1 Corinthians 3:1-23
God has called us to cooperate with one another in the body of Christ for the purpose of advancing the kingdom and bringing glory to God. Unfortunately, far too often, our own egos get in the way of this purpose and we allow our focus to drift from a God centered relationship to a man centered religion. This is the tendency that Paul was combating in Corinth and the tendency that we must wage war upon in our own hearts. Here are a few thoughts that might help us in this battle.
JEALOUSY DEMONSTRATES IMMATURITY: Jealousy and strife in our lives and relationships with one another indicate that we have been distracted from the purpose of God's glory and the spread of the Gospel. We begin to compare one ministry against another and almost make the ministry a competition between those who minister. We think so and so is the best preacher and we want our group to be the most effective. The ministry becomes a pursuit of whatever is "bigger or better." We want to impress the world, other believers and feel proud about "our" accomplishments. God is not impressed and when we act this way we only demonstrate our own spiritual immaturity. Whenever we find ourselves pitting one ministry against another, comparing one minister to another and thinking or talking poorly of the church across town, we must examine our hearts. We have lost sight of the priorities of God's Word and we just need to "grow up."
JUDGMENT DETERMINES ETERNITY: This portion is one of the clearest passages that describe the Judgment Seat of Christ in all of Scripture. I have written my thesis on this subject, so it will be hard to sum up this text in a paragraph, but here is what I think is vital for us to live in light of every day: our life on earth has eternal implications. All believers will be judged by God and that judgment will either result in eternal rewards or suffering loss. Notice that even those whose works are all burned they are still saved, however they will very definitely suffer loss as a result. I believe this to be a highly significant teaching that should be a driving force behind our obedience and service to the Lord. Man centered religious activity will go up in smoke while that which is done for God's glory will result in reward. We must always remember that God is a rewarder and that He is very good at His job. I believe that these rewards will be in the form of responsibilities and abilities that will be given for us to enjoy during the millennial reign of Christ on earth as well as for all of eternity. Whatever the rewards might be, I am positive that they are well worth any sacrifice that we might make on earth in order to qualify for them. I am also very sure that I do not want to "suffer loss" on that day when I stand before Christ. We must not be duped into thinking that our current lives and service are of little importance or consequence in eternity. This is a trick of Satan to distract us into focusing on the temporary and forgetting the eternal. Our faith in the cross of Christ has forever freed and forgiven us from all our sin. However, forgiveness does not imply that sin in the life of a believer will have no eternal consequence.
JESUS DESERVES PRIORITY: The driving force in our lives must be to lift up the name of Christ. It is not about our church or any particular minister, it is all about Jesus. The Spirit of God points men to Christ and Christ presents men to the Father. Any attempt to draw attention to ourselves or any other man, we are robbing God of the glory due His name. When we fight and argue with one another or do not work in harmony before the Lord, we have taken our eyes off of the priority that Christ has established for us in His and on the Cross. We must always remind ourselves that it is not about any one man or about any one ministry it always about Messiah. He deserves all of the honor praise and glory.
JEALOUSY DEMONSTRATES IMMATURITY: Jealousy and strife in our lives and relationships with one another indicate that we have been distracted from the purpose of God's glory and the spread of the Gospel. We begin to compare one ministry against another and almost make the ministry a competition between those who minister. We think so and so is the best preacher and we want our group to be the most effective. The ministry becomes a pursuit of whatever is "bigger or better." We want to impress the world, other believers and feel proud about "our" accomplishments. God is not impressed and when we act this way we only demonstrate our own spiritual immaturity. Whenever we find ourselves pitting one ministry against another, comparing one minister to another and thinking or talking poorly of the church across town, we must examine our hearts. We have lost sight of the priorities of God's Word and we just need to "grow up."
JUDGMENT DETERMINES ETERNITY: This portion is one of the clearest passages that describe the Judgment Seat of Christ in all of Scripture. I have written my thesis on this subject, so it will be hard to sum up this text in a paragraph, but here is what I think is vital for us to live in light of every day: our life on earth has eternal implications. All believers will be judged by God and that judgment will either result in eternal rewards or suffering loss. Notice that even those whose works are all burned they are still saved, however they will very definitely suffer loss as a result. I believe this to be a highly significant teaching that should be a driving force behind our obedience and service to the Lord. Man centered religious activity will go up in smoke while that which is done for God's glory will result in reward. We must always remember that God is a rewarder and that He is very good at His job. I believe that these rewards will be in the form of responsibilities and abilities that will be given for us to enjoy during the millennial reign of Christ on earth as well as for all of eternity. Whatever the rewards might be, I am positive that they are well worth any sacrifice that we might make on earth in order to qualify for them. I am also very sure that I do not want to "suffer loss" on that day when I stand before Christ. We must not be duped into thinking that our current lives and service are of little importance or consequence in eternity. This is a trick of Satan to distract us into focusing on the temporary and forgetting the eternal. Our faith in the cross of Christ has forever freed and forgiven us from all our sin. However, forgiveness does not imply that sin in the life of a believer will have no eternal consequence.
JESUS DESERVES PRIORITY: The driving force in our lives must be to lift up the name of Christ. It is not about our church or any particular minister, it is all about Jesus. The Spirit of God points men to Christ and Christ presents men to the Father. Any attempt to draw attention to ourselves or any other man, we are robbing God of the glory due His name. When we fight and argue with one another or do not work in harmony before the Lord, we have taken our eyes off of the priority that Christ has established for us in His and on the Cross. We must always remind ourselves that it is not about any one man or about any one ministry it always about Messiah. He deserves all of the honor praise and glory.
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