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A sign of immaturity is divisions within the church. So Paul having described what is possible to obtain through spiritual growth through the power of the Holy Spirit, here, lays it on the line as to their place on this spiritual ladder. Notice that they were on the bottom.
Paul calls them "Men of the flesh", and "Babes in Christ". It was evident to Paul that the Corinthians still had ties to worldly affections. They had accepted Christ but had not grown to any degree of maturity, so Paul could not teach them as he would those who were mature in the faith but had to teach them as children. It is important to remember this as we study the remainder of this letter. It was written very simply as one would write to a child. Many people never advance beyond being "Babes in Christ".
Notice their reward will be the same as those who reach a degree of maturity, but much of the pleasure and joy of their salvation will be lost. Remember, we are chosen of God for salvation, but spiritual growth is a product of our endeavors. Christians only have themselves to blame if they do not grow in Grace as they grow in years.
Notice the evidence that Paul saw that indicated their "spiritual immaturity". Jealousy and strife which led to divisions. Divisions and disputes are evidence that we are still behaving like unsaved people. Notice what the dispute was all about. It was one that he found in many of the churches that he started, especially where there were Jews in the membership.
They had misplaced loyalties which led to a "power struggle". There was similar
problems in most of the churches that Paul founded, particularly if there were Jews
in the membership. Paul speaks of this earlier in the book. There were two
groups in the church, those who had accepted Christ under Paul's leadership and
those who had accepted Christ under Apollos' leadership. I doubt that either of
these two men approved of this situation, but in a way they both contributed to
it. Paul says this diversity was evidence of their immaturity.
Christian Ministers
["Click here for I Corinthians 3:5-9"]
These verses deal with the proper concept of Christian Ministers. It becomes evident to every minister, evangelist, teacher, or witness sooner or later in their ministry. Billy Graham struggled with this early in his ministry.
The basic teaching in these verses is that no one can lead anyone to Christ. A hammer was made to drive nails, but unless and until, someone picks up that hammer and swings it, no nail will ever be driven. We, ministers, teachers, etc., are like a hammer. We are made to expound the Gospel, but unless and until the Holy Spirit uses us, we will accomplish nothing. We are made to be an instrument in God's hands, but until he honors our work, we are useless.
We often show great concern for the lost. We preach, we teach, we plead, we quote scripture, but Paul says all we really need to do is "plant the seeds of the Gospel". We either "plant seeds" or we "nourish" the seeds that someone else has planted. Remember, Paul is speaking to these Corinthians about the problem of divisions in their church. Some were of Paul, some of Apollo, but Paul explains to them that neither he nor Apollos were anything. Each had success as God granted them success. Paul stressed that the ability to believe did not come from the preacher, it came from God, so why give them any credit or honor?
Every person who witnesses about Jesus is a fellow worker in God's field, each
bringing in that portion of the harvest that God gives them. (The Sovereignty of
God).
One Foundation
["Click here for I Corinthians 3:10-15"]
Many call these verses "The Place of Works in a Christians Life". Mark them in your Bible for future reference. They answer many questions.
All these questions and many more are answered in these few verses. It is one of the greatest portions of scripture that substantiates the doctrine of "Justification by Faith apart from Works". Lets look at the scripture and answer the questions many, I am sure, you already know.
What is the foundation upon which the Christian Church is built? "No other foundation can anyone lay then that which is already laid, which is Jesus Christ." Believe it or not, many still try to lay other foundations. To name a few, works, faith in God, right living, baptism, tongues, church membership, Bible study and many others are proclaimed by some as the foundation upon which the church is built. But Paul knew and he tells these Corinthians and us that there was only one foundation upon which he could build his ministry, this, he said, was revealed to him when he was converted there on the Road to Damascus.
Question # 2, can someone else build upon the work that you have started? Yes. Paul says that at the time he was writing this letter, someone was building upon the work that he had started there at Corinth and it was Apollos.
Question # 3, can we build improperly upon that foundation? Yes. Paul says that there are 4 types of builders in a church. One who builds properly, one who builds improperly, one who does not build at all and finally, one who destroys.
