ, their first and foremost duty is to serve Jesus. The word for servant is “Under rower” that is the rower on the ship who is below deck. This person cannot see anything about where they are going, what is passing by, or even where they have been. All this person sees is the oar and their calloused hands. All they can do is try to put in the best stroke of the oar they can.

Romans 12:3 (ESV)
³  For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.

The leaders job is not to be exalted by others or to climb up to stand on a pedestal, our job is to put in the best stroke of the oar we possibly can. Only God can really see where we are going, where we are, or even where we have been.

Of Christ. As leaders in the church you do not serve the powerful, the majority or even yourself. You are to serve Christ. We are to seek out Jesus’ desires and plans for those we lead. The goal of Christian leadership is not to make people happy but to make God happy.

Stewards of the mysteries of God. The steward has nothing of their own only what has been given them by God. As a Christian leader you only have what has been given to you. God gives each Christian gifts to be used in the church. They are not gifts we produce but gifts that come from God. The stewards job is not to be exalted or to become powerful or famous. The stewards job is to be found faithful. Did you correctly take care of and use what God has given you?

Matthew 25:14-30 (ESV)
¹⁴  “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property.
¹⁵  To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.
¹⁶  He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more.
¹⁷  So also he who had the two talents made two talents more.
¹⁸  But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.
¹⁹  Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them.
²⁰  And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’
²¹  His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
²²  And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’
²³  His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
²⁴  He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed,
²⁵  so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’
²⁶  But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed?
²⁷  Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.
²⁸  So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents.
²⁹  For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
³⁰  And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

 

How well we have done will come to light when God reveals the purposes of the heart. We cannot tell, nor should we judge if another person is being the best servant or steward they can be. We do not know what God has given to them to work with. We as Christian leaders should not measure our success against others. We should focus on being the best servants and stewards we can be. God will disclose to all of heaven what our hearts purpose has been.

The Relay race.

As a Christian leader we may not understand what God is really doing. Like the rower below deck we may not see where we are going, where we are or even where we have been. But each of us know the purpose of our heart. We know if we have purposed to serve Jesus or someone else. We know if we have put in our best stroke of the oar possible.

Perhaps you have been going mindlessly been going through the motions, never evaluating your service or your stewardship. But God calls each of us to put in the best stroke of the oar possible. We are all leaders in the church. We all have jobs to do, we have votes, and share our ideas and opinions. We are all servants of Christ and stewards of what God has given us. We will all be judged by God as to the purpose of our heart. Has it been to serve Jesus and be good stewards of what He has given us? Let each of us determine in our heart to put in the best stroke of the oar we possibly can.

1 Corinthians 3:16&17 "Temples of God"

1 Corinthians 3:16&17

Paul will use the idea of our bodies being the Temple of the Holy Spirit several ways. In this case he has been talking about how people build on the foundation he laid vs 10-15. Those who build well will receive a reward. This refers not only to the individual Christian but also leaders, teachers, and disciple makers.

In this little passage is both a warning and a blessing.

Wrapped in the discussion of spiritual build there are some things this passage is not about. Some use this passage to pronounce judgement on everything from suicide to over eating. Skinny people use it against fat people, fat people use it against skinny people. Nonsmokers and nondrinkers use it against those who smoke and drink. While some of this will be addressed later in this letter, it is not being addressed here.

The warning is to those who build, both individuals and leaders / teachers. If you build with quality materials you receive a reward, but if what you build with compromises the building then you will be judged.

Building with untreated wood

A power plant without rebar

If you build poorly and with poor materials, you compromise the temple of God.

4:6 don’t go beyond what is written.

False teachers beware for God will judge you as well for your compromised and destructive teaching, which destroys the Temple of God.

Matthew 18:6
⁶  “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

(stumble, sin,)

The second thing we can see in this passage an insight to how God feels about you, how God values each of us.

You are the temple of God, not a house or container but a temple!
you might ask “does God see what I see in the mirror?”
or “can’t God afford a better place than this to live?”

But God sees you as a Temple, His temple. God see the beautiful thing you can and will be. So valuable to Him that He gave His life for you and grants you a place with Him in His resurrection. So valuable that those who mislead you, those who attack you for your faith, ect. Will be judged as if they destroyed the very throne of God in heaven.

Matthew 10:29-31
²⁹  Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. ³⁰  But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. ³¹  Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Build carefully because you are loved by God. Build carefully because you are His Temple. Live boldly and fearlessly for God, because He watches over and protects you. You Are The Temple Of God! And He Lives In You!

1 Corinthians 3:10-15 “Golden Opportunity”

1 Corinthians 3:10-15 “Golden Opportunity”

Paul tells the Corinthians that a day is coming when all our work will be tested with fire. The wood and hay will of our lives will be consumed leaving only the quality work we have done.

