Episode 15 "1 Corinthians 3"
1 Corinthians 3
Building on the Foundation of Christ
V 1-3
"Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans?"
The heart of Spiritual immaturity is carnality. Carnality, in the literal sense, is being human. Some translators use fleshly, because “sarkikos” means “the flesh”. But in a practical spiritual sense, it means your life is governed by mere human nature, rather than by the Spirit of God.
This was the major problem at the Church of Corinth. They simply did not allow the Spirit of God to govern their decision making.
As such, he says since jealousy and strife are among you, are you not “sarkikos” (just human) and behave like “mere men” or better said “like unbelievers”?
In Greek, the word for a man or a male is “aner”. When you talk about men in a generic sense (we might use the word mankind in English) the word used is “anthropos”. In English, we get anthropic (human span of existence on Earth) and anthropology (the study of humankind) and other such words. The idea is “anthropos” deals with the finite existence. However, Paul is teaching us to think of our eternal existence. Where and how you spend your eternity is much more important than your finite existence in the flesh.
"17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 1 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands." 2 Corinthians 4:17- 5. 1
V 4-9
"4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings? 5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task.6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building."
As an example of the jealousy and strife among the Corinthians he uses the example of one saying, “I am of Paul” and another, “ I am of Apollos,” Paul is a man - he is going to die. Apollos is a man - he is also going to die. We are athropos, or fleshly – we are all going to die! Paul did this. Apollos did that, but only what God does effects eternity! Only God can cause growth.
What the Corinthians did not understand was the Church is not about the flesh - it’s about the spirit. It is not about honoring the anthropic leadership - it is about honoring God.
This is so consistent in Paul’s teaching.
“8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2: 8-10
We have been given the gift of salvation by God. It is not the gift of the preacher - it is the gift of God.
“8 So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. 9 He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10 but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 11 And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. 12 That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.” 2 Timothy 1:8-12
God called Paul (and every other leader) to entrust everything to Christ.
Paul and Apollos were servants - it is God that does all the “real work.”
It is the job of one servant to plant. It is the job of another to water. However, only God can cause the seed to bud.
No one human is more important than any other - we will each receive our applicable reward for what we do. That reward is from God- not men. But importantly - for our labor, not the results! The results are up to God!
We are “God’s laborers together” is an interesting statement. Paul wrote we are “synergos theos”. We have synergy with God. Synergy is when things cooperate, thereby making things even better. With synergy with God are labor is even more effective.
“We are God's field,” he writes. Literally, we are God’s garden.
“We are God’s building,” means, literally, the place God lives.
We are The Building of God v. 10-17
"10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care.11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. 14 If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. 15 If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. 16 Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple."
He first says we are his building, now he describes how God uses every believer to become the building of God.
21 ”In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.” (Ephesians 2:21)
16 “From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” (Ephesians 4:16)
First - God uses preachers to lay the foundation and then often allows men and women of God to build on that foundation (he calls them “wise architects”).
He then gives a warning, not only to the person being built up, but to the builder (the minister) to be careful how they build on the foundation he laid.
Second - Paul reminds us the foundation is not Paul - it is Jesus Christ alone. Paul identifies the cornerstone as Jesus and believers being built on His foundation into God's dwelling place.
Check out this prophecy of Isaiah and compare it with what he wrote in Ephesians:
" 16 So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic.” (Isaiah 28:16)
“19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” (Ephesians 2:19-22)
As such, be careful how you build upon the foundation of Jesus. Some of what we built is gold, silver, and precious stones. Some is wood, hay and stubble.
Gold, silver, and precious stones are not combustible. Wood, hay and stubble, on the other hand, can ignite a conflagration.
V 13 -15
"13 their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. 14 If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. 15 If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames."
Paul says every man’s work will be tested - not the worker. God puts all our work - how we build on the foundation - through the fire. If it is precious, it will be rewarded. If it is combustible, it will not remain. The worker will not be consumed (v15), but what is built on the foundation will be consumed.
Interesting fact. To purify precious metals, like gold and silver, they are melted. The slag (the waste) comes to the top. The hotter you make the metal, the purer it becomes.
“10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” (2 Corinthians 5:10)
Every believer will appear before the judgement seat of Christ – Believers, not unbelievers! Salvation is the gift of God, and has nothing to do with works. Here he is talking about what we build on the foundation of God. The judgment seat will test how believers use that gift.
Jesus’ teaching is consistent with this as well:
“46 Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.” (Luke 6:46-49)
V 16-17
"16 Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple."
The Church (the corporate body of believers) are the temple of God:
Spirit dwells in the temple
Temple is holy and set apart for God
In chapter 6 he speaks to the individual:
“19 Do you not know that your bodies are temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?” (1 Corinthians 6:19)
Paul uses the Greek word “naos” (the central point of worship, called the Holy of Holies) when describing our bodies in chapter 5 and the corporate body in chapter 3. This is a big deal, since only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies in temple. Hence, if you destroy God’s temple, God will destroy you, because God will not allow the Holy of Holies to be defiled.
V 18-20
"18 Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”; 20 and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”
Let no one deceive you - man’s wisdom will never hold up to the fire of God’s judgment, because it is also carnal! Man’s human wisdom is anthropic. It will not last! Ultimately, it is stubble, not gold.
V 21
"21 So then, no more boasting about human leaders! All things are yours,"
Hence boasting about being a follower of one man or another is a waste of time. Christ is all in all!
“13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13)
Whether it is a Christian leader, the world, life, death, things now, or yet to come - you have all you will ever need in Christ. You belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God and unbelievers do not have that privilege.
That is why in Chapter Four Paul says, we are stewards - one who manages the house. He also says we are the “under-rowers” (those on the bottom of a vessel who move the ship) of Christ. But that’s the topic for next time!