The proper builder used gold, silver and precious stones (Gospel truths that are eternal), the improper builder uses wood, hay and stubble (false teachings, improperly motivated). When Gold and silver is put into the fire (put to the test), it is purified. When wood and hay are put into the fire, they are burnt. Thus our works will be tried by fire and it will be revealed what sort of work we have done.
What happens if our work is destroyed? "We will suffer loss." Notice this about a person like that. He may have been an honest and upright Christian and though his works were unprofitable and perhaps improperly motivated, he himself, will be saved. Thus we see that even unprofitable works will not separate us from our salvation, this we call the "security of the believer".
However, such a person does loose something. He looses his reward. What is the reward given to one who properly builds? Matthew Henry says that such a builder will have phrase and honor in that day and eternal recompense there after. Others suggest that the knowledge that what you did was pleasing to God will be all the reward we will need. Still others believe that there will be a crown for those who Build rightly.
Question #4 and #5, will the Christian be judged? Yes, our works will be judged. But the important thing to remember and never let any one take this from you, we may loose a lifetime of service but we cannot loose our salvation.
Question #6 if our works are improperly motivated, what will happen to them? As we have seen in the above, they will be consumed by fire.
Question #7 if our works are properly motivated, what will happen to them? Paul says that they will receive a reward.
Question #8 will the judgment of our works effect our salvation? As we have said before, the answer is no. Salvation is a gift from God, He alone can give and He alone can preserve it and present us faultlessly before the one true and living God.
Perhaps this is why most Christians join the third group and do nothing. Fearing being improperly motivated and not desiring to loose a lifetime of service, they just don't do anything. Paul does not even suggest that there is another group, but we know from experience that there is. Perhaps these are the ones that Paul calls "babes in Christ", never progressing beyond the infant stage of Christianity. James and Peter suggest that faith without works is dead, suggesting that we follow a very shaky path when our salvation does not give evidence of some kind of work for the Lord.
Perhaps we can borrow from Shakespeare and say that it is far better to have worked
and lost that to have never worked at all.
God's Temple
["Click here for I Corinthians 3:16-17"]
These verses have led to a great deal of beliefs, some true and some false. The following statements have been made and backed up by these verses.
Our bodies, as believers, are the Temple of God and as such, "holy creatures".
Nothing should desecrate those bodies. What do you think Paul is referring to here?
Matthew Henry thinks that he is referring to another group there at Corinth, who
were desecrating their bodies by loose and sensuous living. Their works could not
even be found amongst the "hay and stubble". They taught a false doctrine, one
that would bring them into condemnation. Paul is suggesting that those who teach
such a doctrine will provoke God to destroy them. We can only assume that such
people were never saved in the first place.
Well Rounded Outlook
["Click here for I Corinthians 3:18-23"]
Paul has given us much to think about in this chapter. To some it might seem useless to attempt to live a mature Christian life, and Paul realized that this might be the case among new Christians. So he does not end this chapter without a word of encouragement as well as a word of warning. To understand both of these conditions, we must have what Paul calls a "well rounded outlook" on life. To achieve this, we must be true to ourselves and never deceive ourselves.
Paul warns that we must never think more highly of ourselves than we should. We can, by good works, become satisfied with ourselves to the extent that we think we can improve on God's plans. Some people believe that by their eloquence and mastery of speech that they can "win" somebody to Christ. This is contrary to God's plan. Also, some may think they know more about God's plan than Paul did and add requirements to God's Plan of salvation. Jesus said, Who ever believes shall have eternal life. The Jews added circumcision, others added baptism, some church membership and some the gifts of the Spirit.
Let us not deceive ourselves and more important, let us not deceive others. God's plan is simple and we must not seek to add burdens to another's salvation. This, Paul says, is folly.
So for a "well rounded" Christian life, we must be true to ourselves and others by requiring only what God requires for salvation. This goes for every one, regardless of who you are, regardless where you are in the spiritual journey, past, present or future, and lay hold of all of God's promises by your simple faith in Jesus Christ.
Many people over the past 20000 years have tried to add other requirements to this plan but remember this is not only unfounded and unnecessary but it is a sin, doing this we crucify Christ a second time. Moses did this by disobeying God when he was told to "speak" and get the water from the rock and he added, on his own, a stroke of his staff, thus sinning against God and his judgment was that he was not allowed to enter the Promise Land. Remember, keep the message simple as God intended it.
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