The fire; shake shingle roofs.

Houses and tombstones.

We could at this point get into building inspection mode, proclaiming how pour our or someone else’s work has been. But this evaluation is best left to God. We cannot change what we have built in the past we can only build with better materials from now on.

Today let’s focus on our opportunities. We have opportunities today to build with materials that will last for eternity. Today we can build with Gold, Silver and Precious stones. No matter our age or abilities we can use the quality materials that God gives us to build with today.

What are these materials that will last into eternity? In 1 Corinthians 13:13 Paul tells us three things will remain, Faith, Hope, and Love.

Build with Faith. Faith that Gods’ way is the best way to live. Faith that things that are built in your life by God, will last. Build with faith with others, That God can and will do something good in their life. Invest in them with confidence.

Build with Hope. Hope in the great things God can and will do! Hope that is centered in Jesus who will not let us down. Hope in others that they can be transformed by the Holy Spirit.

Build with Love. Love for God who first loved you and love for others. Love for the lost whom God also loves.

Matthew 6:14 (NIV2011)
¹⁴  For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

So we build with the forgiveness of others and with grace.
Forgiveness: not giving them what they deserve.
Grace: giving them what they do not deserve.

Micah 6:8 (NIV2011)
⁸  He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Build by acting rightly toward others.
Build with mercy toward those who do not act rightly towards you.
Build with humbleness, knowing only God can provide these things for us.

Galatians 5:22-23
²²  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
²³  gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

 

John 14:1-3 (ESV)
¹  “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.
²  In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
³  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

 

What kind of materials will you choose to send Jesus, to build with?

It is better to live in a well build cabin than a slipshod mansion.

So today and every day, let us look for opportunities to build with the kind of materials that will stand the test and last for eternity. Stop looking back with regrets and focus on your opportunities to build something that will last today.

1 Corinthians 3:1-9 Arrested Development

1 Corinthians 3:1-9  Arrested Development

I am sure you have people before who have gotten stuck in life. They have not matured enough to take care of themselves. They are stuck in elementary or high school. College students who keep switching majors, eight years and 5 majors and no degree, no job. It’s called arrested development. It can happen anywhere in life.

I was sitting by a stream watching the water flow when a leaf caught my eye. It circled endlessly in a circle, stuck in an eddy. The leaf will not continue downstream until the wind or some other force breaks the eddy’s spell. That is arrested development. Arrested development can happen physically, emotionally, even spiritually. This is the problem for the Corinthian church. They are still not ready for solid spiritual food. How does Paul know this? Their strife over who they follow. They argue over who has the best spiritual gifts and which one is truly spiritual, all the while the real work of God is left undone.

The rip current. I find myself struggling, more willing to try and fight my way to the beach. I am so sure of where we should go that I find myself fighting with people. God say Rick you have to do better. If I have been fighting with you please forgive me, I should and will work to do better. Perhaps you find yourself in the same place.

Arrested development can happen anywhere in our spiritual growth. It shows not only in strife but it shows in other ways. It can be seen in a boring prayer life, a lack of desire for God’s Word, a desire not to be in fellowship with others, or not finding a purpose in ministry using your spiritual gifts. These are all signs that we have gotten stuck in a spiritual eddy. The number one sign you are stuck is a lack of fruit, you stop being part of the harvest.

Whole churches can get caught in spiritual eddies like the Corinthian church did. There are whole churches that have failed to bring even one person to saving faith in Jesus, in years. They have a beautiful building, good music, prayer meetings, Bible studies about everything, even alter calls at every service, and still have yet to win a soul.

While at college I was sitting next to a table of students who were planning to go to the Wednesday night concert at a large local church. The church would close the doors and not open them until someone got saved. These students were trying to decide who’s turn it was to go forward at the alter call so the rest could go home.

You may have seen fields of corn where the farmer will take the combine and harvest the outside edge of the field to make shooting lanes for deer hunting. One farmer I know does this and then forgets to actually harvesting the field. We used to tease him about hauling the planter behind his combine.

Some churches settle on the edge of the field and leave the bulk of the field untouched. Like the farmer who is so busy deer hunting that he has forgotten to harvest his field.

What to do about this?

1.       Ask God to show you if you are spiritually stuck

2.       Periodically evaluate your growth as a Christian

3.       Accept responsibility for where you are at

4.       Make a plan on how to change, and implement it.

God wants and has so much more for us. There are whole fields to be harvested. There’s no greater feeling than being part of the harvesters. The Bible says “Work out your own salvation”, that means to make a plan and a commitment to growth in your spiritual life. Will you make that commitment to God today, to do better, to be better.